For Businesses/ Employers

Businesses and employers can use accounting and/or payroll software to file tax returns/ information to IRAS directly with a few clicks of buttons:

Corporate Income Tax (CIT) Form C-S returns and/or Goods & Services Tax (GST) returns from accounting software; and
Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) and/or Tax Clearance for Employees (IR21) from payroll software.

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Benefits of #SFFS

This section provides an overview of the benefits that businesses/ employers can enjoy by adopting #SFFS

Fulfil tax obligations more easily and accurately
- Reduce time needed to file and potential transposition errors, since there is no need for manual data entry in myTax Portal
- Improved accuracy of tax submissions with features in some software such as pre-filling of tax data, auto-computation of benefits-in-kind amount, automated blocked input tax claims and reminders for GST registration and filing
- Overall, businesses could achieve productivity savings (e.g. more than 95% time savings from 8 hours to 15 minutes from using accounting software to prepare and file Form C-S to IRAS)
Reduce compliance cost
- Auto-generation of tax forms directly from software’s data allow businesses/ employers to fulfil tax compliance obligations easily on their own
Enjoy digital record keeping
- Manage day-to-day operations and transactions digitally, with no more manual records
- Quick, efficient and accurate recording of business transactions, that help ensure compliance with IRAS’ record keeping requirements
Enjoy extended filing due date and waiver of penalties for errors made in tax returns due to unfamiliarity with the use of software
To allow businesses/ employers more time to transit to and familiarise with using #SFFS, IRAS will be providing the following 2 benefits:
- Extended filing due date for Form C-S and GST F5 and F8 returns:
  1. IRAS will automatically extend the CIT filing due date by 15 days (i.e. from 30 Nov to 15 Dec) for Year of Assessment (YA) 2023 to YA 2025 Form C-S returns filed through #SFFS. Businesses filing YA 2023 to YA 2025 Form C-S returns through #SFFS do not need to request for the extension.
  2. IRAS will also grant an extension of GST filing due date by 2 weeks upon request, if software issues or errors are encountered when filing GST F5 or F8 returns due from 1 Jan 2023 to 31 Dec 2025 through #SFFS. The request for extension must be made at least 3 working days before the GST filing due date.
- Waiver of penalties for errors made in tax returns due to unfamiliarity with the use of software:
  IRAS will be waiving penalties for errors made due to unfamiliarity with the use of the software for tax returns filed through #SFFS by the respective filing deadline. The waiver is applicable for Form C-S, GST F5 and F8, AIS, and IR21 returns due from 1 Jan 2023 to 31 Dec 2025. The waiver does not apply to errors made without reasonable excuse, through negligence, or with wilful intent to evade tax.
Fulfil other adjacent regulatory obligations from the same software
- For example, some software also allow the auto-generation and submission of Annual Returns and Financial Statements to ACRA

Hear from businesses/ employers who have successfully adopted #SFFS

Join the 16,000 businesses/ employers who have successfully adopted #SFFS and have started enjoying its benefits. Here are some feedback from some of these businesses/ employers:

"Filing AIS seamlessly from payroll software allowed us to minimise human errors in reporting and helped us achieve digitalisation. The infographic guide from IRAS is easy to follow."

- Ms Janice Yap, Director, SM2 Consulting, filing AIS using #SFFS

"After collaborating with IRAS and software developer to refine the seamless filing solution during the initial pilot phase, filing GST F5 seamlessly from accounting software reduces the risk of manual typo errors as F5 is automatically populated. We have total peace of mind with the assurance provided by the swift acknowledgement after the submission. Submission of employees’ salary seamlessly from payroll software is also simple and fast as it eliminates the need for manual data entry with the data being verified and extracted from the payroll software."

- Ms Rosalind Yeo, Senior Manager, HORME Hardware, filing GST returns and AIS using #SFFS

Based on a survey with GST-registered businesses, 63% agreed that filing GST seamlessly from software was more accurate, and 75% found it easy to use!

How to adopt #SFFS

This section provides an overview of how you can adopt #SFFS as a business/ employer

For businesses:

If you are a business which needs to file:

CIT returns via Form C-S; and/or
GST returns via GST F5/F8 and Form for disclosing errors in GST returns (GST F7);

you may refer to the IRAS Accounting Software Register Plus (ASR+) for eligible accounting software which have incorporated seamless filing features. You may select a software in any of the 3 tiers that meets your tax filing needs.

For employers:

If you are an employer which needs to file:

Employee’s employment records under the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) via IR8A and/or IR8S, Appendix 8A, Appendix 8S, you may find out more about #SFFS for AIS. You may also refer to this list of payroll software that allow #SFFS for employees' employment income and select a software that meets your filing needs.
Foreign employees’ Tax Clearance via IR21, you may refer to this list of payroll software that allow #SFFS for Tax Clearance and select a software that meets your filing needs.

Frequently asked questions

Questions	Answers
General information about #SFFS
Do I qualify for #SFFS?	#SFFS is suitable and most beneficial for sole-proprietorships, partnerships and small companies (e.g. those with revenue ≤ $5m) that need to file any of the following to IRAS: From accounting software For CIT: Form C-S For GST: GST returns (GST F5/F8) and Form for disclosing error in GST returns (GST F7) From payroll software For employee’s employment income records: Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) (Form IR8A, Appendix 8A, Appendix 8B, Form IR8S) For foreign employees: Tax Clearance (IR21)
Cost of adopting #SFFS
Why should I pay for an accounting/ payroll software, just to perform tax filing, which is currently free in myTax Portal?	Accounting and payroll software can help your business not only in tax filing, but in fulfilling other regulatory requirements (e.g. filing to ACRA) and also reducing manual effort in preparing tax returns and record keeping. The benefits of adopting the accounting and/or payroll software may outweigh the cost of the software, which may be available from a low cost per month. In the case of Form C-S filing for CIT, the auto-computation of tax data by the software also means that companies can perform their tax filing independently.
Is there any government funding/ support for me in purchasing the accounting/ payroll software?	Businesses can tap on the following support schemes to apply for software at subsidised rates: Start Digital Pack offered by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) to support SMEs in building their foundational digital capabilities with easy-to-deploy solutions. Productivity Solutions Grant offered by EnterpriseSG to support companies that are keen to adopt IT solutions and equipment to enhance business processes.
Choosing software to use
How do I know which software I should use, when there are so many options in the market?	Accounting software Businesses are strongly encouraged to use accounting software that are on the IRAS Accounting Software Register Plus (ASR+). These software enable businesses to submit Form C-S, GST returns and/or transact with business partners on the InvoiceNow network. The ASR+ list will be updated periodically to include new software solutions that have successfully onboarded and integrated these features. Payroll software Employers are strongly encouraged to use payroll software that allow #SFFS for AIS for employees’ employment income. For Tax Clearance, employers can use payroll software that allow #SFFS for Tax Clearance. Both lists will be updated periodically to include more payroll software solutions that onboard #SFFS.
Migrating from one software to another
I am using a software today which does not allow for #SFFS. What should I do?	You can consider switching to a software that allows for #SFFS. You may refer to the IRAS Accounting Software Register Plus (ASR+) for a list of such accounting software, and the payroll software list for AIS for a list of such payroll software. Software providers typically support data migration from your existing software, provide user training, support during your transition, after sales support, etc.
Assurance in using #SFFS
Is it safe to perform my tax filing using accounting/ payroll software?	Filing of tax returns made through #SFFS will be authenticated as businesses will need to login using Corppass and only authorised users are able to perform the submission. The entire filing process including Corppass is linked to IRAS’ systems via Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), which act as intermediaries that allow 2 applications to talk to each other. You will also be able to review your tax return on the software before submission to IRAS.
How do I know that IRAS has received the information I have filed?	Most software would generate and provide an acknowledgement for a successful filing to IRAS. You can also check for an acknowledgement or on the submission status in myTax Portal within 3 working days.
What should I do if I need to adjust my tax return, after submitting it through my software?	For GST returns, you can submit the Form for disclosing error in GST returns (GST F7) through your software. For Form C-S, you can go to the Revise/ Object to Assessment digital service in myTax Portal to submit your revised tax computation(s). For AIS and Tax Clearance submissions, some software allow you to submit your amendments via your software. You may check with your software developer if your software has this function. Otherwise, you can make the necessary adjustments in myTax Portal. Find out more about making amendments for AIS and Tax Clearance.
What happens if I have errors in my tax returns or submit my tax returns late because I am unfamiliar with using the software?	We understand that businesses/ employers may need some time to transit to and familiarise with using #SFFS. For the initial transition period, IRAS will provide the following 2 benefits for businesses/ employers adopting #SFFS for tax returns due from 1 Jan 2023 to 31 Dec 2025: Extended filing due date for Form C-S and GST F5 and F8 returns Waiver of penalties for errors made in tax returns due to unfamiliarity with the use of software More information on the 2 benefits can be found in the webpage above.
I will only be able to file my YA 2024 Form C-S through #SFFS between 1 Dec 2024 and 15 Dec 2024. Do I need to request IRAS to grant me an extension of filing due date?	IRAS will automatically extend the CIT filing due date by 15 days (i.e. from 30 Nov to 15 Dec) for YA 2023 to YA 2025 Form C-S returns filed through #SFFS. Businesses filing YA 2023 to YA 2025 Form C-S returns through #SFFS do not need to separately request for the extension.

Find out more

Businesses/ employers who are keen to adopt #SFFS may reach out to the software developers using the contact information provided in the following lists:

Email us at [email protected] if you need assistance or clarification.