Income Tax (Assignment of Functions under Section 3A — Monetary Authority of Singapore) Notification 2022

Statute Details

• Title: Income Tax (Assignment of Functions under Section 3A — Monetary Authority of Singapore) Notification 2022
• Act Code: ITA1947-S943-2022
• Legislation Type: Subsidiary legislation (SL)
• Authorising Act: Income Tax Act 1947 (specifically section 3A(1))
• Commencement: 6 December 2022
• Current Version Status: Current version as at 27 March 2026
• Key Provisions: Section 1 (citation and commencement); Section 2 (assignment of functions to MAS)
• Amendments Noted in Extract: Amended by S 74/2026 (with effective dates including 23/02/2026, 01/01/2025, 01/10/2024)

What Is This Legislation About?

The Income Tax (Assignment of Functions under Section 3A — Monetary Authority of Singapore) Notification 2022 (“MAS Assignment Notification”) is a Singapore tax administration instrument that reallocates certain decision-making powers under the Income Tax Act 1947 from the Minister to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). In practical terms, it allows MAS to perform specified functions—such as granting waivers, approving entities, and setting certain conditions—when those functions relate to tax incentives and exemptions under the Income Tax Act.

Although the Income Tax Act sets out the substantive tax rules, many tax incentives depend on approvals and conditions. Those approvals are often granted by the Minister. This Notification streamlines administration by assigning selected Ministerial powers to MAS, which is the regulator with relevant expertise in financial services and capital markets. The result is a more specialised and efficient approval process for qualifying taxpayers and financial sector participants.

The scope of the Notification is therefore not a “new tax” or a change to tax rates by itself. Instead, it is an administrative delegation mechanism: it identifies (i) which Ministerial powers are assigned to MAS, and (ii) which subsidiary legislation and notifications are implicated for the purposes of those assigned powers.

What Are the Key Provisions?

Section 1 (Citation and commencement). Section 1 provides the formal name of the Notification and states that it comes into operation on 6 December 2022. The extract also indicates that amendments may have later effective dates (for example, amendments effective 23 February 2026 and earlier dates), but the baseline commencement of the Notification is 6 December 2022.

Section 2(1) (Assignment of functions to MAS). Section 2 is the core provision. It assigns to MAS:

• the powers of the Minister under the Income Tax Act specified in section 2(2) (the “Act powers”); and
• the powers of the Minister under specified subsidiary legislation listed in section 2(4) (the “subsidiary legislation powers”).

Section 2(2) (Act powers assigned to MAS). The extract lists a wide range of powers. These are largely approval-related and waiver-related powers tied to tax incentive regimes in the Income Tax Act. Key examples from the extract include:

• Waiver power relating to the definition of “foreign investor” in section 10(23) of the Act (MAS can grant a waiver of specified conditions).
• Approvals for Islamic debt securities arrangements under section 10(27).
• Approvals for covered bonds (approved covered bond company) under section 10K.
• Approvals under section 13 (multiple approval powers under section 13(2), (2A) through (2I)), and related approval powers for “qualifying debt securities” and “qualifying project debt securities”.
• Approvals for securitisation (approved securitisation company under section 13M) and other approved company categories under sections 13O and related provisions.
• Approval and condition-setting powers for approved companies and partners in certain regimes (including powers to specify conditions for exemption from tax, and powers to approve persons that manage funds).
• Approvals for fund structures and entities under section 13U (including approval of various entities/structures and the power to specify conditions for exemption).
• Approvals for foreign government-owned entities and international organisations under section 13V.
• Approvals in the insurance context, including approval of an insurer for specified purposes under section 43C and approval powers under section 43H.
• Financial sector incentive company regimes under section 43J, including:
  • powers to specify requirements for exemptions;
  • powers to specify requirements for a 5% tax rate;
  • powers to approve companies as financial sector incentive companies; and
  • powers to include in letters of approval conditions under which exemptions or the 5% rate do not apply if requirements are not satisfied.
• Approvals for insurance intermediaries and trusts, including approved insurance broker under section 43R, and approvals of trustee-managers and fund management companies under section 43S.
• Approvals under section 45I (approval of a person mentioned in subsection (3)(c)).
• Approvals for umbrella VCCs for the application of section 13U and related regulations.

Section 2(3) (Additional revocation/variation powers for certain approvals). The extract also shows that, for certain purposes relating to section 43C(1)(a), (ab), (b), (c) (in relation to an approved specialised insurer), (d) or (e), MAS is assigned additional powers. These include:

• revoking approvals that were granted by the Minister or a person appointed by the Minister before 6 December 2022; and
• adding to, varying or revoking conditions of such approvals.

This is an important practical point: the Notification does not merely transfer “forward-looking” approval powers; it also empowers MAS to adjust existing approvals in the specified insurance-related categories.

Section 2(4) (Subsidiary legislation powers assigned to MAS). For the subsidiary legislation component, the extract lists multiple regulations and notifications. These include, for example:

• Income Tax (Exemption of Income of Approved Securitisation Company) Regulations 2008 (G.N. No. S 96/2008);
• Income Tax (Concessionary Rate of Tax for Income Derived from Managing Qualifying Registered Business Trust or Company) Regulations 2009 (G.N. No. S 155/2009);
• Economic and technological development exemption notifications (2009 and 2012 instruments);
• Fund manager and approved company exemption regulations (2010 instruments);
• Prescribed sovereign fund entities and approved foreign government-owned entities exemption regulations (2012); and
• Financial sector incentive companies concessionary rate regulations (2017).

While the extract truncates the remainder of the list, the structure is clear: MAS is not only delegated powers under the Act, but also under the specified subsidiary tax incentive instruments that implement those regimes.

How Is This Legislation Structured?

The Notification is structured as a short instrument with a conventional format:

• Section 1 sets out the citation and commencement date.
• Section 2 contains the assignment of functions, divided into:
  • Section 2(1) (what is assigned: Act powers and subsidiary legislation powers);
  • Section 2(2) (detailed list of Act powers assigned to MAS);
  • Section 2(3) (additional revocation/condition-variation powers for specified insurance approvals); and
  • Section 2(4) (the subsidiary legislation instruments to which the assignment applies).

There are no “Parts” in the extract, and the Notification is essentially a delegation schedule. Its legal effect depends on cross-references to the Income Tax Act and the listed subsidiary instruments.

Who Does This Legislation Apply To?

This Notification applies to taxpayers and entities that seek, hold, or are affected by tax incentives under the Income Tax Act where the relevant approvals, waivers, or conditions are within the assigned powers. In practice, that includes a broad range of financial sector participants and investment structures—such as securitisation vehicles, covered bond issuers, approved companies, fund managers, insurance-related entities, and financial sector incentive companies.

However, the Notification’s direct legal “actor” is MAS (as the delegate) and the Minister (as the original decision-maker). For taxpayers, the effect is procedural and administrative: applications that previously would have been made to the Minister (or processed under Ministerial authority) may now be made to MAS, and MAS may be able to impose, vary, or revoke conditions within the delegated categories.

Why Is This Legislation Important?

For practitioners, the MAS Assignment Notification is important because it affects who has authority to grant approvals and set conditions for tax incentives. In tax incentive regimes, the approval letter and its conditions can be determinative of whether exemptions apply, whether a concessionary rate is available, and whether the taxpayer remains compliant throughout the relevant years of assessment.

Second, the Notification can materially affect ongoing compliance and risk management. The inclusion of MAS powers to revoke approvals and vary conditions (in the specified insurance context) means that taxpayers holding relevant approvals should monitor MAS communications and ensure that any conditions are satisfied. Where conditions are varied, the taxpayer’s tax position may need to be reassessed.

Third, the delegation to MAS aligns with Singapore’s regulatory architecture. MAS is the specialist regulator for many financial sector activities. Delegating approval powers to MAS can improve consistency and speed in decision-making, but it also means that practitioners should be familiar with MAS’s administrative processes, documentation expectations, and the way conditions are framed in approval letters.

Related Legislation

• Income Tax Act 1947 (including section 3A and the incentive provisions cross-referenced in the Notification, such as sections 10, 10K, 13, 13M, 13O, 13U, 13V, 43C, 43H, 43J, 43R, 43S, 45I, and 107)
• Income Tax (Exemption of Income of Approved Securitisation Company) Regulations 2008 (G.N. No. S 96/2008)
• Income Tax (Concessionary Rate of Tax for Income Derived from Managing Qualifying Registered Business Trust or Company) Regulations 2009 (G.N. No. S 155/2009)
• Income Tax (Concessionary Rate of Tax for Financial Sector Incentive Companies) Regulations 2017 (G.N. No. S 239/2017)
• Other listed subsidiary legislation and notifications referenced in section 2(4) of the Notification (economic and technological development exemptions; fund manager exemptions; sovereign fund entity exemptions; and related instruments)

Source Documents

• Official Text — Singapore Statutes Online
• Archived Copy — Litt Law CDN

This article provides an overview of the Income Tax (Assignment of Functions under Section 3A — Monetary Authority of Singapore) Notification 2022 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.