Where does Government revenue come from?

What are the main sources of Government revenue?

Government revenue comes from taxes, fees & charges collected by Government agencies and Net Investment Returns Contribution (NIRC).

Taxes

More than 70% of our revenue comes from taxes. Taxes in Singapore are primarily on income, consumption and wealth.  

a) Income taxes include Corporate Income Tax (CIT), Personal Income Tax (PIT) and Withholding Tax.

b) Consumption taxes include Goods and Services Tax (GST) as well as customs and excise duties.  

c) Wealth taxes such as Property Tax and Buyer’s Stamp Duty, as well as the Additional Registration Fee, which is part of our Motor Vehicle Taxes. 

d) Other taxes include Foreign Worker Levy, Water Conservation Tax, Land Betterment Charge and Annual Tonnage Tax. 

Fees and Charges

Fees and Charges (F&Cs) are charges for goods and services provided by the Government. This is to ensure that users of such goods and services pay, to discourage overconsumption and so that non-users do not have to subsidise them. F&C rates are priced to allow the Government to cost recover and make the provision of the goods or services sustainable. Examples of F&Cs include parking charges for carparks maintained by HDB and URA, and licence fees such as driving licences.

Net Investment Returns Contribution

Net Investment Returns Contribution (NIRC) comprises:

a) Up to 50% of the Net Investment Returns (NIR) on the net assets invested by GIC, MAS, and Temasek; and

b) Up to 50% of the Net Investment Income (NII) derived from past reserves from the remaining assets.

These investment returns on our reserves provide additional resources for Government spending to benefit Singaporeans. About 20% of Government spending every year is funded by the NIRC. Since FY2020, the NIRC has provided an annual revenue stream of around 3.5% of GDP on average.