Every employee covered by the Employment Act is entitled to an itemised payslip, and a legal payslip in Singapore has to show 12 specific items, not just a net figure. The rule has applied to all such employers since 1 April 2016. If your slip only says "Salary: $X paid", it is not compliant, and you have grounds to ask your employer to fix it. This guide walks through the full 12-item list with the 2026 numbers that should appear on yours, who is and isn't entitled to one, the format and timing your employer must follow, and the penalties when they don't.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) sets out 12 items that an itemised payslip must show. The list is not optional, and an employer cannot collapse several allowances into one "total allowances" line or merge deductions into a single number. Each component has to be separately identifiable so you can check every dollar.
Here is the full list, with what each item means in practice on a Singapore payslip.
The payslip rule applies to employees covered by the Employment Act, which is almost everyone working under a contract of service, whether full-time, part-time, temporary or on contract, and whether local or foreign. Managers and executives are covered for the payslip requirement even though they sit outside the working-hours and overtime protections.
Three groups fall outside the Employment Act entirely and so are not legally entitled to an itemised payslip: seafarers, domestic workers (such as migrant domestic helpers), and statutory board employees and civil servants, who are covered by separate terms. If you employ a domestic helper, the itemised-payslip rule does not bind you, though clear written records are still good practice.
Overtime and rest-day rules sit under Part 4 of the Act and only apply below a salary line: workmen earning a basic salary of $4,500 or less a month, and non-workmen (most rank-and-file office staff) earning $2,600 or less. Above those, overtime pay is whatever your contract says, so items 9 to 11 may simply not appear on your slip.
Two of the largest lines on most payslips are CPF and, indirectly, the Skills Development Levy. Both changed for 2026, so it is worth knowing what the correct figures look like before you assume your slip is wrong.
Your CPF deduction is the employee share only. For employees aged 55 and below, the total CPF rate is 37% of wages, split as a 20% employee share (deducted from your pay and shown on the slip) and a 17% employer share (paid on top of your salary, not deducted from it). Both are capped by the Ordinary Wage ceiling, which rose to $8,000 a month from 1 January 2026. You can sanity-check the deduction with our CPF contribution calculator or read the full breakdown in our CPF contribution rates guide.
The Skills Development Levy (SDL) is paid entirely by your employer, so it should not reduce your take-home pay or appear as your deduction. It is 0.25% of monthly wages, with a floor of $2 (for those earning under $800) and a cap of $11.25 (for wages above $4,500). If you see SDL deducted from your salary, that is an error worth flagging.
| Item | 2026 figure | Who pays | Shown on payslip as |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPF employee share (age 55 and below) | 20% of wages | You (deducted) | A deduction |
| CPF employer share (age 55 and below) | 17% of wages | Employer (on top) | Usually noted, not deducted |
| Ordinary Wage ceiling | $8,000 / month | Caps both CPF shares | Implicit cap on CPF lines |
| Skills Development Levy | 0.25%, min $2, max $11.25 | Employer only | Should not be your deduction |
| SHG fund (e.g. CDAC, MBMF, SINDA, ECF) | Set amount by income band | You (deducted) | A deduction |
Your employer must hand over the payslip together with your salary payment. If that isn't possible, it has to reach you within three working days of the payment. When you leave a job, the final payslip must come with your final salary payment, which ties in with any salary in lieu of notice owed either way.
Format is flexible. MOM accepts a printed hard copy, a soft copy such as an emailed PDF, or even a handwritten slip, as long as all 12 items are present. There is no requirement to use payroll software, though most employers do.
Employers also have to keep payslip and salary records. For current employees, the latest two years of records must be kept. For former employees, the last two years of their employment must be kept for one year after they leave. If a dispute arises over unpaid salary, these are the records MOM will ask for.
Start by reading the slip line by line. The most common real problems are allowances bundled into one figure, a deduction you never agreed to, CPF that looks off against the CPF rates above, or simply no payslip at all. Unauthorised deductions are a separate breach: beyond CPF, tax and approved items, an employer generally cannot deduct from your salary without your written consent.
If something is off, raise it with HR or your employer in writing first and keep a copy. Most issues are clerical and get corrected once flagged. If salary itself is unpaid or short, that is a salary claim, not just a payslip issue, and you can file with the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) within set time limits.
Keeping your own copies matters beyond compliance. Banks ask for three to six months of payslips for a personal loan or mortgage, and your year-end figures should reconcile with the Notice of Assessment from IRAS at tax time. A clean payslip trail is the simplest proof of income you have.
Failing to issue a proper itemised payslip is treated as a civil contravention rather than a crime in the first instance. The administrative penalty is $100 to $200 for a first occurrence and $200 to $400 for subsequent occurrences, assessed per affected case.
MOM can also order the employer to put things right. Ignoring that order is where it turns serious: a failure to comply with MOM's order is a criminal offence, carrying a fine of up to $5,000 and/or imprisonment of up to six months. In short, the slip itself is cheap to fix and expensive to ignore.
Yes. Since 1 April 2016, every employer must issue an itemised payslip to each employee covered by the Employment Act, showing 12 specific items. It must be given with the salary or within three working days of payment, in soft copy, hard copy or even handwritten form.
Employer name, employee name, payment date, basic salary, salary period, allowances, additional payments such as bonuses, deductions, overtime hours, overtime pay, overtime period and net salary. Each allowance and deduction must be listed separately rather than lumped together.
Yes. The payslip rule covers all employees under a contract of service, including part-time, temporary, contract and foreign workers. Only seafarers, domestic workers and civil servants or statutory board staff fall outside the Employment Act and so are not legally entitled to one.
For employees aged 55 and below in 2026, the CPF rate is 37% of wages: a 20% employee share deducted from your pay and shown as a deduction, plus a 17% employer share paid on top of your salary. Both are capped at the $8,000 monthly Ordinary Wage ceiling.
Ask in writing first and keep a copy. If it is still not provided, you can report it to MOM, which can order the employer to comply and impose administrative penalties of $100 to $200 for a first occurrence. Ignoring an MOM order is a criminal offence with fines up to $5,000.
This is general financial information for Singapore, not personal financial advice. Figures change — verify current rates against the official sources above before acting. See our full disclaimer.