1.2 million Singaporean households to receive a total of S$340 million in utilities support

SINGAPORE — All households with at least one Singaporean citizen will have their S$100 one-off Solidarity Utilities Credit payout credited to their July or August SP Group utilities bill.

The payout, which will be given to households in all residential property types, was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat during the Fortitude Budget in May.

“This is to thank them for doing their part in staying home for Singapore during the ‘circuit breaker’ period,” the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said in a press release on Thursday (Jul 2).

The utilities credit is on top of the permanent GST Voucher (GSTV) — U-save and the GSTV — U-Save Special Payment, which will also be paid out to eligible HDB households, said MOF.

About 940,000 eligible HDB households will receive double their regular U-Save this financial year through a one-off GSTV — U-Save Special Payment.

Eligible households with at least five members will receive an additional GSTV — U-Save rebate. They will thus receive a total of two-and-a-half times their regular (GSTV) — U-save this financial year.

These GSTV – U-Save rebates will cost the Government a total of S$630 million in FY 2020.

With the additional payouts, households in one or two room HDB flats will receive rebates equivalent to at least six to eight months of their utilities bills, on average. Usually, their GSTV — U-Save rebates are equivalent to about three to four months of their utilities bills, on average.

Meanwhile, those in three and four room HDB flats will receive rebates equivalent to at least two to four months of their utilities bills, on average. Their regular GSTV — U-Save rebates are equivalent to about one to two months of their utilities bills.

The GSTV — U-Save rebates that households will receive this financial year are shown in the table below:

The permanent GSTV scheme, introduced in 2012, helps lower- and middle-income households offset part of their utilities bill and lower their household expenses.

On Wednesday, the Government announced that 1.4 million eligible Singaporeans will receive their GST Vouchers payout next month.

This includes a GST voucher of up to S$300 in cash, as well as MediSave top-ups of up to S$450 for eligible seniors aged 65 and above. CNA

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