On 14 February 2023, Finance Minister Lawrence Wong announced Budget 2023, which included new and enhanced initiatives to help businesses build their capabilities and seize new opportunities in a new era of global development.
Here are some key points from the Budget 2023 that we believe can help businesses grow.
Enterprise Development Grant (EDG)
The current EDG grant is extended till 31 March 2026 to provide continued support for businesses to undergo upgrading and transformation through automation projects. Furthermore, eligible businesses can apply for 100% Investment Allowance (IA), which is a net grant, and the approved capital expenditure is capped at S$10 million per project. Making this an attractive grant for small and medium businesses (SMEs) to apply for.
National Productivity Fund (NPF)
The NPF grant had a top-up of S$4 billion and expanded its scope to support investment promotion. This grant was established in 2010 to support measures for businesses to improve their productivity and continue to educate and train employees.
Energy Efficiency Grant (EEG)
This EEG grant aim to help SMEs in food services, food manufacturing, and retail sectors by co-funding investments in energy-efficient equipment. The grant will provide up to 70% support for SMEs to adopt pre-approved energy-efficient equipment.
Increase of paternity leave to 4 weeks and unpaid infant care leave to 12 days a year
Paid paternity leave is increased to four weeks for working fathers of Singaporean children born on or after 1 Jan 2024, an increase from the current two weeks. This allows them to be more involved with their children and play a bigger role in raising their children. Furthermore, parents of young children will be able to take on more unpaid infant care leave, up to 12 days per year, an increase from the current six days.
With these new and enhanced grants, it is a good opportunity for businesses to review and improve their current processes by using technology to, expand their resource development capabilities through automation and training of their employees.
HRiQ is a comprehensive and highly integrated HRMS that can help improve efficiency and productivity through automation to reduce the administrative workload and hence allowing more time for resource planning.
HRiQ Talent Management Solution help in managing and retaining talents that will drive the growth of the company. Businesses can achieve their long-term organizational goals by optimizing on their talent management process, and by using HRiQ Learning Management System to identify competency and skill gaps in an employee and providing the relevant training to bridge these gaps.
Finally, HRiQ Leave Management System helps businesses comply to statutory requirements set by the government, and it is highly configurable to suit different company policy needs.
Speak to one of our sales consultants to gain more insights on how HRiQ can benefit your organization. Contact us at [email protected] or +65 6594 4138.