Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP)

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Scheme Parameters

What is the Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP)?

The Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) comprises of enhanced Absentee Payroll (AP) funding rate at 90% of hourly basic salary, capped at $10 per hour and enhanced Course Fee support at up to 90% of course fees.

As part of the Stabilisation and Support Package and supplementary Resilience Budget announced by DPM Heng Swee Keat, ETSP will be time-limited to cover eligible courses starting before 1 Jan 2021.

On 5 Oct 2020, DPM Heng Swee Keat announced the extension of ETSP for an additional six months with some adjustments, for courses starting before 1 Jul 2021. Specifically:

1. Enhanced course fee subsidy at up to 90% (up from baseline rates from 50%) will be maintained, for eligible employers in selected sectors more severely affected by COVID-19. This currently includes Aerospace, Air Transport, Arts & Culture, Food & Beverage, Point-to-Point and Private Hire Bus Transport (applies to point-to-point transport and private hire buses), Retail and Tourism. This will also be extended to the severely affected Marine & Offshore sector.
2. From 1 Jan 2021, the enhanced Absentee Payroll funding rate will be revised to 80% of hourly basic salary capped at $7.50/hour, for employers in all sectors. This will apply to all courses that are eligible for absentee payroll funding today. This is lowered from the current enhanced AP rate of 90% of hourly basic salary, capped at $10/hour, in line with the easing of Government support as the economy recovers. The AP rate from 1 Jan 2021 to 30 June 2021 remains higher than the pre-COVID rates for some companies.

What is the duration of the Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP), and will the duration be extended?

The ETSP is time-limited to cover eligible courses starting before 1 July 2021. Enterprises (both SMEs and non-SMEs) are eligible for funding under the ETSP if they send their employees for training which commence within the following periods:

Sectors	Course Commencement Date	Eligible for enhanced course fee funding?	Eligible for enhanced absentee payroll (AP) funding#?
Tourism*	1 Mar 2020 to 31 Dec 2020	Yes, for selected sector-specific programmes	Yes
Air Transport
Food & Beverage	1 Apr 2020 to 31 Dec 2020
Retail
Point-to-Point and Private Hire Bus Transport*
Arts and Culture
Aerospace	Between 1 Sep 2020 and 31 Dec 2020
Marine & Offshore	Between 5 Oct 2020 and 30 June 2021
All other sectors	1 May 2020 to 31 Dec 2020	No	Yes

* Includes tourist guides who are self-employed persons. AP funding is not applicable to tourist guides and point-to-point drivers.

#For course commencement before 1 Jan 2021, the absentee payroll funding rate is at 90% of hourly basic salary, capped at $10 per hour. For course commencement between 1 Jan 2021 to 30 Jun 2021, absentee payroll funding is at 80% of hourly basic salary, capped at $7.50 per hour.

Will enterprise that receive additional wage support from Government (such as Jobs Support Scheme and Senior Employment Credit) be eligible for enhanced absentee payroll (AP) funding?

Yes, enterprises will be eligible for enhanced absentee payroll (AP) funding if they send their employees for SSG-supported certifiable training, except for funded programmes which already provided wage support. One example is Professional Conversion Progra mmes (PCPs) which provide salary support.

What is the difference between the Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) and SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit (SFEC)?

The Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) is part of the Stabilisation and Support Package and supplementary Resilience Budget announced by DPM Heng Swee Keat. The ETSP is time -limited to cover eligible courses starting before 1 Jan 2021. It aims to help sectors tide over the economic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak and position themselves for subsequent recovery.

The SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit (SFEC) aims to encourage employers to invest in enterprise and workforce transformation. Eligible employers will receive additional support for their enterprise and workforce transformation efforts, over and above the support levels of existing schemes.

The ETSP is rolled out in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and serves to alleviate enterprises’ training needs in the near-term, while the SFEC serves the medium to long term needs of companies by encouraging employers to invest in enterprise and workforce transformation.

Can enterprise tap on both Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) and SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit (SFEC) for the same eligible course?

For the same eligible course, enterprises may tap on SFEC to cover up to 90% of the remaining out of pocket course fees if they are eligible for SFEC and embark on training from 1 April 2020. However, enterprises may wish to note that the SFEC will only be reimbursed to employers from 1 Apr 2021.  More details on the claims process and requirements will be made available in due course.

Eligibility Criteria

Is enhanced Course Fee and enhanced Absentee Payroll funding only for Singapore Citizens and Permanent Resident employees?

Yes, enhanced Course Fee and enhanced AP funding is only for SC and PR employees.

Is the Enhanced Course Fee Subsidy and Enhanced Absentee Payroll funding extended to self-employed persons?

Eligible specific self-employed persons e.g. tourist guides, and private hire drivers are eligible for the Enhanced Course Fee Subsidy when they attend sector- specific training programmes by SSG- appointed traini ng partners. However, they are not eligible for enhanced AP.

Other self-employed persons can continue to qualify for course fee subsidies at SSG’s prevailing rates:

Type of Course	Course Level	SCs and PRs	SCs ≥ 40 years old (MCES)
Courses offered by SSG-appointed CET Centres	Non-PMET	Up to 90% of course fees	Up to 90% of course fees
PMET	Up to 70% of course fees	Up to 70% of course fees
Certifiable courses approved by SSG (SCs and PRs must be ≥ 21 years old)	Non-PMET	80% of course fees, capped at $17 per hour	90% of course fees, capped at $25 per hour
PMET	50% of course fees, capped at $15 per hour	90% of course fees, capped at $50 per hour

Can employers claim the enhanced funding under ETSP each time they send their workers for training?

Yes, employers can claim the enhanced funding under ETSP each time they send their workers for training, subject to the eligibility requirements. However, the enhanced funding does not extend to repeated training activity (i.e. same trainee attending the same course by the same provider).

There is no cap on the number of workers that each employer can send for training.

If enterprises had sent their staff on No Pay Leave (cause of the situation), are the staff eligible for Enhanced Absentee Payroll?

Enhanced Absentee Payroll (AP) is intended to compensate the employer for the opportunity costs of sending the employee for training. AP should not be paid where the employer incurs no salary opportunity costs.

Are permanent part-time staff eligible for enhanced Absentee Payroll ?

Yes, and they be must be Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents.

Course Eligibility

What types of training/courses can enterprises claim the Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) for?

Enterprises with registered business activities in the following sectors – Tourism, Air Transport, F&B, Retail, point-to-point transport and private bus companies, and Arts & Culture sectors – can apply for selected sector-specific training programmes by SSG-appointed training partners. The training will focus on priority and emerging skills that the sector requires. Examples of these courses include:

a. Training in deep domain skills such as:

Tourism	Foster Service Innovation, Quality Visitor Experience through Immersive Technology, Cultural Savviness & Diversity Service Inclusion and Understanding Visitors
Air Transport	Dangerous Goods Handling, Perishables Handling, International Travel Regulations
Retail	Customer Experience Innovation, Productivity Management, Digital Marketing, Immersive Technology
Food Services	Culinary Arts, Process Innovation, Managing Cost and Quality Control, Search Engine Advertising
Arts and Culture	Pedagogy for Performing Arts Instructors, Digital Media (artmaking and outreach), Audience Engagement, e-Commerce Campaign Management
Point-to-Point Transport and Private Hire Bus Transport	Understanding of Electric Vehicles, Vehicle Safety and Maintenance, Safe & Defensive Driving
Aerospace	Quality & Safety Management System in Aerospace, WSQ Perform Aircraft General Maintenance
Marine & Offshore	Electrical Power Engineering, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Bunkering, and Shipyard Safety

b. Training in emerging digital skills, through programmes such as SkillsFuture for Digital Workplace.

Source of Information : https://www.ssg.gov.sg/ETSP_EnhancedAP.html