Not-Ordinarily-Resident (NOR) Scheme: Final Years: Documents Required and Templates

The Not-Ordinarily-Resident (NOR) scheme closed to new applicants after Budget 2019, and the last cohort’s five-year status ran through Year of Assessment 2024. This guide sets out the documents a former NOR holder needs to close out that status and file correctly now that every cohort’s final year has passed.

Little Big Employment Agency (EA Licence 19C9790) works with a panel of corporate and employment law firms; this article is general information, not legal advice.

What the NOR scheme was

The NOR scheme let a qualifying tax resident who travelled extensively for work have Singapore employment income apportioned by days physically spent in Singapore, and receive tax-exempt employer contributions to overseas pension funds, for a rolling five-year status. No new NOR status has been granted since Year of Assessment 2020, and the last cohort’s five-year window closed at Year of Assessment 2024, meaning by 2026 the scheme has no active holders left.

Who this applies to

This applies to any expat whose NOR status has lapsed and who is now filing as a standard tax resident, and to HR and payroll teams closing out legacy apportionment arrangements. Expats currently relocating under newer pathways should instead review the current pathways for moving to Singapore as a high-net-worth individual, since NOR is not among the concessions available to new arrivals.

Documents required and templates

To close out NOR status and confirm correct filing going forward, keep: the original IRAS NOR approval letter (confirming the year of assessment the five-year status started); Form IR8A for each year NOR relief was claimed, cross-checked against the travel-day apportionment used; a business travel day log or employer-certified travel schedule supporting the apportionment claimed in the final NOR year; records of any employer pension contributions previously treated as tax-exempt under NOR, since these become taxable benefits-in-kind chargeable under Section 10(1) of the Income Tax Act 1947 from the first post-NOR year; and the most recent Notice of Assessment confirming the taxpayer is now assessed on full Singapore employment income under Section 2 of the Income Tax Act 1947.

Cost and timeline

There is no fee associated with the scheme’s expiry. The practical financial impact is a higher effective tax rate: an expat previously apportioning out 20 to 30% of income under NOR travel relief will see that portion taxed in full from the first year after expiry, with no phase-out period.

Step-by-step: closing out NOR status

1. Confirm the exact year of assessment your five-year NOR status expired using your original approval letter.
2. Reconcile the final NOR-year IR8A against the travel-day apportionment claimed.
3. Notify payroll to stop applying NOR-based tax estimates.
4. Reassess any employer pension contribution structuring that relied on the NOR exemption.
5. File subsequent years as a standard resident, claiming only reliefs still available to residents, such as earned income relief and CPF relief.

Common mistakes and rejection reasons

The most common error is payroll continuing to apply NOR apportionment after an employee’s five-year window has lapsed, which understates tax withheld and surfaces as a shortfall at IRAS assessment. A second is discarding the original NOR approval letter, which is then needed to prove exactly which year the status expired if IRAS queries a prior-year filing. For relocation structuring where NOR-era planning is no longer available, see our note on the Family Office Principal Track under ONE Pass and GIP.

Worked example

A finance director was granted NOR status from Year of Assessment 2020, giving a five-year window through Year of Assessment 2024 (covering calendar year 2023 income, filed in 2024). By the 2026 filing season, this individual has already been on standard resident tax treatment for two full years, but their employer’s payroll system still contains a legacy NOR apportionment flag from an old onboarding template. The error is only caught when the employee’s effective tax rate looks unusually low compared to peers during an internal payroll audit, at which point the company discovers under-withheld tax going back two years that both the employer and employee need to reconcile with IRAS.

Regulator references

For the underlying rules referenced above, see IRAS, MAS, CPF Board.

Related guides

For the current resident and non-resident rate schedule, see our overview of resident vs non-resident personal income tax rates.

FAQs

Can I still apply for NOR status?
No. IRAS stopped accepting new NOR applications after Year of Assessment 2020, and there is no successor scheme.

What was the last year anyone could claim NOR relief?
Year of Assessment 2024, for the final cohort whose five-year status was granted from Year of Assessment 2020.

Do I need to keep my NOR approval letter after the status expires?
Yes. Keep it as supporting documentation in case IRAS queries prior-year filings or the exact expiry year of your status.

Did NOR affect CPF contributions?
No. NOR affected the taxation of employment income and certain employer pension contributions, not CPF obligations.

Is there a replacement scheme for frequent business travellers?
Not a direct equivalent; taxpayers should look at applicable double-taxation agreements and standard reliefs instead.

Need help with this? Call, SMS or WhatsApp +65 8501 7133, or email [email protected]. Little Big Employment Agency (EA Licence 19C9790) works with a panel of corporate and employment law firms; this article is general information, not legal advice.