The Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme (Sirs) will be extended to include self-employed people who also earn a small income from employment, as well as those who live in properties with an annual value of up to $21,000.
Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat announced these enhancements in Parliament yesterday as part of a third budget to help tide Singaporeans through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sirs, first announced on March 26, will disburse three quarterly cash payouts of $3,000 in May, July and October this year to eligible self-employed people. But some felt the criteria were too stringent.
It previously excluded those living in properties with an annual value of more than $13,000 and those who earned any income as employees.
Mr Heng said the annual value threshold will be raised from $13,000 to $21,000. This would include most condominiums outside prime areas and some other private properties.
The scheme would also automatically include the self-employed who also earn a small income from employment work, capped at $2,300 per month, which is the current Workfare income ceiling.
With these enhancements, about 100,000 self-employed people will be eligible for the scheme - up from 88,000 previously.
Other criteria, such as the rule that the self-employed person and the spouse together must not own two or more properties, and that the spouse's assessable income must not exceed $70,000, will not change.
Mr Heng, who is also the Finance Minister, said the move to enhance Sirs follows feedback from self-employed people who have done some employment work to supplement their incomes or who have bought an executive condominium some years ago. "Their income is now severely affected by the pandemic, and they still have to support multiple family members' daily needs or medical bills."
He has also heard from others who view Sirs as overly generous, he said. "Some have asked - why do we allow self-employed persons with annual net trade income of up to $100,000 to qualify?
"Self-employed persons are a very diverse group. Some are own account workers, like taxi drivers, who engage in a trade or business but do not employ any paid workers. Others are sole proprietors, who own small businesses that have employees and a network of business relations."
Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said there is no need for self-employed people aged 37 and above who declared a positive net trade income to apply as they will be automatically notified and receive their first payout in end-May.
Other eligible self-employed people aged 21 and above may apply for the scheme, while those who narrowly miss the eligibility criteria may submit appeals through the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).
NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng said the labour movement will start facilitating appeals by April 20. In the interim, he hopes more people will apply to the $25 million NTUC Care Fund for Covid-19, which gives existing members $100 to $300 and new members $50 to $200, depending on criteria.
Other MPs called for further assistance for the self-employed.
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar (Ang Mo Kio GRC) suggested encouraging more participation in schemes such as NTUC's Self-Employed Person Training Support Scheme, as well as more targeted employment assistance to ward against future income insecurity after the nine months of relief are up.
