SINGAPORE — Workers whose jobs or incomes have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic may apply for another round of support under the Covid-19 Recovery Grant, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said on Tuesday (March 30).

From April 19, those who have already received support under the grant will be able to apply for a second tranche, provided that they meet the criteria at the time of application.

Each individual can receive a maximum of two tranches of support, resulting in six months of financial aid in total, the ministry said.

The Covid-19 Recovery Grant, which provides support to lower- to middle-income employees and self-employed persons who have been financially affected by the pandemic, was launched on Jan 18. 

More than 10,000 individuals have received support from the grant, and around S$10 million has been disbursed as of March 22.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for Social and Family Development, said that MSF will continue supporting Singaporeans to overcome challenges during the pandemic.

“We are also continuing to process fresh applications,” he said, adding that there was no need to rush as the deadline for online applications is Dec 31.

The grant is separate from the Covid-19 Support Grant and the Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme, which are no longer accepting applications after they closed at the end of last year.

HOW RELIEF WILL BE PROVIDED 

• For three months, up to S$700 will be provided monthly to workers who have been retrenched, terminated or placed on involuntary no-pay leave for at least three consecutive months

• For three months, up to S$500 will be provided monthly to workers whose incomes have been cut by at least 50 per cent for at least three consecutive months

• For three months, up to S$500 will be provided monthly to self-employed individuals who lost an average of 50 per cent in income for at least three consecutive months, compared with their average monthly income in 2019 or 2020

• Applicants' job or income losses must have occurred after Jan 23 last year — the day the first Covid-19 case was detected in Singapore

WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE GRANT

• Applicants must have a gross monthly household income of S$7,800 or less, or a monthly per capita income of S$2,600 or less, before being affected by the crisis

• Applicants must be economically active and have worked for at least six months cumulatively between January 2019 and December 2020, before being hit by the economic downturn caused by the pandemic

• Applicants must have had their income cut by at least 50 per cent

• Applicants must not own more than one property and must live in one with an annual value of less than S$21,000

• Applicants must show that they have been looking for jobs or applying for skills training programmes through government portals, attending job interviews or taking part in career coaching at government-linked career centres

• Applicants cannot be concurrently receiving support through ComCare assistance programmes, the Seafarers Relief Package, the Covid-19 Driver Relief Fund or SGUnited programmes

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE GRANT

• Until April 18, individuals may apply online at go.gov.sg/CRG from 9am to 10pm every day

• From April 19 to Dec 31, the online application portal will be operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week

• Applicants should prepare supporting documents such as bank statements

• Those who are not able to apply online may visit their nearest Social Service Office under MSF

POINTERS FOR SECOND TRANCHE OF GRANT

• Individuals applying for a renewal must submit a new application

• Individuals may apply for renewal only if they are in their final month of assistance or if the assistance has ended

• To qualify for a second tranche, self-employed persons must meet the extra requirement of not having any outstanding Central Provident Fund MediSave contributions, or be committed to making contributions via the Giro automated e-payment plan