How to Do Payroll in Singapore, Step by Step

How to do payroll in Singapore, in one line: each month work out gross pay and overtime, take off the employee's CPF and self-help fund, add your CPF and the Skills Development Levy, pay salary within 7 days after the salary period ends, give an itemised payslip, pay CPF Board by the 14th, and keep the records. Once a year, report each employee's pay to IRAS by 1 March.

Below is that routine in order for employees covered by the Employment Act, with a worked example from a café in Tampines: Aisha, a 28-year-old Singaporean on S$2,400 a month who worked 6 hours of overtime in October.

Before the first pay day: set it up once

Give each employee their key employment terms in writing within 14 days of their first day, if they're employed for 14 days or more: job title, duties, place of work, working arrangements, salary, leave and other benefits.
Apply for a CPF Submission Number, so you can pay CPF through CPF EZPay.
For each person, note their date of birth, whether they're a citizen, a PR (and which year) or a foreign employee, their self-help fund, and how they're paid: monthly, daily or by the hour.
Fix the salary period (usually the calendar month) and the pay day, and collect bank details.

Step 1: Work out gross pay

Start from the basic salary, or the basic rate times the hours or days worked for part-timers. Add fixed allowances such as transport, one-off allowances, and other payments such as a bonus, rest day pay or public holiday pay.

For a monthly-rated employee who worked an incomplete month, because they joined, left or took no-pay leave, MOM's formula is the monthly gross rate of pay ÷ the number of working days in that month × the number of days actually worked.

Step 2: Add overtime under the Employment Act

Overtime rules sit in Part 4 of the Employment Act. It covers workmen earning a basic monthly salary of S$4,500 or less and other employees (non-workmen) earning S$2,600 or less; it doesn't cover managers and executives. Normal hours are up to 44 a week: up to 9 a day on a five-day week or less, or 8 a day on a longer week.

Overtime is paid at least 1.5 times the hourly basic rate. For a monthly-rated employee, the hourly basic rate is (12 × monthly basic pay) ÷ (52 × 44). An employee can work up to 72 overtime hours a month. For non-workmen, the overtime rate is capped at the salary level of S$2,600, or S$13.60 an hour. Overtime pay is due within 14 days after the end of the salary period.

For Aisha: (12 × S$2,400) ÷ (52 × 44) is about S$12.59 an hour, so overtime is S$18.88 an hour, and 6 hours make S$113.28. Her gross pay for October is S$2,513.28.

Step 3: CPF, SDL and self-help funds

Work out CPF on the month's wages from the employee's age and status. Aisha is 28, so the total is 37% of S$2,513.28 = S$929.91, rounded to S$930. Her share is 20% = S$502.66, rounded down to S$502, and you pay the remaining S$428. Our CPF guide has the full tables and ceilings.

Then add the Skills Development Levy, 0.25% of total wages (S$6.28 for Aisha, within the S$2 to S$11.25 range), and deduct her self-help fund: she contributes to CDAC, which is S$1 at her wage. Aisha's net pay is S$2,513.28 − S$502 − S$1 = S$2,010.28. Your cost is her gross pay plus S$428 CPF and the levy.

Step 4: Only make deductions the law allows

Deductions must be authorised, such as the employee's CPF, absence from work, no-pay leave, or recovery of an advance or loan.
In one salary period, total deductions can't be more than 50% of the salary payable. Deductions for absence, recovery of advances, loans or overpaid salary, and payments to a registered co-operative society with the employee's consent don't count towards that 50%.
Deductions for accommodation, amenities and services can't be more than their value or more than 25% of the salary for the period.
When employment ends, the total deductions from the final salary may go above 50%.

Step 5: Pay on time

Salary is paid at least once a month, within 7 days after the end of the salary period, into the employee's bank account or by cheque (a cheque counts as paid once it clears). Overtime pay is due within 14 days. For a calendar-month salary period, that means October's salary by 7 November.

When employment ends	Final pay is due
Resigns and serves notice	On the last day of employment
Resigns without serving notice	Within 7 days of the last day of employment
Dismissed for misconduct	On the last day, or within 3 working days of dismissal if that isn't possible
You end the employment	On the last day, or within 3 working days of termination if that isn't possible

Step 6: Give an itemised payslip

Every employee covered by the Employment Act gets an itemised payslip, with their pay or within three working days of it, in soft or hard copy (handwritten is fine). On termination, it goes with the outstanding salary. MOM's 12 items, leaving out any that don't apply:

1. Full name of the employer, and 2. full name of the employee
3. Date of payment, and 4. basic salary (or the basic rate and the hours, days or pieces worked)
5. Start and end date of the salary period
6. Allowances paid for the period, fixed and one-off
7. Other additional payments, such as a bonus, rest day pay or public holiday pay
8. Deductions for the period, such as the employee's CPF and no-pay leave
9. Overtime hours worked, 10. overtime pay, and 11. the overtime period if it differs from the salary period
12. Net salary paid in total

Step 7: Pay CPF Board and keep the records

Submit CPF, SDL and the self-help funds in CPF EZPay before the 14th of the following month, by Direct Debit or PayNow QR.

Keep employee records (address, NRIC or work pass number and expiry, date of birth, gender, start and leaving dates, working hours and breaks, public holidays and leave taken) and salary records with the same items as the payslip. MOM's rule: the latest two years for current employees, and for someone who has left, their last two years, kept for one year after they leave.

Once a year: IR8A and the Auto-Inclusion Scheme

Each employee's pay for the year is reported to IRAS by 1 March of the next year. Submitting electronically through the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) is compulsory if you have 5 or more employees in the year, if IRAS has sent you a notice to file electronically, or if you're already registered for AIS. If you aren't in AIS, give each employee a Form IR8A (and any appendices that apply) by 1 March, so they can file their own tax return.

When a foreign or PR employee stops working for you, or leaves Singapore for more than three months, file Form IR21 for tax clearance at least one month before. A late filing can bring a fine of up to S$1,000.

The same month in AQUORIA O.N.E (Business)

Payroll and HR come with Business. Start the month's pay run and everyone active gets a draft payslip with their basic pay. Add hours for part-timers, or press Fill hours from clock-ins to copy their timesheets across, then overtime hours, allowances, bonuses and deductions. For monthly-rated staff, the overtime rate is worked out from MOM's formula, so check who is covered by Part 4 and the cap for non-workmen yourself.

Approved no-pay leave comes off a monthly salary by working days, and someone who joined or left mid-month is paid for the working days they worked. CPF, SDL and the self-help fund are worked out on each payslip. Finalise the month and the payslips are fixed, with the cost added to your expenses.

Payslips are set out on A4 with MOM's items plus your CPF, and save as a PDF. Email them from your own connected mailbox, or let staff open their own under My work. The year's pay for IRAS adds up each person's finalised pay, ready for AIS or Form IR8A, and a foreign employee's last day brings an IR21 reminder a month before.

How it works

1Add each employee with their date of birth, CPF status, self-help fund, pay type and rate.
2Start the month's pay run, add hours, overtime, allowances and deductions, and check the CPF.
3Finalise, then email payslips or let staff open them under My work.
4Key the For CPF EZPay summary into CPF EZPay, and at year end use the year's pay for IRAS.

What you'll use

Plan: Business

Sources

Published 4 November 2026

Questions

Is a payslip mandatory in Singapore?

Yes, for every employee covered by the Employment Act. MOM requires an itemised payslip with each payment, or within three working days of it, showing items such as the salary period, basic pay, allowances, deductions, overtime and net pay. It can be a soft or hard copy, even handwritten, and you keep a record of every payslip you issue.

When must salary be paid in Singapore?

At least once a month, and within 7 days after the end of the salary period. Overtime pay has a little longer, 14 days. For a calendar-month salary period, October's salary is due by 7 November. Final pay depends on how employment ends: on the last day when an employee resigns and serves notice, or within 7 days when they leave without notice.

How is overtime pay calculated in Singapore?

For employees covered by Part 4 of the Employment Act, overtime is at least 1.5 times the hourly basic rate. For monthly-rated staff, the hourly basic rate is (12 × monthly basic pay) ÷ (52 × 44). On S$2,400 a month that's about S$12.59 an hour, so overtime is S$18.88 an hour. For non-workmen, MOM caps the overtime rate at the salary level of S$2,600, or S$13.60 an hour.

Do I need to submit IR8A to IRAS?

Only through the Auto-Inclusion Scheme. If you have 5 or more employees in the year, have received IRAS's notice, or are already registered for AIS, you submit employees' pay to IRAS electronically by 1 March. Otherwise you give each employee a completed Form IR8A, plus any appendices that apply, by 1 March, and don't send it to IRAS.

How long must I keep payroll records?

MOM asks for salary and employee records covering the latest two years for current employees. For someone who has left, keep their last two years of records for one year after they leave. Records can be soft or hard copy. Keep a record of every payslip issued too, and IRAS has its own rules for your accounting records.

How to do payroll in Singapore: a monthly routine, step by step