SINGAPORE - The issue that caused a processing error in a government means-testing system which led to about 20,000 people getting the wrong subsidies and grants has been identified, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on July 22.

MOH, which manages the Household Means Eligibility System (Homes), said that the error had resulted in about $7 million in overpayments for about 90 per cent of the affected individuals, and about $2 million in shortfalls for the remainder of those affected.

On July 21, MOH said that Homes had experienced a processing issue resulting in about 20,000 people receiving wrong subsidies and grants.

The ministry said then that those who received excess subsidy or grant amounts will not have to return them , while those who received less than they were entitled to will have the difference topped up by government agencies by November.

Homes uses income information from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) to means-test individuals with business income, such as self-employed people – for selected subsidy schemes across the Government.

What happened?

For the 2025 year of assessment , Iras’ tax filing notification process began later in mid-January , compared with the preceding December in previous years, said MOH.

This was to ensure Central Provident Fund contributions for the full year were captured for more accurate income tax assessments.

However, the “system logic” at the time caused Homes to omit the business income of selected individuals. This led to inaccurate means-testing for individuals with business income and members of their households between Jan 1 and Jan 27, 2025.

MOH said that Homes was first alerted to the issue on Jan 13 through a member of the public’s query when applying for subsidies, which triggered an investigation, leading to the identification of the issue.

The ministry added that it is currently enhancing the design of Homes for better integration and coordination with agencies.

In a similar incident in 2019

, about 7,700 people who applied for and renewed their Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas) cards in September and October 2018 received inaccurate subsidies after a computer system miscalculated their means-test results.

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