Statute Details
- Title: Skills Development Levy (Prescribed Purposes) Regulations
- Act Code: SDLA1979-RG1
- Legislative Type: Subsidiary legislation (Regulations)
- Authorising Act: Skills Development Levy Act (Cap. 306), in particular sections 8(2)(d) and 23
- Revised Edition: 1995 RevEd (1 April 1995)
- Original Enactment (as shown): 23 July 1993
- Most Recent Amendment (from extract): Amended by S 463/2020 with effect from 15 June 2020
- Current Version Status: Current version as at 27 March 2026
- Key Provision(s): Section 2 (Prescribed purposes)
What Is This Legislation About?
The Skills Development Levy (Prescribed Purposes) Regulations (“the Regulations”) are subsidiary legislation made under the Skills Development Levy Act. Their central function is to specify the “prescribed purposes” for which moneys in the Skills Development Fund may be paid out and expended. In plain terms, the Regulations tell the Government and the administrators of the Skills Development Fund what kinds of training- and skills-related spending are permitted using levy monies.
The Skills Development Levy system is designed to support workforce development in Singapore. Employers generally contribute to the Skills Development Fund through the Skills Development Levy. The Regulations then channel those funds into targeted programmes—such as grants to companies and organisations for training and skills upgrading, and subsidies to key institutions that promote skills development among workers and retrenched employees.
Although the Regulations are short, they are legally significant because they define the boundaries of lawful expenditure from the Fund. Any payment from the Skills Development Fund must fall within the purposes prescribed by these Regulations (or within any other lawful authority under the parent Act). For practitioners, the Regulations therefore matter in grant eligibility, compliance planning, and governance of training-related initiatives funded by levy monies.
What Are the Key Provisions?
1. Citation and scope of the Regulations (Regulation 1)
Regulation 1 provides the short title: the “Skills Development Levy (Prescribed Purposes) Regulations”. While this is a standard provision, it confirms the instrument’s identity and helps practitioners cite it correctly in submissions, correspondence, and legal documents.
2. Prescribed purposes for expenditure from the Skills Development Fund (Regulation 2)
Regulation 2 is the operative provision. It states that moneys of the Skills Development Fund may, from time to time, be paid out and expended for the purpose of certain categories of grants. The structure is important: the Regulations do not authorise spending generally on “skills development”; they authorise spending only for the specific purposes enumerated in paragraphs (a) to (c).
Regulation 2(1)(a): Grants to companies and certain firms for consultants and training
Paragraph (a) permits grants to (i) any company, (ii) variable capital company, or (iii) firm wholly or substantially owned by citizens or permanent residents of Singapore, and also to “any organisation” for engaging any consultant. The grants are for engaging consultants to assist in upgrading business operations or training programmes. The object must be “promoting or developing the skills or expertise of persons in employment”.
Practically, this provision is aimed at enabling employers and organisations to obtain expert assistance (through consultants) to improve training or operational capability in a way that develops employees’ skills. The ownership qualifier—“wholly or substantially owned by citizens or permanent residents”—is a legal eligibility condition. For lawyers advising clients, this means corporate structure and shareholding (and the interpretation of “substantially owned”) can become relevant to whether an applicant falls within the permitted class for grants under paragraph (a).
Regulation 2(1)(b): Grants to the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC)
Paragraph (b) authorises grants to the National Trades Union Congress (“NTUC”), and it specifies the purpose: to defray or subsidise the costs NTUC incurs in promoting or developing the skills and expertise of its members who are persons in employment, or in retraining its retrenched members.
This provision is significant because it recognises NTUC’s role as an intermediary institution. It also distinguishes between two workforce categories: (i) members who are currently employed, and (ii) members who have been retrenched. The grant purpose is framed around “defray or subsidise” costs, which suggests that the Fund supports partial funding of NTUC’s activities rather than full reimbursement in all cases (subject to how the administering authority structures grants).
Regulation 2(1)(c): Grants to specified community and professional organisations
Paragraph (c) authorises grants to a defined list of organisations to defray or subsidise costs they incur in promoting or developing skills and expertise of persons in employment or in retraining retrenched persons. The organisations listed are:
- (i) the Chinese Development Assistance Council (a company limited by guarantee incorporated under the Companies Act);
- (ii) Yayasan Mendaki (a company limited by guarantee incorporated under the Companies Act);
- (iii) the Singapore Indian Development Association (a society registered under the Societies Act);
- (iv) the Eurasian Association, Singapore (a society registered under the Societies Act); and
- (v) the Association of Muslim Professionals (an institution registered as a charity under the Charities Act).
From a legal drafting perspective, paragraph (c) is both restrictive and precise. It does not open the door to “similar organisations”; it enumerates particular entities and ties them to their legal forms and registration regimes (Companies Act, Societies Act, and Charities Act). For practitioners, this means that eligibility is not merely functional; it is also institutional and status-based. An organisation not on the list would not fall within paragraph (c), even if it performs comparable skills development activities.
Regulation 2(2): Limitation—volunteers are excluded for “persons in employment”
Regulation 2(2) provides an important interpretive limitation for paragraph (1)(c). It states that for the purposes of paragraph (1)(c), “persons in employment” shall not include persons who volunteer their services to further the objects of any organisation referred to in that regulation.
This is a targeted restriction. It prevents organisations under paragraph (c) from treating volunteers as “persons in employment” for the purpose of qualifying activities for grants. In practice, this affects how programmes are designed and how participants are categorised. Lawyers advising organisations seeking funding should ensure that the relevant participants are genuinely “persons in employment” (as that term is understood in the broader legislative and administrative framework) rather than volunteers engaged for organisational purposes.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Regulations are extremely concise and are structured around a single substantive provision. After the citation provision in Regulation 1, Regulation 2 sets out the prescribed purposes. Regulation 2 is divided into:
- Regulation 2(1): the main list of permitted grant purposes, broken into three categories: (a) grants to eligible companies/organisations for consultant-assisted upgrading and training, (b) grants to NTUC, and (c) grants to specified organisations.
- Regulation 2(2): a specific definitional limitation for paragraph (1)(c), excluding volunteers from the meaning of “persons in employment” for those purposes.
There are no additional parts or sections in the extract provided, which means the legal analysis of the Regulations largely turns on the interpretation of Regulation 2 and its enumerated classes and purposes.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
The Regulations primarily govern the use of levy monies held in the Skills Development Fund. However, they have practical effects on multiple stakeholders. Employers and organisations that seek grants for training-related initiatives must ensure their proposed activities fall within the prescribed purposes—especially the categories in Regulation 2(1)(a). The ownership qualifier in paragraph (a) also affects which companies and firms can benefit.
In addition, the Regulations directly apply to the listed institutions under Regulation 2(1)(b) and (c)—NTUC and the enumerated community/professional organisations. These organisations may receive grants, but only for the purposes described (skills promotion/development for employed members and retraining for retrenched persons). Finally, Regulation 2(2) affects how those organisations structure their programmes by excluding volunteers from being treated as “persons in employment” for paragraph (1)(c) grant purposes.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
Although the Regulations are short, they are legally important because they define the permissible scope of expenditure from the Skills Development Fund. For practitioners, this means the Regulations can be central to grant governance and compliance. If an activity is funded using levy monies but does not align with the prescribed purposes, the payment may be challengeable as beyond the authority granted by the parent Act and these Regulations.
The Regulations also provide clarity on the policy architecture of Singapore’s skills development ecosystem. They show a deliberate mix of funding channels: direct support to eligible employers and organisations (including consultant-assisted upgrading), institutional support to NTUC for member skills and retraining, and targeted support to specific community and professional organisations. This structure reflects the Government’s approach to workforce development through both workplace training and intermediary organisations.
From a practical standpoint, the most litigable or compliance-sensitive aspects are likely to be: (i) eligibility of companies and firms under the citizen/permanent resident ownership criterion in Regulation 2(1)(a); (ii) whether the grant purpose is properly framed as promoting/developing skills or expertise of persons in employment, or retraining retrenched persons; and (iii) the volunteer exclusion in Regulation 2(2) for paragraph (1)(c). Lawyers advising on grant applications, programme design, participant eligibility, and documentation should focus on these points to reduce the risk of non-compliance.
Related Legislation
- Skills Development Levy Act (Cap. 306): the authorising Act for the Regulations, including sections 8(2)(d) and 23.
- Companies Act (Cap. 50): referenced for the incorporation status of certain grant-receiving organisations (e.g., companies limited by guarantee).
- Societies Act (Cap. 311): referenced for the registration status of certain grant-receiving organisations.
- Charities Act (Cap. 37): referenced for the charitable registration status of the Association of Muslim Professionals.
- Trade Unions Act (Cap. 333): referenced for the registration status of NTUC as a trade union.
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Skills Development Levy (Prescribed Purposes) Regulations for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.