It is the tax season for 2021. If you had an income in 2020, filing of your income tax starts 1st March 2021. You will NEED to file it by 18 April 2021 (e-filing) or 15 April 2021 (paper filing). If you don’t, it could lead to a fine or even a court summon. Don’t say you have not been warned.
We don’t really talk about taxes in 6 Levels Wealth Karate Methodology. In a simple gist, taxes are bittersweet to me. On one hand, I don’t like to pay taxes as it is an expenses to me. On the other hand, if I pay higher taxes, it would mean that my income is higher! I’m just glad that in Singapore, we have a really attractive tax program and we pay significantly lesser taxes as compared to people in other countries. Without going too deep into that, here’s how how much to pay for your income taxes in 2021.
Do you need to pay taxes or not?
Yes. You only pay income taxes if your chargeable income is greater than $20,000. Some income are chargeable and some are not. Fun fact: your winning from your TOTO/4D is not a chargeable income. Check out the full list here.
If your chargeable income in 2020 is above $20,000, you will be taxed with the progressive income tax system. Singapore follows a progressive income tax system. This means that the higher your income, the more you pay in taxes. The resident tax rates are as follows.
However, this does not show the effective income taxes for your income. When I first saw this table, I thought that if I earn $80,000, my tax bracket would be 7% or $5,600. This is untrue.
If you are earning $80,000, you will be paying $3,350 in taxes which means my effective income tax rates are 4.19%. Personally, I think it is quite fair. With the same $80,000, you would be paying $23,571 or 29.46% effective income taxes in USA.
Is it automatic?
If you received a letter/SMS/form that tells you to file your income tax, you will have to log in and file it yourself. This sms below is one that I received from IRAS. Typically, most of my income have already be pre-filed as I’m a self-employed working with AIA.
If you received a letter/SMS/form that tells you NOT to file your income tax, you don’t have to do it. But please verify if your information is correct and accurate.
If you didn’t receive anything from IRAS, you will still need to file a tax return if your:
- annual net business income exceeded $6,000, OR
- annual income (inclusive of rental income) was more than $22,000 last year
Tax Deductibles
Since 2020 is over, you can’t really do much changes into your deductibles. You can start planning for 2021 instead. In Singapore, we have a list of deductibles given to encourage social and economic objectives such as filial piety, family formation and the advancement of skills.
Income – Deductibles = Chargeable Income
As mentioned above, you will pay taxes on your chargeable income. This means that deductibles will play a big role in the taxes you are paying.
IRAS has created a personal income relief checker to see how much deductible you are allowed. These deductible includes SRS Top Ups, CPF cash Top Ups, just to mention a few. There is a maximum of $80,000 tax reliefs.
Final thoughts by Wealthdojo
Co-incidentally, these two can be well managed by proper financial planning or using insurance tools to achieve your financial goals. This article is meant to be a general article on how to pay taxes in Singapore. If you would like to know more, just comment on this post or contact me and I would love to have a conversation with you on the above.
Stay healthy. Stay Safe and pay your taxes.
Thank you for your contribution to nation building.
Chengkok is a licensed Financial Services Consultant since 2012. He is an Investment and Critical Illness Specialist. Wealthdojo was created in 2019 to educate and debunk “free financial advice” that was given without context.
Feel Free To Reach Out To Share Your Thoughts.
Contact: 94316449 (Whatsapp) chengkokoh@gmail.com (Email)
Telegram: Wealthdojo [Continuous Learning Channel]
Reviews: About Me
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organisation, employer or company. Assumptions made in the analysis are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the author.
[…] Singaporeans is $4,534 in 2020 including CPF contributions from employers. It is an income where tax is rather manageable (in my opinion) and you might not consider to contribute to CPF for tax purposes. I do understand that some of you […]
[…] is the time of the year again. Last year, I wrote about whether an individual is required to pay taxes and my opinion of effective income tax in Singapore. This year, I will simply comment on the latest happenings and what you should take note […]