Singapore Public Holiday and Overtime Pay Calculator 2026 — MOM Employment Act 4-Scenario PH Work Pay, Overtime 1.5x Rate, Gross vs Basic Rate Distinction, 72-Hour Monthly Cap Tracker and All 11 Gazetted Public Holidays

THE MOM EMPLOYMENT ACT PRESCRIBES TWO RELATED FORMULAS FOR SINGAPORE OVERTIME PAY: (1) OFFICIAL MOM FORMULA (52-WEEK): Hourly Basic Rate = (12 x Monthly Basic Salary) divided by (52 x Average Weekly Hours Worked). This is the most accurate formula and applies to all work schedules. (2) SIMPLIFIED FORMULA (for standard 5-day/8-hour employees): Hourly Rate = Monthly Basic Salary divided by 26 divided by 8. This is a simplification of the 52-week formula specifically for employees on a standard 44-hour, 5-day week. The simplified 26/8 formula gives a slightly different result from the 52-week formula because 52 x 44 / 12 = 190.7 hours per month, while 26 x 8 = 208 hours per month. The differences are small but can compound significantly for employees with higher salaries or frequent overtime. This calculator uses the official MOM 52-week formula for maximum accuracy. Overtime pay = Hourly Basic Rate x 1.5 x Number of Overtime Hours. Overtime is defined as any hours worked beyond the employee contracted working hours (or beyond 8 hours per day, whichever is applicable under the employment contract).

OVERTIME PAY IS STATUTORILY MANDATED ONLY FOR EMPLOYEES COVERED UNDER PART IV OF THE EMPLOYMENT ACT. Eligibility depends on employee classification and salary: WORKMEN (manual labour): Monthly basic salary of S$4,500 or less. Workmen include drivers, machine operators, factory workers, cleaners, and others performing manual labour. NON-WORKMEN (office and service staff): Monthly basic salary of S$2,600 or less. Non-workmen include clerical staff, administrative assistants, service crew, retail associates, and technicians. IMPORTANT: Managers and executives are generally NOT covered under Part IV for overtime, regardless of salary. Their overtime entitlement (if any) is governed by their employment contract. PUBLIC HOLIDAY PAY: All employees are entitled to public holiday pay under Section 88 of the Employment Act, regardless of whether they are covered under Part IV for overtime. An executive earning S$8,000/month with no contractual OT entitlement is still entitled to public holiday pay. The 72-hour monthly overtime cap and the statutory 1.5x rate apply only to employees covered under Part IV.

SINGAPORE MOM EMPLOYMENT ACT SECTION 88 CREATES FOUR DISTINCT SCENARIOS FOR PUBLIC HOLIDAY WORK. SCENARIO A – NORMAL WORKING DAY OVERTIME (no public holiday): Employee works beyond contracted daily or weekly hours on a regular working day. Extra pay = 1.5 x Hourly Basic Rate x OT Hours. SCENARIO B – WORK ON PUBLIC HOLIDAY (PH falls on normal working day): Employee is required to work on a gazetted PH. Extra pay = one additional day gross rate of pay for hours worked within normal schedule. If they also work beyond normal hours: additional OT pay at 1.5x hourly rate. Total = Daily Gross Rate + (OT hours x 1.5 x Hourly Basic Rate). SCENARIO C – PUBLIC HOLIDAY FALLS ON REST DAY: Employee works on a PH that also falls on their rest day. Pay depends on hours worked: if hours worked are at most half normal daily hours: 1 day basic rate. If hours worked are more than half but at most full normal daily hours: 2 days basic rate. If hours worked exceed normal daily hours: 2 days basic rate + OT at 1.5x for extra hours. Plus: employer must grant a day off in lieu (or pay one extra day). SCENARIO D – REST DAY WORK (non-PH): Works less than half normal hours: half day pay. Works more than half but within normal hours: 1 day pay. Works beyond normal hours: 2 days pay + OT at 1.5x for extra hours.

SINGAPORE HAS 11 GAZETTED PUBLIC HOLIDAYS IN 2026 UNDER THE HOLIDAYS ACT: (1) New Year Day – 1 January 2026 (Thursday). (2) Chinese New Year Day 1 – 17 February 2026 (Tuesday). (3) Chinese New Year Day 2 – 18 February 2026 (Wednesday). (4) Hari Raya Puasa – 20 March 2026 (Friday). (5) Good Friday – 3 April 2026 (Friday). (6) Labour Day – 1 May 2026 (Friday). (7) Vesak Day – 23 May 2026 (Saturday). (8) Hari Raya Haji – 27 May 2026 (Wednesday). (9) National Day – 9 August 2026 (Sunday) with a substitute PH on 10 August 2026 (Monday). (10) Deepavali – 28 October 2026 (Wednesday). (11) Christmas Day – 25 December 2026 (Friday). WEEKEND PHs: Vesak Day (Saturday 23 May) and National Day (Sunday 9 August) fall on weekends. For National Day falling on a Sunday, Monday 10 August is the in-lieu public holiday, making it effectively 12 paid public holidays in 2026. When Vesak Day falls on Saturday, employees who do not normally work Saturdays receive an extra day off or pay. Note: Hari Raya Puasa and Hari Raya Haji dates may shift by one day depending on the moon sighting.

UNDER SECTION 38 OF THE SINGAPORE EMPLOYMENT ACT, EMPLOYEES COVERED UNDER PART IV (WORKMEN UP TO S$4,500 AND NON-WORKMEN UP TO S$2,600) CANNOT BE REQUIRED TO WORK MORE THAN 72 HOURS OF OVERTIME PER CALENDAR MONTH. This is a statutory ceiling, not a guideline. Implications of exceeding the 72-hour OT cap: (1) Legal violation: Requiring an employee to work more than 72 OT hours in a month without MOM approval is an Employment Act offence. Employers may face fines. (2) MOM complaints: Employees can report cap violations to the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) or directly to MOM. (3) Cap does not reduce entitlement: Overtime already worked beyond the cap must still be paid at 1.5x the hourly basic rate. The cap limits future overtime requirements but does not cancel payment for past work. IMPORTANT EXCLUSION: Work on rest days and public holidays is generally NOT counted toward the 72-hour cap, unless the employee works BEYOND their normal daily hours on those days. Only the excess hours (OT portion) on rest days and PHs count toward the 72-hour monthly OT cap.

SINGAPORE MOM EMPLOYMENT ACT USES TWO DIFFERENT PAY RATES FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES, and using the wrong rate is one of the most common payroll errors in Singapore. BASIC RATE OF PAY: Fixed monthly salary ONLY. Excludes all allowances (transport, meal, housing), overtime pay, commissions, bonuses, and reimbursements. Used for: rest day pay calculation, overtime rate base, deductions for absence, notice pay (basic only). GROSS RATE OF PAY: Basic salary plus fixed monthly allowances (e.g., fixed transport allowance, fixed meal allowance). Excludes overtime, bonuses, variable allowances, and reimbursements. Used for: annual leave pay, paid public holiday pay, sick leave pay, maternity and paternity leave pay. PRACTICAL EXAMPLE: Employee earns S$3,000 basic + S$200 fixed transport allowance. Gross rate = S$3,200. When calculating PH pay (extra day for working on a PH), use S$3,200 gross. When calculating the hourly OT base, use S$3,000 basic only. If you use gross rate for OT instead of basic rate, you are overpaying. If you use basic rate for PH leave pay instead of gross rate, you are underpaying and in breach of the Employment Act.

WHEN A PUBLIC HOLIDAY FALLS ON AN EMPLOYEE REST DAY IN SINGAPORE, THE EMPLOYER MUST: (1) Grant the employee a substitute day off in lieu on the next immediate working day. AND (2) If the employer requires the employee to work on that PH (rest day), pay applies as follows: Works half or less of normal daily hours: one day extra pay at basic daily rate. Works more than half but at most full normal daily hours: two days extra pay at basic daily rate. Works beyond normal daily hours (OT): two days basic rate + overtime at 1.5x hourly basic rate for extra hours. EXAMPLE: National Day 2026 falls on Sunday (9 August), a rest day. The in-lieu public holiday is Monday 10 August. An employee required to work on Monday 10 August (the in-lieu PH): same rules apply as for a PH falling on a normal working day (Scenario B). Substitute days: when a PH is substituted by another day, the substitute day carries all the PH employment protections. Employees who do not work on the substitute day get full pay. Those who work on the substitute day are entitled to the extra day pay and OT provisions.

IF A GAZETTED PUBLIC HOLIDAY FALLS ON A NORMAL WORKING DAY AND THE EMPLOYEE DOES NOT WORK, THEY ARE ENTITLED TO: A full paid day off (no deduction from annual leave, no salary deduction). Their normal monthly salary is not reduced for the public holiday. Effectively, they receive their regular pay for a day they did not work. EMPLOYER OPTIONS: The employer may, by mutual agreement with the employee, substitute the public holiday with another working day. In this case, the employee works on the PH and gets a different day off instead. Employers cannot unilaterally substitute public holidays without employee agreement. PAY DEDUCTION IS PROHIBITED: Deducting salary or annual leave for a gazetted public holiday that falls on a normal working day is an Employment Act violation. This applies even during probation periods. TEMPORARY OR CONTRACT EMPLOYEES: Full-time contract employees are also entitled to PH pay for gazetted holidays that fall during their contract period, even if the contract is for less than one year.

OVERTIME FOR SHIFT WORKERS AND IRREGULAR SCHEDULE EMPLOYEES IN SINGAPORE IS CALCULATED BASED ON CONTRACTUAL HOURS, not a fixed daily hours assumption. KEY PRINCIPLES: (1) Overtime is triggered when an employee works beyond their contractual shift hours on any given day, not necessarily beyond 8 hours. A 12-hour shift worker whose contract specifies 12-hour shifts is not in overtime during those 12 hours. (2) The hourly basic rate for all OT calculations uses the MOM 52-week formula based on the total contracted weekly hours, not the individual daily shift length. (3) For employees on rotating shifts, the daily hours used to determine public holiday pay (whether half or full normal hours were worked) refers to the scheduled shift hours for that day. (4) The 72-hour monthly overtime cap applies to all Part IV-covered employees regardless of shift pattern. (5) On public holidays, whether the employee is required to work depends on their shift schedule. A 24/7 operation employee on a PH shift is covered by Section 88 of the Employment Act and is entitled to extra PH pay or a substitute day off. Employers running 24/7 operations should clearly document shift schedules and PH work arrangements in employment contracts to avoid disputes.

YES. OVERTIME PAY AND PUBLIC HOLIDAY EXTRA PAY ARE SUBJECT TO CPF CONTRIBUTIONS IN SINGAPORE, but their classification as Ordinary Wages (OW) or Additional Wages (AW) affects the applicable ceiling. OVERTIME PAY (MONTHLY, REGULAR): If overtime is a regular monthly payment (same amount each month), it may be classified as Ordinary Wages and subject to the S$8,000 OW monthly ceiling from 2026. OVERTIME PAY (IRREGULAR, VARIABLE): If overtime varies from month to month (most common scenario), it is Additional Wages and subject to the AW ceiling (S$102,000 minus total OW paid in the year). PUBLIC HOLIDAY EXTRA PAY: Similarly classified as AW and subject to the AW ceiling. CPF RATES: The same age-banded CPF contribution rates apply to OT and PH extra pay as for regular salary (Employee 20%/Employer 17% for under-55s). EMPLOYER CONSIDERATION: Total employment cost for OT and PH work must include the employer CPF cost (17% of OT and PH pay, up to the AW ceiling). A S$200 PH extra pay costs the employer approximately S$234 in total (including S$34 employer CPF). This should be factored into roster planning for PH shifts.

THE EMPLOYMENT ACT PART IV DISTINGUISHES BETWEEN TWO CATEGORIES OF EMPLOYEES WITH DIFFERENT SALARY CAPS FOR OVERTIME ELIGIBILITY: WORKMEN (MANUAL LABOUR): Salary cap: Monthly basic salary of S$4,500 or less. Definition: Employees whose work involves manual labour (operating machinery, physical assembly, driving, cleaning, construction). Workmen at any salary level up to S$4,500 are entitled to statutory overtime at 1.5x the hourly basic rate for hours beyond contracted schedule. NON-WORKMEN (CLERICAL, ADMINISTRATIVE, PROFESSIONAL): Salary cap: Monthly basic salary of S$2,600 or less. Definition: Employees in clerical, administrative, supervisory, service, or technical roles without manual labour. The lower S$2,600 cap for non-workmen reflects the assumption that higher-paid non-workmen (e.g., managers, engineers, senior executives) negotiate overtime in their contracts. PRACTICAL IMPACT: A factory supervisor earning S$3,000/month (non-workman) has NO statutory OT entitlement under Part IV. Their overtime depends entirely on their employment contract. But a factory floor operator at the same S$3,000 salary (workman) IS entitled to statutory OT. The employer must examine both the job nature (workman or not) AND the salary level to determine OT obligations.

FOR EMPLOYEES COVERED UNDER PART IV OF THE EMPLOYMENT ACT, SUBSTITUTING OVERTIME PAY WITH TIME OFF IN LIEU (TOIL) IS NOT PERMITTED BY DEFAULT. The Employment Act requires that overtime pay at 1.5x the hourly basic rate must be paid for all overtime hours worked. Employers cannot unilaterally offer time off instead of overtime pay for Part IV-covered employees. EXCEPTION: There is a specific provision for rest days. If an employee is required to work on a rest day, the employer can (with employee agreement) give a substitute rest day in lieu instead of paying the rest day premium. This is a specific carve-out for rest days only, not for normal overtime. FOR EMPLOYEES NOT COVERED UNDER PART IV: If an employee earns above the statutory cap (non-workmen above S$2,600, workmen above S$4,500), their overtime entitlement is governed by their employment contract. A contract could specify TOIL as the compensation method for overtime, and this would be legally valid. MOM ADVISORY: MOM recommends employers document any mutual agreement about TOIL in writing (as a signed addendum to the employment contract). Verbal agreements are difficult to enforce and can lead to MOM disputes.

UNDER THE SINGAPORE EMPLOYMENT ACT, MAXIMUM WORKING HOURS PER DAY ARE REGULATED FOR PART IV-COVERED EMPLOYEES: NORMAL HOURS: Employees should not work more than 8 hours per day or 44 hours per week (excluding meal breaks). MAXIMUM WITH OVERTIME: Including overtime, the maximum is 12 hours per day. Employees covered under Part IV cannot be required to work more than 12 hours per day in any circumstance, except during emergencies or where MOM grants special approval. MEAL BREAKS: A break of at least 45 minutes must be given after working 5 consecutive hours. This break is unpaid and not counted in the 8-hour daily limit. REST DAYS: At least one rest day per week (24 consecutive hours). Employers must roster rest days in advance. WEEKLY HOURS: Hours worked in excess of 44 per week are overtime. Some employment contracts specify 40 or 42 hours as the standard week — any hours above the contracted amount trigger overtime. NON-PART IV EMPLOYEES: Managers and executives earning above the salary caps are not covered by maximum hours provisions. Their working hours are typically governed by employment contracts, which may include or exclude overtime entitlements.

WHEN AN EMPLOYEE WORKS ON BOTH A PUBLIC HOLIDAY AND A REST DAY IN THE SAME WEEK, each event is computed SEPARATELY: (1) Work on Public Holiday (normal working day): Employee receives regular day pay (in monthly salary) + one extra day gross rate pay for the PH. If they exceed normal hours on the PH: additional OT at 1.5x hourly rate. (2) Work on Rest Day (non-PH): The rest day pay rules apply separately: less than half normal hours = half day pay; more than half but within normal hours = 1 day pay; beyond normal hours = 2 days pay + OT. (3) Both in the same week: The employer computes and pays each separately. They do not average or offset against each other. CRITICAL: This can result in significant additional pay in a single week. Example: Employee works on PH (gets 1 extra day pay) and also their rest day (gets 1-2 days extra pay) in the same week. Total additional pay could be 2-3 days gross rate on top of regular weekly salary. PAYROLL TIMING: All additional pay for PH and rest day work must be included in the following month salary payment (within 7 days of salary period end, or 14 days for overtime).

PART-TIME EMPLOYEES IN SINGAPORE ARE ENTITLED TO PUBLIC HOLIDAY PAY under the Employment Act, but entitlement depends on whether the PH falls on a day they are normally scheduled to work. IF THE PH FALLS ON A DAY THE PART-TIME EMPLOYEE NORMALLY WORKS: They receive paid time off for that PH (no deduction from salary or annual leave). The daily PH pay for part-time employees is calculated using the same MOM formula as their regular daily rate: (12 x Monthly Gross) divided by (52 x Days Worked Per Week). IF THE PH FALLS ON A DAY THE PART-TIME EMPLOYEE DOES NOT NORMALLY WORK: They do not automatically receive a substitute day or extra pay. However, best practice (and some employment contracts) may provide for a pro-rated PH day payment. IF REQUIRED TO WORK ON A PH: The same Part II, Section 88 rules apply as for full-time employees — extra day pay at daily basic rate (or gross rate for the PH entitlement portion) plus OT if they exceed their normal contracted hours. For a part-time employee working 24 hours per week (3 days x 8 hours), working on a PH that is one of their 3 scheduled days earns an extra day pay at their daily gross rate, which is calculated as (12 x monthly gross) divided by (52 x 3 days per week).

THE MOM OFFICIAL OVERTIME CALCULATOR AT MOM.GOV.SG COVERS ONLY ONE SCENARIO: normal working day overtime for a standard 5-day, 8-hour week employee using the simplified 26/8 divisor formula. THIS CALCULATOR FILLS EIGHT ADDITIONAL GAPS: (1) 4-scenario coverage: Normal OT, PH on working day, PH on rest day (3-tier pay structure), and rest day work (non-PH). (2) Correct MOM 52-week formula: Uses (12 x monthly basic) divided by (52 x weekly hours) for all hourly rate calculations, not the simplified 26 divided by 8. (3) Gross vs basic rate distinction: Applies daily GROSS rate for PH pay and daily BASIC rate for OT rate base, per MOM Employment Act definitions. (4) Workman vs non-workman classification: Checks eligibility against the S$4,500 workman cap and S$2,600 non-workman cap. (5) 72-hour monthly OT cap tracker with visual progress bar and warning when approaching or exceeding the cap. (6) 11 Singapore Public Holidays 2026 reference table with dates and days of the week. (7) CPF implications note for OT and PH extra pay. (8) Branded PDF report with all inputs, calculated rates, extra pay, and OT cap status for payroll documentation purposes.