Delaying GST hike will ‘store up more problems' for Singapore: DPM Wong

GST will increase to 9% on 1 January 2024.

Deferring the GST increase in 2024 will “only store up more problems” for Singapore in the future, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said.

Wong said this in response to a question from the Parliament on whether the Corporate Income Tax (CIT) revenue in FY22/23 of $23.1b suggests that the 2024 GST hike can be cancelled or deferred.

Wong said delaying the GST hike will leave Singapore with fewer resources "to take care of our growing fiscal needs.”

“We will continue to monitor our revenue and expenditure trends closely, and adjust our fiscal strategies to meet our collective aspirations in a way that is fair to both current and future generations of Singaporeans,” Wong said.

Wong also underscored that Singapore’s CIT revenue has been broadly in line with the country’s GDP growth.

“Whilst we may get some upsides from time to time, our revenue generally does not grow faster than GDP in the medium term without tax rate changes. This is why the revenue measures announced at the recent Budgets, including the GST increase this year and next year, remain necessary to meet our medium-term spending needs,” Wong said.

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