NTUC: SIRS Applications Open on 27 April

NTUC and its Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit (U FSE) will be assisting the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to administer applications and appeals for the Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme (SIRS) starting on Monday, 27 April 2020.

This is to assist the following groups of Self-Employed Persons (SEPs) who are eligible for SIRS, but who will not automatically receive their pay-outs. They are:

• SEPs who meet all the eligibility criteria and are aged 37 (as at 31 Dec 2020) and above but did not declare Net Trade Income (NTI) for work year 2018; or
• SEPs who meet all the eligibility criteria but are aged 21 to 36 (as at 31 Dec 2020)

SEPs who have marginally missed one of the eligibility criteria above, and are facing difficult circumstances can also submit an application to NTUC for consideration.

For SEPs Who Auto-Qualify

Around 100,000 Singaporean SEPs who are aged 37 and above as at 31 December 2020; who meet all the eligibility criteria; and who have their net trade income (NTI) filed with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) / CPF Board (CPFB) for Work Year 2018 will automatically receive SIRS.

For this 100,000 SEPs, they do not need to apply with NTUC.

For SEPs Who Need to Apply

Step 1: Check

SEPs may use the online Eligibility Checker to verify their eligibility, and whether or not they need to apply with NTUC.

Further enquiries can be made via the NTUC SIRS hotline (+65 6713 5777) from Monday to Saturday, between 10am to 6pm. Alternatively, SEPs can also email NTUC at SIRS@ntuc.org.sg.

Step 2: Prepare

Prior to their application, SEPs ought to:

• Filed their tax returns for income earned from 1 January to 31 December 2019. (The tax filing deadline has been extended to 31 May 2020, as announced by IRAS on 4 April 2020.)
• Ensure they have a valid SingPass login.

Also, for individuals who started working as an SEP before 1 January 2020, they would need:

• Proof of income as an SEP for the period of January 2020 to March 2020; and
• Copy of acknowledgement after submitting IRAS Form 144 for Work Year 2019 if their NTI is less than $6,000; or
• Copy of your IRAS Notice of Assessment (NOA) or Consolidated Statement Form B for Work Year 2019 if their NTI is more than $6,000.

For individuals who started working as an SEP from 1 January 2020 but on or before 25 March 2020, they would need:

• Proof of income from self-employment (contracts for service, tax invoices billed to service buyers or receipts issued for services provided) for the period 1 January 2020 to 25 March 2020.

For SEPs who are married:

• Spouse’s IRAS Notice of Assessment/ Consolidated Statement Form B/ Consolidated Statement Form B1 for Year of Assessment 2020 and any income documents for January to March 2020.

Step 3: Apply

Applications can be submitted to NTUC via www.ntuc.com.sg/SIRS.

All information submitted will be subjected to checks for accuracy. All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application within 30 days of submission.

Successful applicants will receive pay-outs directly credited into their bank accounts.

As payments will be progressively made as and when applications are approved, SEPs do not have to rush to submit their applications.