Singapore: Pay and benefits

Updating authors: Thomas Choo and Bernadette How, Clyde & Co Clasis Singapore
Original author: Ravi Chandran, National University of Singapore

See the legal services provided by the authors of International > Singapore, including any discounts/offers for subscribers.

Summary

• Pay levels are not regulated by legislation. (See Pay - general)
• There are statutory rules on the timing of payment of wages but these do not apply to some categories of employee. (See Payment of wages)
• There are statutory rules on deductions from wages but these do not apply to some categories of employee. (See Deductions)
• There is no specific national legislation dealing with the matter of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. (See Equal pay)
• There is no statutory national minimum wage, although there are various government initiatives to help lower-paid workers. (See National minimum wage)
• While there is no specific statutory old-age pension scheme, the main function of the mandatory Central Provident Fund is to provide savings for retirement income. (See Pensions)
• There is no pay-as-you-earn system for income tax in Singapore and employers are not obliged to deduct tax at source from employees' pay. (See Income tax and social security)
• Full entitlement to paid sick leave starts when an employee has completed six months' continuous service with their employer, although this rule does not apply to some categories of employee. (See Sick pay)
• Although it is not a statutory requirement, employment contracts and collective agreements may provide for employers to make end-of-year payments to employees. (See End-of-year payments)
• Employers may provide employees with benefits in kind. (See Benefits in kind)