Understanding IR8A filing in Singapore
Employers in Singapore generally need to prepare IR8A records for employees whose employment income is reportable to IRAS every year. The IR8A filing covers the income you've paid your employees during the year, including salaries, bonuses, fees, and allowances. Founders are responsible for making sure this information is reported accurately according to the IRAS rules.
For YA 2027, you're reporting your employees' income earned throughout 2026. That's a full year's worth of applicable income you need to account for before submitting the IR8A by 1 March 2027. But if your business is under the Auto-Inclusion Scheme Singapore (AIS), you can submit the information electronically; otherwise, you'll need to manually provide your employees with their completed IR8A forms 2026.
How you complete the form also varies from one employee to another. Their role, residency, and circumstances affect what you need to report. Those details may even change throughout the year. Understanding which information applies to each employee is therefore essential for getting IR8A Singapore requirements right.
Which employees need an IR8A
You generally need to prepare an IR8A for employees who received employment income during the year. This includes:
- Resident employees: Full-time and part-time employees who are Singapore tax residents.
- Non-resident employees: Employees who are not Singapore tax residents but received reportable employment income.
- Company directors: Directors who received salary, director's fees or other reportable income.
- Board or committee members: Individuals who received fees for serving on a board or committee.
- Pensioners: Former employees receiving reportable pension or retirement benefits.
- Former employees: Employees who left your organisation but received reportable income during the year, such as gains from employee stock options.
Who does not need IR8A
Most employees require IR8A, but there are some exceptions:
- Foreign employees covered by Form IR21 within the required timeframe. Income already reported through IR21 does not need to be reported again in IR8A, although other Singapore-sourced income not covered by IR21 may still need to be reported.
- Employees based overseas who work wholly outside Singapore for the entire calendar year.
What is the Auto Inclusion Scheme Singapore
The IRAS introduced the AIS system to make it easier for founders to submit their employees’ income electronically. Once you submit the information, IRAS automatically includes the reported employment income in the employee's tax return. Aspire's payroll solution organises all income information and simplifies AIS reporting.
Employers with 5 or more relevant employees must participate in AIS, while other employers may also need to join if IRAS notifies them to do so. Once you're registered for AIS, you stay in the scheme even if your employee count later drops below five. You can register through the myTax Portal and submit your employees' employment-income information electronically. This lets you skip the manual IR8A filing paperwork while still meeting your reporting obligations to IRAS.
IR8A vs AIS: What's the difference
IR8A is the form used to report an employee's employment income, while AIS is the electronic system used to send that information to IRAS. Under AIS, employers submit the income information directly to IRAS. Non-AIS employers instead provide the completed IR8A to their employees.
What information you need for IR8A IRAS
Before filling in the Form IR8A, you'll need two broad categories of information: employment details and income details. Having both ready makes it easier to complete the form accurately and account for any differences between your employees. Aspire's guide to payroll in Singapore covers the broader payroll processes that sit behind this information.
Employment information includes:
- Employer’s tax reference number
- Employee's name and identification details
- Employment dates and cessation date, where applicable
- Designation
- Residency status
- Overseas posting details, where applicable
Income information includes:
- Salary, wages, leave pay and overtime
- Bonuses
- Director's fees
- Allowances
- Commissions
- Lump-sum payments
- Pension and retirement benefits
- Employee and employer CPF contributions
- Benefits-in-kind
- Gains or profits, including applicable gains from employee stock options
- Other taxable employment income that needs to be reported
IR8A supporting forms
IR8A filing covers most employment income, but when your employees receive certain benefits or other types of income, you may need to complete additional forms.
Appendix 8A
Appendix 8A is used when an employee receives taxable benefits-in-kind, such as employer-provided accommodation, a company car or other non-cash benefits. Complete the relevant benefit details in Appendix 8A and include the total value of the benefits-in-kind in field d) 8 of the IR8A filing.
Appendix 8B
Appendix 8B is used when an employee receives taxable gains or profits from an Employee Stock Option (ESOP) or Employee Share Ownership (ESOW) plan. Complete Appendix 8B with the relevant ESOP/ESOW details and report the applicable gains in d) 7(i) or d) 7(ii) of the IR8A, depending on the type of gain.
IR21
IR21 is used when you need to obtain tax clearance for a foreign employee who is leaving employment or Singapore, such as when a non-citizen employee ceases employment or leaves Singapore for more than three months, including for an overseas posting. File the IR21 with IRAS and withhold the employee's applicable monies for tax clearance.
Note: In an IR8A vs IR21 comparison, income already covered by the IR21 should not be reported again on the IR8A.
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How to fill the IR8A form for YA 2027
Step 1: Employment information
Start with the employee's basic information.
- Employer’s Tax Reference Number: Your tax reference number shown in the company's IRAS records/Form IR8A.
- Employee's Tax Reference Number: The employee's NRIC, FIN or passport number, as applicable.
- Name: The employee's full name as shown on their identification document.
- Date of Birth
- Sex
- Residential Address
- Designation: The employee's job title. For a non-resident director where Section 45 withholding tax applies, add “S45 applied” alongside the designation.
- Name of Bank to which salary is credited
- Date of Commencement: If the employee started working in the current year of assessment, enter the date the employee started working.
- Date of Cessation: In case the employee ceased working for the organization, enter the date the employee left.
Step 2: Basic income information
Next, move to the Income section of the Form IR8A and report the employee's main earnings for the year. For most salary payments, this will line up with what you've already paid through payroll, but IR8A follows the amount due for the year, so the payment date isn't always what determines which year's income you report.
- Gross Salary, Fees, Leave Pay, Wages and Overtime Pay: Include the employee's salary, wages, leave pay, overtime pay and other applicable fees due for the year.
- Bonus: Report the bonus the employee is entitled to. Remember to include everything they're due for the year, not just what was actually paid.
- Director's Fees: Report fees paid to a director for their role as a director, such as fees for attending board meetings or serving on the board or its committees. Include the applicable director's fees based on when the director became entitled to them.
Step 3: Other income
Once you've covered the employee's main earnings, move on to the other income fields. These cover payments that don't fit into the salary, bonus, or director's fee categories.
- Allowances: Include taxable allowances paid to the employee, such as housing allowances, staff referral fees, and other cash benefits that need to be reported.
- Gross Commission: Report the employee's total commission earned before any deductions. This can include commissions paid for sales, business generated, or other work where the employee's earnings are linked to the transactions or results they generate.
- Lump Sum Payment: Gratuity/Notice Pay/Ex-gratia Payment: Include applicable taxable lump-sum payments, such as gratuity, notice pay and ex-gratia payments.
- Pension/Retirement Benefits Accrued from 1993 (Other than CPF Benefits): Report applicable pension or retirement benefits accrued from 1993, excluding CPF benefits.
- Contributions Made by Employer to any Pension/Provident Fund Constituted Outside Singapore: Include applicable employer contributions to overseas pension or provident funds.
- Excess/Voluntary Contribution to CPF by Employer: Report taxable employer CPF contributions that go beyond the compulsory contribution requirements.
- Gains or Profits under S10(1)(b): Include taxable gains or profits from employment, including applicable gains from employee share options.
- Gains or Profits under S10(1)(g): Report applicable gains or profits that fall under this category, including relevant share-option gains.
- Value of Benefits-in-Kind: Include the value of taxable non-cash benefits provided to the employee. The detailed breakdown is reported separately in Appendix 8A where applicable.
It’s important to be specific about what each source of income represents rather than grouping everything under salary when filing Form IR8A.
Step 4: Special reporting fields
These fields cover situations that may change how you report an employee's income:
- Remission: Amount of Income: Enter the amount of income covered by an applicable tax remission.
- Overseas Posting: If the employee was on an overseas posting not incidental to the Singapore employment, indicate whether it was for the Full Year or Part of the Year.
- Exempt Income: Enter any employment income that is exempt from tax.
- Employee's income tax borne by employer: Complete this if you paid all or part of the employee's income tax. For AIS, select whether the tax was fully, partially, or not borne by the employer, or whether a fixed amount was borne. Tax reimbursements should instead be reported under d) 1. Allowances.
Step 5: Check for employee-specific reporting requirements
Different employee situations can affect how you complete the IR8A filing and report their income.
[Table:2]
Note: “Income fields” refers to fields (a)–(d) under the Income section of IR8A. Only the fields applicable to the employee should be completed.
Step 6: Check for supporting forms
Under some conditions, you may need to fill in some extra forms in addition to the IR8A filings:
- Appendix 8A: Required when an employee receives taxable benefits-in-kind that need to be reported.
- Appendix 8B: Required when an employee receives gains from employee stock options or share ownership plans that need to be reported.
- IR21: Required when tax clearance is applicable, such as when a non-citizen employee ceases employment, goes on an overseas posting, or leaves Singapore for more than three months.
Form IR8A filing during company restructuring
Businesses often go through internal restructurings or company mergers, moving employees from one entity to another. In this case, you'll need to account for their income earned under both entities when preparing their IR8A Singapore records. IRAS allows you to either report the income separately under each entity or combine the employee's income under the new entity.
Worked example
Scenario: Company A restructures and transfers an employee to Company B on 1 June 2026. The employee earns:
- January to May: SGD $5000 × 5 months = SGD $25,000 from Company A
- June to December: SGD $6000 × 7 months = SGD $42,000 from Company B
The employee's total employment income for 2026 is therefore:
SGD $25,000 + SGD $42,000 = SGD $67,000
You have two ways to report this:
Option 1: Report separately
Company A reports SGD $25,000, while Company B reports SGD $42,000. The employee will receive an IR8A from each entity.
Option 2: Combine under Company B
Company B reports the employee's full-year income of SGD $67,000. IRAS permits specific reporting approaches for employee transfers following restructuring, mergers, or business conversions. The employer should follow the applicable IRAS reporting method rather than simply combining payroll figures.
Errors and late IR8A submissions
If you file IR8A late
The IR8A and related employment-income returns must be furnished by 1 March 2027. Under Section 94 of the Income Tax Act, employers who fail to comply may, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding SGD $5,000 and, in default of payment, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.
If you miss the deadline, submit the required information as soon as possible.
If you submit incorrect information
Employment-income information must be accurate and complete. Under Section 95 of the Income Tax Act, any person who gives “any incorrect information in relation to any matter affecting the tax liability of any other person” may be liable to a penalty of up to two times the amount of tax undercharged, a fine not exceeding SGD $5,000, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, or both.
If you find an error after your IR8A submission, correct it promptly:
- AIS employers: Submit an amendment showing the difference, or a revision with the complete corrected information.
- Non-AIS employers: Submit a corrected IR8A and/or applicable Appendix, marked “Additional” or “Revised” as appropriate, and provide it to the employee.
Reconcile the corrected figures with your payroll records before submitting the amendment.
FAQs
1. When is the IR8A filing due for YA 2027?
The IR8A filing deadline for YA 2027 is 1 March 2027. This covers employment income earned during the 2026 calendar year.
2. Do all employees need an IR8A?
Not necessarily. The IR8A filing requirements depend on whether the employee has reportable employment income and their circumstances. Resident and non-resident employees, directors, pensioners, and certain former employees may all fall within the reporting requirements.
3. Can I amend an IR8A filing after submission?
Yes. If you discover an error after submitting the IR8A, you should correct it promptly. AIS employers can submit an amendment or revision through the applicable AIS process, while non-AIS employers should prepare a corrected IR8A and provide it to the employee.
4. How to get IR8A statement online?
If your employment income was submitted through AIS, you can access your income information through the myTax Portal. If your employer is not under AIS, they should provide you with a completed IR8A instead.
5. Do I need to complete Appendix 8A or 8B with the IR8A?
Only when the relevant circumstances apply. Appendix 8A is used for taxable benefits-in-kind, while Appendix 8B is used for taxable gains from ESOP or ESOW plans.
6. What is the difference between IR8A and AIS?
IR8A is the form used to report an employee's employment income, while AIS is the digital system employers use to submit that information to IRAS. AIS employers submit the information electronically, while non-AIS employers provide the completed IR8A to their employees.
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