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SINGAPORE: A plan aimed at supporting the self-employed through the COVID-19 pandemic has paid more than S $ 1.1 billion to some 190,000 eligible people so far, the Minister of Resources said on Friday (September 4). Humans, Josephine Teo.
Ms. Teo also said that her ministry, together with the Ministry of Finance, is studying the possibility of expanding the Income Assistance Scheme for Self-Employed Workers (SIRS).
First announced in March as part of the government’s third budget, SIRS offers eligible self-employed workers three cash payments of S $ 3,000 each. These payments are disbursed quarterly in the months of May, July and October.
Improvements to the scheme were made in April during the fourth Budget to include those who also earn a small income from labor.
Self-employed persons living in some condos and other private properties also became eligible for relief after the annual property value threshold was raised from S $ 13,000 to S $ 21,000.
READ: Solidarity Budget: Extended criteria for the self-employed financial assistance scheme
Ms Teo, who was answering parliamentary questions about the plan, said that the income eligibility criteria for SIRS covered more than 80 percent of Singaporeans with taxable income.
The criteria tied to the annual value of a property covered approximately nine out of 10 owner-occupied public and private residential properties.
Spouses’ income was also seen as a substitute for family support, the minister said.
So far, more than S $ 1.1 billion has been disbursed as part of the first two payments.
“With the third and final tranche, SIRS is expected to cost S $ 2 billion in total, almost double the S $ 1.2 billion originally reserved,” Ms Teo said. “This is a significant expansion of an already considerable program.”
Of the 190,000 people who have received payments, 100,000 people automatically qualified and the remaining 90,000 were successful applicants.
About two out of three applications have been approved, the minister added, noting that the government has been “exercising flexibility in qualification criteria” to support more freelancers.
The remaining third whose applications were not approved may have been earning much higher incomes, reside in high-value properties, or own two or more properties with their spouses.
Ms Teo said: “As SIRS was intended to support SEPs, people who were previously unemployed or in regular employment were redirected to the COVID-19 support grant.
“Where there were other areas of need, we have referred unsuccessful applicants to the appropriate agencies for follow-up assistance,” he added.
Referring to a previous ministerial statement made by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, Ms Teo said that the government is “exploring appropriate ways to support employees and SEPs who are more vulnerable beyond existing schemes.”
In response to a question from the Workers’ Party (MP) Member of Parliament Dennis Tan, who asked if the Ministry of Labor would study the possibility of expanding SIRS given the number of self-employed still facing income problems, Ms. Teo reiterated: “The short answer is yes, we will study it together with the Ministry of Finance.”
Among those who received payments under SIRS, a large number are taxi drivers. Some are drivers of private rental vehicles, while a “good number” are street vendors, the minister added, in response to a separate question from Tampines GRC deputy Cheng Li Hui.
Ms. Cheng wanted to know if the authorities are tracking the sectors the self-employed are in and the performance of these sectors to determine if more help is needed.
“The performance of these sectors … varies and we will have to take these factors into account when we see what to do next,” Ms Teo responded.
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