7 MOM approved payroll software for businesses in Singapore

Sep 28, 2022

One of the government regulations in Singapore that businesses have talked about lately is MOM itemised payslips.


The Ministry of Manpower has made it mandatory for all businesses to provide itemised payslips to employees.


Itemised payslips include the detailed breakdown of employee salary. Since this was announced, businesses have been hunting for the best payroll software in Singapore that supports this Act.


So far, 9 of 10 SMEs only provide regular payslips as itemised payslips involve too much paperwork and labor.

Requirements to be followed by SMEs

According to the Employment Act, SMEs must provide an itemised payslip in Singapore to every salaried employee. 


Here are the mandates that companies must adhere to while paying their employees.


• Must offer MOM itemised payslips 


• The format of the itemised payslip must be either digital or paper (with handwritten fields).


• The employer must distribute this detailed payslip when offering the salary.


• If they cannot do it on payday, it must be delivered in three working days.


• When the employee is terminated or dismissed from the organization, they must still be given MOM itemised payslips along with pending salary.


• The itemised payslip should include every mandatory section listed by the Act.


• The company must store the records of MOM itemised payslips for at least two years for current employees. For old employees, records of the past two years must be stored for a year. 

What should be included in the payslip?

The mandatory fields that should be available in the itemised payslip in Singapore are


1. Employer full name

The payslip document should look like a company letter with the company’s name and logo printed on the top.


2. Employee full name

The major identification factors like full name, employee number, and department name should be present below the top section.


3. Date(s) of salary payment

The date of payment means the day when the salary gets deposited into the employee's bank account. Mode of payment should be included as well.


4. Basic salary

The basic salary for the given month must be presented in MOM itemised payslips along with the breakup of the total salary payable.


5. The period of salary payment

The month for which the salary is paid should be mentioned at the top in the format of ‘employee payslip for the starting time to end time.’


6. Allowances details

If there are any additional allowances added to the salary based on performance or other reasons, they must be listed separately such ass fuel, food, special allowances.


7. Any additional pay

This section includes the overtime and PH days (paid holidays) of employees. The itemised payslip should contain the number of hours and the relevant pay for those hours.


8. Any deductions

Deductions for CPF, CDAC contributions, loan deductions, and tax withholdings should be listed on the right side of MOM itemised payslips.


Interesting read: All you need to know about corporate tax filing for small business in Singapore


9. Total gross wages

Below the salary and allowances come the gross wages, which is the addition of money a company owes to its employees.


10. Net salary paid

Net salary is the calculation of the addition of basic salary and allowances minus deductions. You can spot this below the deductions section.


This will show the brief calculation of addition and subtraction of the above components. 


Net salary = Gross salary - deductions (Or) (Basic salary + allowances) - deductions


11. Total CPF

The itemised payslip carries the total CPF below the net salary section. This is the sum of employees’ and employers’ share of CPF.

Impact of the new rule on SMEs for payslips

Many Singapore employers don’t use comprehensive payroll software to provide the payroll slip in Singapore. They might face complications adjusting to the new rules.


Although they add CPF contributions and allowances break-up in their current salary slips, it will take time for them to implement the mandates laid by the MOM.


To make these new payroll changes, they must hire more manpower, increasing expenses. Small and medium enterprises with limited funds are going to be the most affected ones.

Problems with processing MOM-compliant payslips

So there are few changes in the way companies send their payslip in Singapore.


Why it’s seen as problematic by the SMEs. What kind of problems might they encounter while processing MOM itemised payslips?


Increased cost

SMEs have to find and subscribe to payroll software that generates payslips on par with MOM standards.


Increased HR headcount and software costs add up too. Additional time and resources required are other challenges.


Paying part-time employees and freelancers

Small businesses save money by hiring freelancers and part-time workers. These businesses don’t pay them the same way they pay full-time employees. Most of them don’t even receive payslips, and the money is transferred through non-conventional modes. 


Small businesses that hire their own family members, close relatives, or friends find it unnecessary to generate fully-equipped itemised payslips.


Now they have to find a way to bring part-time workers and contractors all under one roof. That’s again going to cost a lot of money.

7 MOM-approved payroll software for your business

If you are thinking about changing your payroll software, check this list. This list has seven software that generates MOM itemised payslips.


Kayaroll

• Kayaroll deserves a mention as they work exclusively for small and medium-scale businesses. 


• The software has the major HR solutions you need. It has shifts and leaves management, payroll, CPF payments, IRAS reporting, etc.


• Being a Singapore-native company, its goal is geared towards saving time, money, and effort for small teams.


• Their product is well tuned to stay compliant with Singapore regulations. That means they will support you in generating MOM itemised payslips.


• Their dashboard is intuitive, uncluttered, and user-friendly.


• Their registrations are open now. The first 100 registrants can use the software for FREE.


Payboy

• Payboy is one of the leading Singapore-based HR solutions providers.


• They have modules that automate employee attendance, claim management, shift scheduling, training, and payroll.


• You can choose the solutions you need and pay for them.


• Cloud-based software that syncs data in real-time and is open for integrations.


• They stay compliant with statutory regulations. And their payroll management system has everything you need to create MOM itemised payslips in Singapore.


Payday

• Payday is a web-based payroll and leaves management solution.


• Curated for small businesses and startups.


• Can link every local bank with this software and certain foreign bank accounts too.


• Stays up-to-date with ACRA and MOM norms. 


QuickHR

• QuickHR is an all-in-one HR solutions platform based in Singapore. You can manage payroll claims and leaves management with this.


• Can access the applications from any device (tablets and mobiles too).


• They are PSG and IMDA approved. It has an intuitive and easy-to-use interface.


• Has the ability to generate itemised payslips. You can view and manage your itemised payslips in one go.


• Can integrate with accounting applications like Xero.


Ramco

• Ramco offers global payroll solutions where you can set up multi-country payroll.


• Even though they have a global platform, they are attentive to local regulations and follow standardized practices of each country.


• Ramco allows you to create itemised payslips in Singapore.


• Can pay in different currencies at the cheapest rates.


• Has a diverse range of users all over the world and is a trusted name in the industry.


• Ramco can support you when your company scales up too. They can support even if the number of employees is higher than 2000 and more. 


Singroll

• Singroll is a free payroll software in Singapore that covers payroll and leave management. You can use it as much as you want. There are no HIDDEN CHARGES.


• This company follows Singapore regulations closely of CPF, MOM, and WDA.


• Singroll supports itemised payslips creation at zero cost.


• Over 6000+ employees trust Singroll and use their software.


Talenox

• Talenox is a multi-entity HRIS software. With this, you can take care of employee profiles, leaves, and payroll management.


• They have multi-country payroll facilities available too.


• Supports MOM itemised payslips creation.


• It is possible to integrate with accounting and expense management applications like Xero, Quickbooks, Volopay, etc.

How to Choose the best MOM-compliant payroll software

Confused about what to pick? Based on observing the following features, you can choose your MOM-compliant payroll software.


1. Company size

Most payroll applications set limits on the number of employees you add; Or charge more for every employee added.


If you are a small business, this characteristic won’t affect you. But for large organizations with 500+ employees, the addition of employees will be a hindrance if they grow.


Analyze your company's growth and hiring plans to find out a ballpark figure total number of employees. 


Changing the software in the middle of an operating year will make you start all over again. 


2. Frequency of payroll

There are payroll providers who charge based on the number of times the software is used.


Though the standard payroll frequency is just once for established companies, it’s not the same for small businesses.


Startups experiment with their payroll activities to come up with best practices. For them, itemised payslips payroll software costs can peak up as they use more.


Find software with flat pricing range. They are best suited for startups who are still trying to tweak their HR functions.


3. Accessibility

Accessibility denotes the way you access the program. The market has both cloud-based versions and desktop-downloadable software.


While cloud-based software is seen go-to, it can be expensive and has many segments you might not need.


A desktop version is more suitable for traditional office environments with devices for everyone. They are more stable compared to the cloud versions and can run without the internet too.


But if you want to work on payroll tasks on the go, the cloud is the best way to go.


4. Security & confidentiality

Your payroll data has your employees’ sensitive information. So, it’s important to maintain secrecy and confidentiality.


A small data theft, impostor fraud, or security breach can bring huge financial loss and reputation damage to your company.


So be careful and inquire about the security features that the provider has in store. Enquire about technical terms like two-factor authentication, encryption protection, cryptography, and the like.  


5. Customer support

Not paying employees on time can create a wave of panic throughout the organization.


So, you don’t want any complications in the product, especially around critical times. Though some are unavoidable, the support team must be around always to sort them out.


They should take every concern into consideration, and get back with answers before it’s too late.


Different levels of support like knowledge base articles, AI chatbox, call, and in-person support should be available. At least one of the above should be present 24/7.


6. System interface

Complicated interfaces can bring headaches if you work on them for long hours. Considering the technical knowledge of accounting and HR teams who handle it, the software should be simple and user-friendly.


The modules must be self-explanatory and explainer videos should be available for quick understanding.


Try demo sessions or trial versions of the product and ensure that it is straightforward and convenient. 

Automate your payroll disbursement with Volopay

You have your payroll software ready now. You need to pay the employees and send MOM itemised payslips.


Your payroll software can generate itemised payslips. Over half of the MOM-compliant payroll software allow you to connect it with your bank account to pay employees. 


But what if you can bring all of your expenses under one umbrella, including payroll? Why automate just payroll and not the entire accounting management? Volopay is the answer to both these questions.


Volopay's expense management software helps in automating business payments. Schedule and make invoice payments, reimburse employees, receive corporate cards, apply for credit line, and much more.


This cloud-based platform allows you to implement accounting automation in your business at affordable pricing.


Coming back to payroll, you can integrate one of the best payroll applications, Talenox, with Volopay and automate your salary disbursements. Talenox is trusted by many Singapore startups and small businesses for payroll and employee profile administration. 


Interesting read: Everything you need to know about compliance and payroll in Singapore

FAQs

Take care of both accounting and payroll from a single platform