A cancelled bonus CPF review should establish whether the amount was due or granted and what actually changed before payroll is amended. CPF Board’s wage guidance includes bonuses due or granted in respect of employment. The absence of a bank payment alone should not be used to decide that no CPF or reporting question remains.

Accounting records, calculator and glasses on a desk
Illustrative photograph by Cht Gsml.

Preserve the original basis

Keep the bonus approval, relevant employment or scheme terms, employee reference and intended period. Identify whether the amount was merely proposed, approved, accrued or already processed. Those stages should not all be described as unpaid bonus.

Retain the genuine cancellation instruction and who authorised it. Do not delete an earlier approval so the record appears as though the bonus was never considered.

Obtain the entitlement and payroll review

Give HR, payroll and the appropriate advisers the actual terms and correspondence. Ask them to assess the effect of the purported cancellation and the relevant CPF classification. This checklist does not determine whether an employer can lawfully withdraw a particular bonus.

Keep employment-income tax reporting separate from CPF. A label used in one schedule does not establish the treatment required in another system.

Example: payroll was prepared but not released

Finance has approved a payroll file including the bonus when a manager requests cancellation. Establish the approved change process and check whether any submission or entry already occurred. Stopping a bank file does not automatically amend a CPF submission or income record.

Reconcile the accepted outcome

Retain the reviewed decision, corrected payroll or accounting entries and any official amendment evidence. Keep unresolved amounts visible with an owner. If payment or contribution records already exist, use the appropriate correction process instead of silently removing the employee’s earlier history.

Related practical guidance

For the surrounding records and responsibilities, see bookkeeping basics, company records to keep, bookkeeping and accounting.

Official guidance: CPF Board wage guidance.

Help with your company records

For accounting, bookkeeping and related compliance support, contact Raffles Corporate Services at [email protected] or WhatsApp +65 8501 7133. Tell us which records or process need attention so we can discuss the relevant next steps.