SINGAPORE — Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs) here who have been placed on involuntary no-pay leave or have had at least a 30 per cent salary cut due to the ongoing pandemic are now eligible to apply for the Covid-19 Support Grant.

Before this, only those who lost their jobs qualified for the grant.

In a media statement on Thursday (April 30), the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said that it had expanded the grant to include the two new groups of people so as to support more workers financially affected by the pandemic.

At the point of application for the grant, the person should be unemployed, on involuntary no-pay leave or has had monthly salaries reduced by at least 30 per cent for three consecutive months.

MSF said that these changes in employment or salary should have occurred after Jan 23 — when the first case of Covid-19 was detected in Singapore.

WHAT APPLICANTS ARE ENTITLED TO

The Covid-19 Support Grant will provide up to S$800 a month to successful applicants for three months.

The amount will be based on the applicant’s last-drawn monthly salary and is capped at S$800.

MSF said that those who have lost their jobs can receive employment and training support from Workforce Singapore or the Employment and Employability Institute, while those on involuntary no-pay leave can take up relevant courses subsidised by SkillsFuture Singapore.

Those who had a 30 per cent pay cut can get up to S$500 a month for three months, with the amount based on the basic salary lost.

WHEN TO APPLY FOR GRANT

MSF said that the applications for the grant will open in two phases, in order to effectively process the expanded number of applicants.

People who have lost their jobs or are on no-pay leave may apply from May 4 onwards, while those who have had pay cuts can apply from May 11.

Applications may be made online. Applicants will need to upload their supporting documents showing their employment situation and their previous and current salaries.

Those who need help completing the online application form may call the ComCare Call hotline (1800-222-0000) or email Ask_SSO [at] msf.gov.sg for assistance.

Applicants who are not able to apply online may approach their nearest social service offices.

Those who had already applied for the Temporary Relief Fund that provides a one-off S$500 cash aid and who had indicated interest in applying for the Covid-19 Support Grant need not reapply if they had earlier submitted all the necessary supporting documents, MSF said.

Applications are open until Sept 30.

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EXTENDED COMCARE ASSISTANCE

Current beneficiaries on ComCare Short-to-Medium-Term Assistance or ComCare Long-Term Assistance are not eligible for the Covid-19 Support Grant. The ComCare Short-to-Medium-Term Assistance is a scheme for low-income families and individuals who are temporarily unable to work, while the Long-Term Assistance provides assistance to seniors and their familes who have extreme financial difficulties.

MSF said that existing ComCare beneficiaries whose assistance is ending by July 2020 will have their assistance extended for another six months without review.

Families on ComCare whose circumstances have changed during the Covid-19 crisis may approach social service offices for a review of their ComCare support.

It added that those who are newly placed on ComCare will receive at least six months of assistance.

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