1.5 million Singaporeans to receive $1.2 billion in GST Voucher – Cash and MediSave Top-Ups in August 2022

Eligible adults will receive up to $700 in cash and up to $450 in MediSave top-ups

1.    Since 2012, the GST Voucher scheme has provided continuing help to defray the GST and other living expenses of lower- to middle-income Singaporeans and households.

2.    In August 2022, 1.5 million Singaporeans will receive up to a total of $700 in cash, comprising the regular GSTV – Cash and the GSTV – Cash Special Payment which was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Mr Lawrence Wong on 21 June 2022 as part of a $1.5 billion package to help Singaporeans cope with higher inflation. The regular GSTV – Cash payment has also been enhanced, as announced at Budget 2022. Compared to last year, the regular GSTV – Cash payout is $100 higher. The Assessable Income eligibility threshold has also been expanded, to benefit more Singaporeans.

3.     Also in August and part of the GSTV scheme, about 575,000 eligible Singaporean adults aged 65 and above in 2022 will have up to $450 credited into their CPF MediSave Account. Apart from the GSTV payments, Singaporeans born on or before 31 December 1969 (aged 53 and above in 2022) and not already receiving Pioneer Generation or Merdeka Generation benefits will each be credited $100 into their CPF MediSave Account in end-August 2022. This is the fourth year that these eligible adults will receive their 5-Year MediSave Top-up annually from 2019 to 2023 that was announced at Budget 2019 (see Annex A for more information).

4.    The August GSTV – Cash and GSTV – MediSave payments are part of the Government’s continuing support for lower-income and elderly Singaporeans, to help with their GST expenses and costs of living. Eligible Singaporeans would have received CDC Vouchers, two tranches of U-Save and S&CC rebates, and top-ups to Edusave account/Post-Secondary Education Account (PSEA) earlier this year. They can expect further support in the form of cash payouts, utilities credits, top-ups to Child Development Account (CDA), and another two tranches of U-Save and S&CC rebates in the coming months.

5.    For more information on the summary of benefits to Singaporean individuals and households, please refer to the infographics in Annex B.

Eligibility

6.    Eligible recipients of the GSTV – Cash and GSTV – Cash Special Payment will automatically receive the payment if they have signed up for Government disbursement schemes previously (see details on timeline of payment by various modes in Annex C). Those who have not previously signed up for the GSTV scheme can do so at the GSTV official website (gstvoucher.gov.sg), before the deadline of 30 April 2023. They will be also notified via the Singpass app, SMS, or letters sent to their NRIC address by end August 2022 to do so. Citizens may check their eligibility for the GSTV – Cash and MediSave benefits at the GSTV official website by logging in with their Singpass.

GovCash to replace cheques as a Mode of Payment for GSTV – Cash

7.    From 2022, GovCash will replace cheques as the mode of payment to citizens who have not provided their bank accounts or linked their NRICs to PayNow. Citizens on GovCash can withdraw their GSTV – Cash and GSTV – Cash Special Payment at OCBC ATMs islandwide by entering their 1) Payment Reference Number (PRN) that will be sent to them in end August, and 2) NRIC, and after passing the facial verification. They do not require an OCBC bank account to withdraw the payment at the OCBC ATMs. GovCash recipients can also use the LifeSG app to make payment to merchants by scanning their PayNow or NETS QR code, or transfer payments to their bank accounts via PayNow if they subsequently register for PayNow-NRIC.

Singpass App as a Mode of Notification

8.    Eligible recipients will be notified in August 2022 after GSTV – Cash and GSTV – Cash Special Payment have been credited. Those who have downloaded and completed their one-time setup on the Singpass app will receive GSTV notifications in their app inbox. Those who have not downloaded nor completed their one-time setup on the Singpass app but have registered their mobile numbers with Singpass will receive SMS notifications.

9.    To guard against scams, the SMS notification (sent by “GSTV”) will only inform citizens of their benefits. Citizens will not be asked to reply to the SMS, click any links, or provide any information to the sender. No messages on GSTV will be sent via WhatsApp or other mobile app messaging platforms. Citizens are encouraged to download the Singpass app from the official app stores (e.g. App Store, Play Store or Huawei AppGallery; check that the app is developed by “Government Technology Agency”) to receive secured notifications from the Government.

Contact Information

10.    For more information on the above schemes, the contact details are as follows: 

Issued by:

Ministry of Finance
Singapore
12 July 2022