The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) announced on May 1 that the Covid-19 Support Grant would be expanded to include more Singaporeans and permanent residents here.
The grant was initially meant to support only those who had lost their jobs to the pandemic, but MSF said it will now also cover employees placed on involuntary no-pay leave for at least three consecutive months, as well as employees who had their salaries reduced by at least 30 per cent for three consecutive months.
According to the MSF, these changes in employment or salary should have occurred after January 23, when the first Covid-19 case was detected in Singapore.
Under this grant, workers who meet the job loss or no-pay leave criteria will get up to $800 a month for three months.
Those who have lost their job will also receive employment and training support from Workforce Singapore and the Employment and Employability Institute.
Those on no-pay leave will also have access to relevant courses subsidised by SkillsFuture Singapore.
Meanwhile, those who qualify based on their pay cut will receive up to $500 a month for three months, with the quantum based on the amount of basic monthly salary lost.
How To Apply?
The grant application is originally scheduled for May 1 but it has since been pushed back to May 4 for those who have lost their jobs or are on no-pay leave, and May 11 for those who had pay cuts.
Applications should be made online and applicants will have to upload supporting documents showing their employment situation and their previous and current salary levels.
Those who are unable to apply online can head to the nearest Social Service Office to schedule an application slot.
Those who applied for the Temporary Relief Fund and indicated interest in applying for the Covid-19 Support Grant need not re-apply if they had submitted all the necessary supporting documents earlier.
Applications are open for five months until 30 September 2020.
Do note that current beneficiaries of public financial assistance scheme ComCare’s short-to-medium-term assistance or long-term assistance are not eligible for the grant.
Existing ComCare beneficiaries whose assistance is ending by July this year will have the support extended for a further six months without the need for submission of new documents and signatures.
Those newly placed on ComCare will also receive at least six months of assistance.
Featured Image Credit: Sam Kang via Bloomberg
