SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) will revise the processes to claim SkillsFuture Credit from May 19, as it seeks to reduce the risk of abuse.

SSG said in a statement yesterday that under the new process, all SkillsFuture Credit payments will be made to training providers instead of individuals.

Individuals can still submit claims, but training providers will instead collect net fees from them after offsetting the credit used.

Explaining its revision, SSG said it found more than 4,400 individuals who had submitted false claims at end-January.

SSG said in February that $2.2 million had been paid out for the false claims, in the largest case of abuse to hit the scheme.

It then formed a process review committee, which recognised that claims processes should still be simple and easy, but steps had to be taken to reduce the risk of fraud.

But SSG will make an exception for selected overseas Massive Open Online Courses where SkillsFuture credit payments to training providers are not available. People who sign up for such programmes will need to provide supporting payment documents as part of the claims submission process.

In an update on its action to recover monies from the people involved in fraudulent claims, SSG said it has issued letters to them. As of Tuesday, more than 85 per cent of them had returned the monies or taken steps to do so.

Final letters of demand will be sent to the rest, and legal action will be taken if they fail to return the monies.

Those who submit false information to SSG and are prosecuted could be fined up to $10,000 and/or jailed up to 12 months.