Can I Claim PIC Grant For My CCTV?

Do you have a business in Singapore? Well, you might need to familiarize yourself with PIC scheme, or productivity and innovative credit grant. Just in case you’re not aware, this is a grant currently issued by Inland Revenue Authority of the country of Singapore–popularly known as (IRAS). This grant is considered very useful in supporting business owners, hence improved productivity. It puts more emphasis on productivity and innovation. It allows all business owners to claim tax deductions, cash payouts and other bonuses. However, you need to learn what’s covered and what’s not covered.

Can I Claim PIC Grant For My CCTV?
Firstly, security issues are taken very seriously in Singapore. It’s common to see business owners all over the country installing security gadgets such as CCTV to help monitor and record activities while they are way. Such devices can also be used to monitor employees so long as their privacy is not put at stake.

In line with this, many business owners who are not very familiar with PIC grants want to know if they’ll be eligible to receive anything from IRAS. 

Well, there are many reasons why you may never qualify for a PIC grant where it concerns your CCTV or general security camera. Unfortunately, this is going to discourage many people, but we’ll explain some of the things that will disqualify you. 

Firstly, IRAS has some stringent requirements where it concerns both small and large business entities operating in Singapore.

Here are some reasons why your CCTV may not qualify:

1:Non-qualifying expenditure
The PIC scheme has covered 6 major activities considered eligible. For instance, things like employee training, machinery, patent registration, intellectual property rights, research and development projects as well as other approved design projects may qualify to receive grants. 

Now, is your business taking part in any of the things mentioned above? If so, then any equipment you buy that will be used in any of the activities above will definitely qualify for a PIC grant, so you can confidently claim your credit. Unless you’re really going to convince them how your CCTV is helping to further these projects, you won’t qualify for a grant. Unfortunately, even standard security cameras never qualify because of the reasons above.

2:Handling duplicate claims
Sometimes you might have enough reasons to get some credit from IRAS as far as security is concerned. However, if you’re not careful enough, submitting duplicate claims may send your application straight away into the rejection list. The IRAS are very strict when it comes to matters of duplicate claims. Some people have even gotten their applications rejected yet they were eligible to receive a grant. 

-Bottom line is this: You can always hire someone who knows how to handle files and documents properly to do it for you. You should also double-check everything prior to submitting any application as far as security matters are concerned. You never know, may be or may be not, you could qualify for a CCTV grant because you had enough reasons. But mostly NOT!

3:Items that are considered non-productive or innovative
PIC scheme is very specific about the items they cover. It’s possible to get a few additional items to support your business, but not all of them will be covered. 

The PIC scheme is somehow biased because the very crucial items related to productivity and innovation are not always included. Your CCTV camera, furniture, refrigerator, home fitting etc may be considered very important in a business setting, though they are not covered. You may also want to renovate your business premises by installing CCTV and claiming a PIC grant. Unfortunately, IRAS does not allow you to do this.

In as much as a CCTV is very crucial in a business setting due to the security aspect of it, there are many reasons that IRAS have put in their website to show how and why you cannot qualify to receive a grant where CCTV is involved. Luckily, the IRAS also has occasional training sessions which educate business owners on what is eligible and what is not. So it’s very important that you attend these trainings or confirm with them before submitting an application. 

Submitting your application for a grant should not be very difficult to do. Unfortunately, your CCTV camera is not going to make it, so think about other items you may have in your business that can qualify.