Yep, it’s time of the year again.
It’s the annual free money give away from Ah Gong (aka the government) that started back in 2012 – the GST Voucher scheme.
And we’ll be receiving up to S$600 in TWO GST vouchers this year, and a MediSave top up if you’re old enough.
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The fastest way to check how you will be getting is just to log in to My 2019 GST Voucher.
If you earned below S$28,000 in 2017, you probably get something
As for why there are two this year, it’s because of bicentennial or 200 years after Sir Stamford Raffles landed on Singapore.
So to receive the voucher, you:
- Are a Singapore Citizen, residing in Singapore
- 21 years old and above in 2019
- Earned $28,000 or less in 2017 or (<S$2,333 monthly)
- Your home (as indicated on your NRIC) as at 31 December 2018 must not exceed $21,000 in Annual Value
- You must not own more than one property
Depending on the Annual Value of your home, you’ll receive either S$150 or S$300. Annual Value is basically the potential rent your home can get in one year.
The usual GST voucher will be paid in August, and the Bicentennial GST voucher will be from November.
Apparently, about 1.4 million Singaporeans will get free money.
50 year old and above will receive up to $450 to MediSave
If you’re in the 520,000 Pioneer Generation or Merdeka Generation Singaporeans, you will receive up to S$450 for MediSave in August as well.
If you’re not seasoned enough to be in either of those, remember that Budget 2019 also announced five-year annual S$100 MediSave top-ups for those born on or before Dec 31, 1969.
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In case you forgot – it’s all mentioned in Budget 2019
If a rich looking dude handed me free cash in the streets, I would take it and not ask too much about it, assuming that he did it out of goodwill. Maybe he’s that rich, you know?
If an uncle selling tissues handed me free cash, I’d be questioning his sanity and where did he get the money from. Did I drop the cash somehow or is the uncle pranking me?
My point is – free cash comes in for a reason.
And in case you’ve been in a coma and missed Budget 2019, check out our 2 previous articles explaining about it, and the GST Voucher that comes with it:
- Everything About the Budget 2019 ‘Bonus’ That S’poreans Will Receive
- 10 Facts About Budget 2019 S’poreans Need To Know
Why GST Vouchers?
Despite being a relatively rich country, it doesn’t exactly mean that all Singaporeans magically become rich. So the GST voucher was introduced so that people who need the money more, like a writer earning minim-, I mean, lower-income and elderly Singaporeans can get monetary help.
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In total, that is a S$1 billion distributed to the 1.7 million Singaporeans this year.
So where the money come from? Taxes.
And it turns out that rich people are the ones getting taxed more because they earn more money, spend more money and thus pay more taxes.
Obviously, a GST voucher essentially meant for distributing wealth wouldn’t go to the rich.
Remember to sign up, if you haven’t
If you’re eligible, you will be receiving text messages or letters to let you know about your benefits and top-ups in July.
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It’s a problem if you don’t get the money Ah Gong wants to give you, so remember to sign up online or at nearby community centres. Of course, if you already received them before then there’s nothing to worry about.
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