More than 500 people have offered to return the S$500 they had received from the Temporary Relief Fund (TRF), the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said on Friday, April 17.

This was revealed following Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam earlier comments that some of the individuals who had abused the fund by making fraudulent claims have since come forward to return the money.

Among those who returned the money are some who said they have submitted incorrect information in their applications.

There are also others who said that they no longer need the extra support, MSF said.

Shanmugam's comments came after MSF and the police announced that a 41-year-old man was under investigation for possible abuse of the fund.

The one-off S$500 financial aid is to help tide lower- to middle-income Singaporeans and permanent residents over this Covid-19 period as a result of job or income loss.

The returned sum amounts to more than S$250,000.

Applied for fund before losing jobs

Some of these individuals were initially told that they would be retrenched or placed on no-pay leave by their employers, but have since been able to retain their jobs or their salaries.

Others who returned the S$500 said that they applied for the fund without first clarifying with their employers and were unsure if their jobs or incomes would be affected.

There are also those who offered to return the money because they wanted to give it to others who needed it more, MSF said.

The government has come up with a Jobs Support Scheme that will co-fund the gross monthly wages paid to each Singaporean or resident employee for nine months.

Money can be easily returned

Desmond Lee, Minister for Family and Social Development, said in a Facebook post on Friday that the ministry has processed more than 300,000 applications for the fund.

MSF has set up an online platform to process such requests, he added, and the ComCare hotline had received many calls from people saying they wished to return their S$500 payout.

People under ComCare assistance do not qualify for the TRF as they are supported in basic living expenses, including cash aid, as well as assistance with household and medical bills.

Individuals who wish to return their TRF money should visit go.gov.sg/trf-refund-form for more information.

Unbanked TRF cheques or cashier's order may be returned at the nearest Social Service Office.

Top photo via Tan Chuan-Jin