Job seekers can complete activities and earn points to qualify for payouts from April 15

SINGAPORE - When senior creative designer Michelle Tan (not her real name) was told that her position in a pre-school would be outsourced to someone with the “right price range”, her confidence was shaken.

After losing her job in February, she turned to the National Trades Union Congress’ (NTUC) Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) for help, and started reworking her resume according to her career coach’s guidance.

Starting from April 15, she can also apply for the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme, which is open to lower- and middle-income adult Singaporeans who have lost their jobs due to retrenchment, business closure, illness or other reasons beyond their control.

In Ms Tan’s case, she will need to submit documents like her official termination letter at

go.gov.sg/jobseekersupport

, along with her former employer’s contact details for verification purposes.

Once her application is approved, she can join a variety of job search activities, from networking to attending training, to earn points, which could secure her temporary payouts of up to $6,000 over six months.

Ms Tan is likely among the first beneficiaries of the new scheme, announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in his

maiden National Day Rally speech

in August 2024. She told The Straits Times that she feels “more comforted” and “more secure” that she can get mentorship from her coach.

In a press release on March 14, NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng said the scheme is a significant first step in providing temporary financial relief to those who are involuntarily unemployed.

“We hope this will provide workers with relief, especially in times of increasing uncertainty,” he said.

How to earn points

At a media briefing on April 11, Workforce Singapore (WSG), tasked with implementing the scheme, unveiled the following 13 activities which job seekers like Ms Tan can take part in to earn points.

Ms Lynn Ng, assistant chief executive of WSG’s Careers Connect Group, said the scheme recognises the proactiveness of job seekers in their job search.

The points tagged to each activity differ. Activities that require more time and commitment to complete are worth more points.

For example, a job seeker will earn four points after going for career coaching, as this requires “considerable effort”, said a WSG spokesperson, as compared with a “relatively easy” activity like reading up on career-related content, which is worth one point.

To encourage people to take part in varied activities, there is a cap on the number of times that points can be earned from each activity. For example, a job seeker can gain two points by going to a career-related event – but only up to three times in a month. No extra points will be given when he attends the fourth event.

But there is no cap in the number of points for two activities: Going for job interviews and employment-related volunteer programmes.

A WSG spokesperson said these two activities require more effort and commitment, and the outcome of a job interview is decided by the employer, not the job seeker.

To qualify for the payout, job seekers have to earn at least 10 points per month for the first three months, and five points per month for the next three months.

The payout will be processed and disbursed via their PayNow-NRIC linked bank accounts within three to four weeks.

Excess points can be carried forward to the following month. For example, if a job seeker accumulates 18 points in the first month, eight points will be carried forward to make it easier for him to hit the next month’s target.

The payout will stop once job seekers secure a job. If they cannot land a job after six months, they can continue to receive career support from WSG.

Job seekers can track their progress, activity period and payouts on the Jobseeker Support scheme portal’s dashboard.

Proof of participation with documentation is needed. For instance, job seekers need to upload screenshots of their updated resumes, and provide details on who they have met for networking purposes.

Who is eligible

To qualify for the scheme, job seekers aged 21 and above must have been unemployed for at least one month from the last day of employment before receiving the payout.

They must also have earned $5,000 or less a month on average for the duration of their previous employment within the last 12 months.

They cannot live in a property with an annual value of more than $31,000. The annual value of a property is the estimated gross annual rent if it were to be rented out.

Those who qualify can receive $1,500 in the first month, which tapers down to $1,250 in the second month, and $1,000 in the third. They can receive $750 a month for the remaining three months.

The monthly payouts, however, are capped at a job seeker’s past average gross monthly income. So if the job seeker earned an average of $900 a month previously, he will receive no more than $900 in monthly payout under the scheme.

For now, the scheme is available to only Singapore citizens, but it will be extended to permanent residents from the first quarter of 2026.

Applicants must also have been employed in Singapore for at least six months in the past 12 months, but a one-off concession is given to those who lost their jobs on or after April 1, 2024 – if they meet all other criteria and submit their applications by June 15.

Those who require physical support with their application can find the scheme’s ambassadors at WSG’s Careers Connect, selected e2i career centres and ServiceSG centres.