Read the fine print: payslips, statements, policies and contracts

Read your payslip, CPF and bank statements, tax notice, insurance documents, job contract, tenancy and loan offers, and catch errors before they cost you.

Most of the money mistakes people find late were printed in a document they already had. A payslip with a missing allowance, a CPF contribution that never arrived, a card fee paid for a year, a tax relief not claimed, a contract clause that claws back a bonus, a lock-in on a loan. These documents are written to be correct, not to be easy to read, so people skim them and sign. This course walks you through each one line by line, using your own copies where you can, so you know what every number means, what to check and what to ask before you sign.

What you'll be able to do

• Check every line of a payslip against your contract and the items the Employment Act requires
• Reconcile your CPF transaction history with your payslips month by month
• Find every fee, interest charge and foreign transaction charge on a bank or card statement
• Trace your IRAS notice of assessment from income to tax payable and spot a missing relief
• Compare two insurance product summaries and benefit illustrations on the figures that matter
• Mark up an employment contract, a tenancy agreement and a loan offer letter with the clauses to query
• Set up a document file and a checklist you use whenever a new financial document arrives

Syllabus

Module 1: Check your payslip line by line

What every line on a payslip means, what the Employment Act requires an employer to show, and how to check the deductions and extra payments against your contract.

• 1.1 What every line on your payslip means
• 1.2 What the Employment Act says your payslip must show
• 1.3 CPF, self-help group funds and other deductions
• 1.4 Overtime, allowances, bonuses and unpaid leave on the slip
• 1.5 Check three months of payslips against your contract

Module 2: Read your CPF statement and transaction history

How your CPF accounts appear on the statement, how to read the monthly transaction history, and how to confirm your employer's contributions arrived in full and on time.

• 2.1 Your CPF accounts and what the statement shows
• 2.2 Read the transaction history month by month
• 2.3 What moves money out of your CPF and why
• 2.4 Reconcile your CPF contributions with your payslips

Module 3: Find the fees in your bank and card statements

Read bank and credit card statements for the lines that cost money: fees, interest charges, missed bonus interest and foreign transaction charges, and decide which ones you can stop.

• 3.1 Bank statements: fees, interest earned and missed bonuses
• 3.2 Credit card statements: statement balance, minimum payment and due date
• 3.3 Interest and late fee lines and what triggers them
• 3.4 Foreign transaction charges and dynamic currency conversion
• 3.5 Audit one month of statements for fees

Module 4: Read your IRAS notice of assessment

How the notice of assessment builds from income to tax payable, how to check the income and reliefs IRAS used, and what to do if something is wrong.

• 4.1 How the notice of assessment gets from income to tax payable
• 4.2 Check your income and reliefs before you pay
• 4.3 Paying, GIRO instalments and objecting if something is wrong
• 4.4 Trace your own notice of assessment line by line

Module 5: Read an insurance product summary and benefit illustration

What the product summary and benefit illustration contain that the brochure leaves out, how to read guaranteed and non-guaranteed figures, and which numbers to compare across two policies.

• 5.1 What the product summary tells you that the brochure does not
• 5.2 Guaranteed and non-guaranteed: reading the benefit illustration
• 5.3 Distribution costs, surrender values and the free-look period
• 5.4 Compare two policy documents side by side

Module 6: Read your employment contract before you sign

The clauses in a job offer that affect your money and your options: probation, notice, bonus, non-compete and non-solicit, and the key employment terms your employer must give you.

• 6.1 Probation and notice: how and when either side can end it
• 6.2 Bonus clauses: contractual, discretionary and clawback
• 6.3 Non-compete, non-solicit and confidentiality clauses
• 6.4 Key employment terms and what to ask before signing
• 6.5 Mark up a sample contract

Module 7: Read a tenancy agreement and its diplomatic clause

The clauses in a Singapore tenancy agreement that cost money or limit your options, how the diplomatic clause works, and how to protect your deposit at handover.

• 7.1 The parts of a tenancy agreement that cost money
• 7.2 The diplomatic clause and leaving early
• 7.3 Repairs, deposit deductions and handover
• 7.4 Review a tenancy agreement with a checklist

Module 8: Read a loan offer letter before you accept

How to read the rate, lock-in, prepayment penalty and clawback clauses in a loan offer letter, so you know what changing your mind would cost before you sign.

• 8.1 How the rate is set: fixed, floating and what it is pegged to
• 8.2 Lock-in periods and prepayment penalties
• 8.3 Clawbacks, cancellation fees and other conditions
• 8.4 Compare two loan offer letters
• 8.5 Build your document file and checklist

Frequently asked questions

How long does the course take?

About nine hours across eight modules, including the exercises. Most people finish in three to four weeks, working through their own documents as they go.

Do I need my own documents?

They help, because checking your own payslip or statement is where you find real errors. Every exercise also has a sample document in the course downloads, so you can complete it without sharing anything.

Will this tell me which insurance policy or loan to choose?

No. This course teaches you to read the documents. Choosing insurance is taught in Insurance Decoded, and home loans in Property & Mortgages.

Is this financial or legal advice?

No. The course is education and does not replace financial or legal advice. Rules, rates and thresholds change, so check the current figures with MOM, the CPF Board, IRAS or MAS, and speak to a licensed adviser or a lawyer about your own situation.

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