Singapore Cash Payouts to Reach PayNow Users First

About 3 million adult Singaporeans will receive between S$100 and S$250 in cash from Dec 8, with those who have linked their identity card numbers to the PayNow service getting their money first, Singapore’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced on Tuesday (Nov 10).

The payment is the final disbursement under the enhanced Assurance Package (AP), and is open to Singaporeans aged 21 and above in 2027, the ministry said.

Who gets how much

The amount depends on a person’s assessable income and the number of properties they own. Those owning no more than one property will receive S$250 if their assessable income is S$39,000 or less, S$150 if it is above S$39,000 and up to S$100,000, and S$100 if it is above S$100,000. Those who own more than one property will receive S$100.

The MOF said the income threshold was raised from S$34,000 to S$39,000 from August 2025.

A S$3 billion enhancement to the Assurance Package was announced at Budget 2023 to help households with living expenses and give more support to lower- and middle-income families. Over the five years from 2022 to 2026, eligible Singaporeans would have received up to S$2,250 in AP cash, the ministry said.

PayNow first, GIRO later

Since 2021, the MOF has used PayNow-NRIC as its main way of paying government cash benefits to citizens who have linked their NRIC to PayNow through their bank. The ministry said this lets recipients receive money in their bank accounts without disclosing their account details to the sender.

Citizens with accounts at any of the 16 participating banks are encouraged to link their NRIC to PayNow by Nov 24 to receive their payout by Dec 8.

Those without a PayNow-NRIC link but with an account at DBS/POSB, OCBC or UOB can submit their bank details on the govbenefits website by Nov 30. They will be paid through GIRO by Dec 17.

What’s next

Citizens can check their eligibility by logging in to govbenefits.gov.sg with Singpass. Recipients will be notified through the gov.sg SMS sender ID before and after the cash is credited, while those without a Singpass-registered mobile number will be informed by letter.

The ministry warned that government officials will never ask people to transfer money or disclose bank log-in details over the phone, and urged anyone unsure about a possible scam to call the 24-hour ScamShield Helpline at 1799.

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