This guide is for general reference only and is not legal, tax, or immigration advice. Employers should confirm current requirements for their workforce and contract structure before acting.
About our data. Statutory rates and entitlements for Singapore are compiled from official sources including the Employment Act 1968, the Central Provident Fund Board employer guidance, and Ministry of Manpower guidance, together with the Child Development Co-Savings Act 2001 and related regulations, and are maintained in Atlas HXM’s country compliance reference with primary sources linked inline where available.
Employee benefits in Singapore center on CPF for citizens and eligible permanent residents, paid leave, public holidays, statutory insurance, and employer levies. Full-rate CPF for employees aged 55 and below is 17% employer + 20% employee on ordinary wages up to SGD 8,000 a month; annual leave starts at 7 days after 3 months’ service, paid sick leave reaches 14 outpatient and 60 hospitalization days, and there are 11 paid public holidays.
Competitive employers in Singapore usually add group medical cover, dental, wellness support, training budgets, flexible work arrangements, and AWS or bonus plans. These are market norms rather than general statutory entitlements.
In Singapore, the statutory baseline usually includes CPF for covered citizens and permanent residents, paid leave, public holidays, termination notice rules, SDL, work injury insurance, and foreign-worker levies where relevant. The table below separates the main mandatory employer obligations from market-standard extras. The amounts and rates listed below are subject to legislative and policy updates from time to time.
Benefit | Entitlement / rate | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
Central Provident Fund (CPF) | Mandatory retirement and social-security contributions for Singapore Citizens and Singapore Permanent Residents employed in Singapore. For full-rate citizens and third-year-plus PRs earning more than SGD 750 a month: 17% employer + 20% employee up to age 55; 16% + 18% above 55 to 60; 12.5% + 9.5% above 60 to 65; 9% + 7.5% above 65 to 70; 7.5% + 5% above 70\. Ordinary wage ceiling: SGD 8,000 a month; annual salary ceiling: SGD 102,000. | Central Provident Fund Act 1953 and Central Provident Fund (Exemption) Order 2018 |
Annual leave | 7 paid days in the first year, rising by 1 day a year to 14 days from the eighth year onward. Entitlement starts after 3 months’ service and is pro-rated. | Employment Act 1968 |
Sick leave | Up to 14 days of paid outpatient sick leave and up to 60 days of paid hospitalization leave a year, with the 60-day hospitalization cap inclusive of the 14 outpatient days. Pro-rated from 3 to 6 months’ service. | Employment Act 1968 |
Maternity leave | 16 weeks of Government-Paid Maternity Leave for eligible mothers of Singapore citizen children; otherwise 12 weeks of maternity leave under the Employment Act. | Child Development Co-Savings Act 2001 and Employment Act 1968 |
Paternity leave | 4 weeks of Government-Paid Paternity Leave for eligible fathers. Employer pays first and claims Government reimbursement up to SGD 2,500 a week and SGD 10,000 in total. | Child Development Co-Savings Act 2001 |
Shared parental leave | 10 weeks shared between eligible parents for children born or formally placed for adoption on or after 1 April 2026; 6 weeks for births or placements from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026\. | Child Development Co-Savings Act 2001 |
Childcare, extended childcare, and infant care leave | 6 paid childcare days a year for each parent of a qualifying Singapore citizen child below age 7; 2 paid childcare days a year for a non-citizen child below age 7; 2 paid extended childcare days a year for a qualifying Singapore citizen child aged 7 to 12; and 6 unpaid infant care days a year for each parent of a qualifying Singapore citizen child below age 2\. | Child Development Co-Savings Act 2001 and Employment Act 1968 |
Public holidays | 11 paid public holidays a year. If an employee works on a public holiday, statutory premium or substitute-holiday rules apply. | Holidays Act 1998 and Employment Act 1968 |
Skills Development Levy (SDL) | Employer levy of 0.25% of each employee’s monthly total wages, subject to a minimum of SGD 2 and a maximum of SGD 11.25. | Skills Development Levy Act 1979 |
Work injury compensation insurance | Employer must insure all employees doing manual work regardless of salary and all non-manual employees earning SGD 2,600 or less a month. Premiums are market-priced by insurers. | Work Injury Compensation Act 2019 |
S Pass levy | SGD 650 a month for each S Pass holder, with SGD 21.37 daily billing for part-month cases. | Employment of Foreign Manpower framework |
Work Permit foreign worker levy | Sector, quota, and skill-based monthly levy using fixed published rates. Current rates include SGD 250, 300, 350, 370, 400, 450, 470, 500, 550, 600, 650, 700, 800, and 900 depending on sector and worker category. | Employment of Foreign Manpower framework |
Termination notice and retrenchment | If the contract is silent, default notice is 1 day for less than 26 weeks’ service, 1 week for 26 weeks to less than 2 years, 2 weeks for 2 years to less than 5 years, and 4 weeks for 5 years or more. Singapore has no universal statutory severance formula; employees with less than 2 years’ continuous service have no retrenchment-benefit entitlement. | Employment Act 1968 |
The Central Provident Fund applies to Singapore Citizens and Singapore Permanent Residents employed in Singapore under a contract of service and earning more than SGD 50 a month. For full-rate citizens and third-year-plus PRs earning more than SGD 750 a month, employer and employee CPF is 17% and 20% up to age 55, 16% and 18% above 55 to 60, 12.5% and 9.5% above 60 to 65, 9% and 7.5% above 65 to 70, and 7.5% and 5% above 70\. The ordinary wage ceiling is SGD 8,000 a month and the annual salary ceiling is SGD 102,000. Foreign employees who are neither citizens nor PRs are exempt. See the official CPF contribution rates.
Statutory annual leave starts once an employee completes 3 months of service. The minimum is 7 paid days in the first year of service, then 8 days in the second year, rising by 1 day a year to 14 days from the eighth year onward. Leave is pro-rated for employees with 3 to 12 months of service and on exit based on completed months worked. Employers can review the official MOM annual leave rules for the current entitlement schedule and proration approach.
Eligible employees receive up to 14 days of paid outpatient sick leave and up to 60 days of paid hospitalization leave a year, with the 60-day hospitalization cap inclusive of the 14 outpatient days. Paid sick leave begins after 3 months of continuous service and reaches the full entitlement after 6 months. Between 3 and 6 months, the statutory schedule is 5 and 15 days, then 8 and 30, then 11 and 45, then 14 and 60\. Sick leave is paid at the employee’s gross rate of pay if the statutory conditions are met.
Eligible mothers of Singapore citizen children receive 16 weeks of Government-Paid Maternity Leave, subject to statutory eligibility conditions. Where that scheme does not apply, the Employment Act provides 12 weeks of maternity leave. For the first and second child order under the government-paid scheme, the employer pays the first 8 weeks and the Government reimburses the last 8 weeks, subject to the published caps; for the third and subsequent child order, the Government reimburses all 16 weeks subject to the higher cap. Paid entitlement generally requires at least 3 continuous months of service before birth.
Eligible fathers receive 4 weeks of Government-Paid Paternity Leave, with the employer generally paying first and then claiming Government reimbursement up to SGD 2,500 a week and SGD 10,000 in total. For qualifying births or adoptions on or after 1 April 2026, eligible parents can also share 10 weeks of Government-Paid Shared Parental Leave; for births or adoptions from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, the entitlement is 6 weeks. Parents may also qualify for 6 paid childcare days a year for a Singapore citizen child below age 7, 2 paid days for a non-citizen child below age 7, 2 paid extended childcare days for a Singapore citizen child aged 7 to 12, and 6 unpaid infant care days.
Singapore has 11 paid public holidays a year. For EA employees, if a public holiday falls on a working day and the employee is required to work, the employee must receive the holiday pay at the gross rate plus an extra day’s salary at the basic rate or a mutually agreed full day off in substitution for that holiday, and overtime pay if the hours worked exceed normal working hours. For non-EA employees, they may additionally be given part of a day off depending on the number of hours spent working on that public holiday, as agreed with the employer. Where the holiday falls on a non-working day or a rest day, substitute-holiday or different premium rules apply. The annual gazetted list is published by the Ministry of Manpower, and 2026 has 11 public holidays.
If an employment contract does not state notice, the statutory default is 1 day for service of less than 26 weeks, 1 week for 26 weeks to less than 2 years, 2 weeks for 2 years to less than 5 years, and 4 weeks for 5 years or more. Singapore does not have a universal statutory severance or end-of-service gratuity formula. Different triggers have different outcomes: resignation or normal retirement carries no statutory gratuity; expiry of a fixed-term contract does not create a statutory end-of-service payment; retrenchment gives employees with less than 2 years’ service no entitlement, while any payment for longer service depends on contract, collective agreement, or negotiation; and wrongful dismissal can lead to reinstatement or monetary compensation.
Employers must pay the Skills Development Levy at 0.25% of each employee’s monthly total wages, with a minimum of SGD 2 and a maximum of SGD 11.25. They must also carry work injury compensation insurance for all manual workers and all non-manual employees earning SGD 2,600 or less a month. Work Permit and S Pass holders may also attract foreign worker levies, which vary according to sector, quota and worker classification.
Under MOM hours-of-work rules, the ordinary Part 4 limit is 8 hours a day and 44 hours a week. Specific exceptions allow up to 9 hours a day for employees working 5 days or fewer a week, up to 48 hours in one week if the employee stays within 88 hours over 2 continuous weeks, and shift patterns of up to 12 hours a day averaging 44 hours over 3 continuous weeks. The absolute daily maximum is 12 hours, extendable to 14 hours only with an overtime exemption or statutory emergency-type circumstances. Overtime is capped at 72 hours a month and must be paid at least 1.5 times the hourly basic rate. Part 4 overtime rules mainly cover workmen earning up to SGD 4,500 a month and non-workmen earning up to SGD 2,600; managers and executives are excluded. Singapore has no universal national minimum wage, but PWM sector floors apply in covered sectors, and one current example is SGD 2,080 a month for a Food/Drink Stall Assistant in food services until 30 June 2026\.
Beyond the legal minimum, employers in Singapore usually compete on medical cover, wellbeing support, flexibility, and bonus design. The items below are market norms, not general statutory entitlements.
For professional roles, a common market norm is employer-paid group hospital and surgical cover plus outpatient GP access, with specialist outpatient cover more common in mid-market plans and above. Typical non-panel GP reimbursement is around SGD 35 a visit, specialist outpatient budgets are often SGD 1,000 to SGD 1,500 a year, and dental caps are commonly SGD 300 to SGD 600 a year. Standalone vision cover is less common.
Typical employers combine an EAP with wellbeing programming rather than offering a broad insured mental-health plan. Indicative wellness spend is often about SGD 50 to SGD 300 per employee a year, with many firms also funding events at under SGD 200 per employee per event. Employer-funded learning budgets are commonly around SGD 500 to SGD 2,000 per employee a year, with higher spend in tech, regulated, and certification-heavy roles.
Hybrid work, flexible hours, and occasional work-from-home are mainstream market practice for professional roles where job design allows it. Employers should also follow the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests: keep a formal process, assess requests on reasonable business grounds, and respond in writing within 2 months. Approval itself is still the employer’s decision rather than an automatic employee entitlement.
The Annual Wage Supplement is a common Singapore market norm where offered and is usually set at 1 month of basic salary. Many employers then layer on a separate company or performance bonus, often adding another 0.5 to 2.0 or more months depending on sector and results. Festival bonuses are not a broad cross-market norm for professional roles and tend to be company-specific.
Total employer cost in Singapore is driven first by citizenship or PR status, CPF age band, and whether foreign-worker levies apply. After that, the biggest budget items are usually medical plan design, AWS or bonus practice, and how rich the dental, wellness, and learning package is.
Cost line | Typical employer cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Group hospital and surgical plus outpatient GP and specialist | SGD 850-1,700 per employee per year | Typical benchmark for a professional workforce using group hospital and surgical cover plus outpatient access. Older populations and richer plan designs usually price toward the top end. |
Dental rider or panel dental | SGD 160-210 per employee per year | Common add-on for professional roles. This line reflects dental only; optical is usually handled through flex or ad hoc reimbursement when offered. |
Wellness and mental-health support | SGD 50-300 per employee per year, indicative | Indicative market range for EAP access and wellbeing programs. Actual spend varies sharply with utilization and vendor model. |
AWS or 13th-month plus variable bonus | AWS commonly 1.0 month of basic salary where used; total annual variable pay for professional or non-rank-and-file roles often about 1.8-2.1 months overall | AWS is not required by law and applies only where agreed. Market practice often combines AWS with a separate performance or company bonus. |
At a base salary of SGD 6,000 a month plus 1 month of AWS, an illustrative competitive-employer budget is SGD 92,840 a year for a local employee aged 55 or below at full CPF rates, versus SGD 79,580 for an Employment Pass hire. That example assumes midpoint benefits of about SGD 1,580 a year for medical, dental, and wellness, and employer CPF on both salary and AWS for the local hire. Use the cost calculator to model your own mix.
Treating AWS as discretionary after promising it — AWS is not required by law, but once it is written into an employment contract, collective agreement, or clear company policy, employers should treat it as a contractual pay element and follow the stated trigger, timing, and proration rules.
Getting CPF wrong on AWS and bonuses — For citizens and PRs, employer CPF can apply to Additional Wages such as AWS and bonuses up to the Additional Wage ceiling. A common error is ignoring CPF on AWS altogether or not checking the annual salary ceiling formula first.
Assuming every medical or dental reimbursement is tax-free — Tax treatment depends on the nature of the benefit and the applicable IRAS rules. Transport for medical visits, contact lenses, eyeglasses, and health supplements can create tax issues if handled loosely.
Overclaiming corporate tax deductions for medical spend — Employers often assume all medical spend is fully deductible. In practice, tax treatment can be capped unless the employer also meets the conditions for qualifying portable medical benefits or additional MediSave contribution arrangements.
Poor handling of flexible work arrangement requests — Since 1 December 2024, employers should have a documented process for formal flexible work arrangement requests and respond in writing within 2 months. Informal handling, no written response, or weak business reasons create avoidable employee-relations risk.
Confusing pass-type insurance rules with market practice — Employers sometimes assume medical insurance is legally required for Employment Pass holders, or assume lower-work-pass statutory cover is competitive enough for professional hires. Singapore rules differ by worker category, so policy design should reflect both compliance and hiring expectations.
Atlas HXM helps employers manage statutory and market-standard employee benefits in Singapore, from CPF-sensitive onboarding and leave setup to local payroll inputs and recurring enrolment administration. Our global employee benefits administration solutions are designed to keep benefit operations aligned with local rules while supporting a competitive package.
If you need to hire without setting up a local entity, Atlas HXM can also support hiring through our Singapore EOR model. Learn more on our Singapore employer of record page.
17% employer CPF and 20% employee CPF up to age 55 are the headline statutory contributions for covered Singapore Citizens and eligible PRs, alongside 7 to 14 days of annual leave, 14 outpatient and 60 hospitalization sick-leave days, 16 weeks or 12 weeks of maternity leave depending on eligibility, 4 weeks of paternity leave for eligible fathers, 10 weeks of shared parental leave for qualifying births from 1 April 2026, 11 paid public holidays, SDL, and statutory insurance or levies where applicable.
SGD 2,600 a month is the key statutory threshold for work injury insurance: employers must insure all manual workers regardless of salary and all non-manual employees earning SGD 2,600 or less. Separate employer-paid medical insurance is not a general statutory requirement for Employment Pass holders, although many employers still offer it as a market-standard benefit.
17% is the employer CPF rate for full-rate citizens and third-year-plus PRs aged 55 and below who earn more than SGD 750 a month. The employer rate is 16% above 55 to 60, 12.5% above 60 to 65, 9% above 65 to 70, and 7.5% above 70\.
SGD 102,000 is the annual CPF salary ceiling used to determine the Additional Wage cap. CPF can apply to Additional Wages such as AWS and bonuses, while ordinary wages are subject to the SGD 8,000 monthly ordinary wage ceiling.
0 universal statutory severance formula applies in Singapore. Employees with less than 2 years’ continuous service have no retrenchment-benefit entitlement, and for employees with 2 or more years, any payment depends on contract, collective agreement, or negotiation rather than a fixed statutory formula.
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