Happy new year!
A New Year means new changes. Here’s what going to change in Singapore.
1 GST increase
From Jan 1 2023, GST will increase from seven to eight per cent. While this
may not be much, there may be instances where retailers will use this GST hike
as a disguise to raise prices. On the flip side, some retailers absorb the
increase for a certain time. Do check your prices before and after 2023 to
confirm!
2 GST to be paid on ALL online transactions
From Jan 1 2023, consumers will have to pay GST on goods imported into
Singapore via air or post, regardless of value. This will impact your shopping
haul from Shopee, Lazada and other online platforms. Before this, small overseas retailers were exempt from paying GST on their goods, so this would mean more expensive to shop from overseas retailers.
3 Increase in the minimum retirement sum for CPF
Turning 55?
There will be a 3.5% increase in CPF minimum sum from $96,000 in 2022 to
$99,400 in 2023.
4 CPF Basic Healthcare sum to increase to $68,500
This will increase from $66,000 to $68,500. Any Medisave contributions in
excess of a member’s BHS will automatically be transferred to his or her other
CPF accounts. Members above 66 will not be affected.
CPF members who have less than the BHS are not required to top up their
Medisave Accounts and will still be able to withdraw from their accounts
to pay for approved medical expenses.
5 Revision of Property Annual Values in 2023
From 1 Jan 2023, you may have to pay a higher property tax. Annual Values (AV)
for most residential properties, including private property and HDB will be
revised upwards to reflect an increase in market rents.
This will mean that property tax will increase for most households. There will
be a one-off property tax rebate of 60% (up to a maximum of $60)
6 Progressive Property tax rates for residential properties effective 1st
Jan 2023
7 The Float at Marina Bay will disappear
The float at Marina Bay was opened in 2007. It will close permanently on March
2023. In its place, NS Square will be constructed. This will increase the
seating capacity from 27,000 to 30,000. NS Square is scheduled to be ready by
2025.
8 F1 Track to change in 2023
Fans of F1 will see a faster lap for 2023. With the Float at Marina Bay
dismantled, the course will change for 2023 F1 race. The change will reduce
lap time by about 8 seconds. The question is where are they going to replace
the 27,000 seats lost?
9 70 Schools to welcome New Principals in 2023
There will be new principals for Primary and Secondary schools in 2023.
The full list can be found here.
10 New Overseas Networks & Expertise work pass (ONEWP)
A 5-year work pass that allows holders to start, operate and work for multiple
companies in Singapore at the same time will be introduced. Applicants will
require a monthly fixed salary of $30,000 within the last year and earn a
fixed monthly salary of $30,000 under future employment. An exception may be made
for candidates with outstanding achievements across the arts and culture,
sports, science and technology, research and academia.
These are the key benefits of ONEWP vs EP