Singapore Taxes

Please visit the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) website at http://www.iras.gov.sg for detailed information about the Singapore tax. You are strongly encouraged to seek professional tax advice if you have complicated tax situations or income coming from sources other than employment at CIS, e.g. interest, dividends etc. The points of interest found below are not comprehensive, and you should visit IRAS website for continuous updates.

Computing Your Taxes 

The amount of income tax that you have to pay depends on your tax residency in Singapore.  Employee benefits such as a housing & flight allowances and children's tuition are a taxable benefit for the employee under Singapore law. It is the responsibility of the employee to pay the appropriate amount of taxes as directed within the individual's tax bracket.  

Income of tax residents after deducting expenses, donations and tax reliefs is subject to income tax at progressive rates ranging from 0% to 24% 

The employment income of non-residents is taxed at a flat rate of 17% or the progressive resident tax rates, whichever is a higher tax amount.  Employee benefits such as a housing & flight allowances and children's tuition are a taxable benefit for the employee under Singapore law.

You are a tax resident for a particular Year of Assessment (YA) if you are any of below:

● Singapore Citizen who normally resides in Singapore except for temporary absences;

● Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR) who has established a permanent home in Singapore;

● A foreigner who has stayed/worked in Singapore (excluding director of a company) for 183 days or more in the previous year, i.e. year before the YA

For Foreigners, you can be regarded as a tax resident if:

Period of Stay (inclusive of work) in Singapore Resident Status Tax Implications

• At least 183 days in a year Resident for that year Income taxed at progressive resident rates. You may claim tax reliefs.

• At least 183 days for a continuous period over two years. Resident for both years. Income taxed at progressive resident rates. You may claim tax reliefs.

• Three consecutive years Resident for all three years. Income taxed at progressive resident rates. You may claim tax reliefs.

Filing Your Taxes 

Generally, if you have received any letter, form or SMS informing you to file an Income Tax Return, you must file regardless of the amount of your annual income in the previous year; or whether your employer is participating in the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) for Employment Income. CIS is participating in AIS and will submit your employment income to IRAS. However, you are still required to file your income tax return.

You have to submit your completed paper tax form to IRAS by 15 April of each year. If you e-file your tax, you have up to 18 April to complete your filing. To e-file, you need to get a SingPass (www.singpass.gov.sg) or an IRAS PIN (www.iras.gov.sg) to login into IRAS portal.

Paying Your Taxes

There will be no tax deductions from each pay cheque. Please set aside a part of your salary to pay for your taxes.

Estimated taxes below as reference only:

Teacher with no children - approx. $9000 for a full year of work.

Teacher with 1 child (Secondary School) - approx. $15,500 for a full year of work

Teacher with 2 children (Secondary School) - approx. $24,000 for a full year of work

Full payment has to be made within one month from the date of the income tax bill. You may pay the full tax by cash at any Singapore Post Office, by cheque, other payment modes, e.g. AXS, S.A.MTM or Internet Banking. Alternatively, you can sign up for the 12-month interest-free GIRO Installment Plan to pay your income tax by installments.

New staff are strongly encouraged to sign up for GIRO to ensure that their taxes are paid on time as there are substantial penalties for late or non-payment of taxes.

You are welcome to send specific tax questions directly to the Human Resources Department.

TAX (including the famous ‘plus plus’)

Most products in Singapore are subjected to GST. Further to this, meals and drinks will be subjected to an additional Service Charge. Salaries are taxable with further details provided below. 

Goods and Services Tax (GST)

GST is also known as Value-added Tax (VAT) in other countries. The current GST rate is 9% of the final value (inclusive of service charge, if any) of any goods or services consumed in Singapore. 

Service Charge

A 10% service charge is included in the bill at most dining places in hotels, restaurants and bars. Service charge is based on the price of goods and services. It is also subject to GST. 

INCOME TAX

The amount of income tax payable depends on several factors:

1. Your residential status in Singapore 

2. The amount of salary earned over the Year of assessment.

3. Taxable and tax free benefits. 

For information, the below benefits are also subject to tax (Benefits-In-Kind):

1. Education Grant (children’s school fee discount),

2. Cash reimbursement (air ticket reimbursement)

You may wish to refer to the Tax Chart on Income Tax FAQ for more information

For more information on the Singapore tax system please see the Information on Residential Status. Click the link to download the Tax Calculator for residents and non-residents. The table below outlines the residential aspect of taxation:

To gain access to the Income Tax portal, you will need to have registered and enabled your SingPass account. When accessing the MyTaxPortal website, a One-time password (OTP) will be sent to your registered Singapore mobile number.