Saving for retirement should start
early in life, to ensure that every
citizen and permanent resident of
this Sultanate will be provided with
social security/protection as well as
to maintain their well-being. One of
the avenuesto meet this objective is
through retirement schemes under
the purview of Tabung Amanah
Pekerja (TAP). By having mandatory
savings for retirement, it will be
used to support the daily expenses
during retirement.
Planning for post-retirement income is important as it is part of the preparation for forecasting
the adequacy of the retirement income. An individual who wishes to improve their standard of
living in retirement should start saving earlier and may require a higher amount of savings.
Voluntary Contribution (VC) is any contribution that is made in addition to the fixed mandatory
contribution rate which will help increase savings for retirement.
EMPLOYEE’S ROLE
Employees play an important role in ensuring they are registered to TAP by their Employer.
Employees also need to ensure that their Employer has contributed the correct amount every
month in a timely manner as mandated.
Every registered member is encouraged to subscribe to TAP’s online portal called e-Amanah to
view their statements and updated fund balance at their convenience. Alternatively, members
can check their TAP & SCP statements by using the TAP self-service machine (e-Kiosk) or by
visiting any TAP counters.
EMPLOYERS’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN MAKING CONTRIBUTIONS
The Employer plays an important role in paying contributions as it is their responsibility to
register their employees. It is also their duty to pay the Employees’ contributions every month.
By doing so, these contributions will be credited to the Employee’s account and form part of their
retirement savings.
In the Employee Trust Act, the definition of an Employee who is required to be registered are
individuals who work and receive payment for the work done. This includes Employees who are
daily paid, monthly paid, contracted, part-time or temporary, relief teachers, and those who are
in a probationary period.
All Employers who are registered as a new company under the Registry of Companies and
Business Names Division (ROCBN) at the Ministry of Finance and Economy will automatically be
registered to TAP. At the same time, the Employer will be registered as an e-Amanah portal user
to enable them to register their employees and pay contributions online without having to visit
TAP counters.
Employers who do not comply with registering and contributing payments for their employees
to TAP are in violation of the Employee Trust Act.
Some non-compliance to TAP made by Employers are as follows:
- Employers do not register the Employees in order to avoid paying contributions to the
Retirement scheme.
- Employers do not make monthly contribution payments within the specified period.
- Employers who make contribution payments without submitting details of Employees
such as Employee information and the amount contributed for each Employee.
- Employers hire or employ the Employees informally such as having no contract or payslip
as proof of payment of salary.
- Employer structuring their payroll system to avoid paying for mandatory contributions by
using different terms for salary such as “consolation” (saguhati) to avoid mandatory
payment.
- Employers terminating Employee contracts for reporting to authorities of noncontribution payments.
- Employer embezzlement of Employees’ contributions which were deducted from their
salaries and not submitting the contributions to TAP.
AWARENESS AND WAYS OF ENSURING CONTRIBUTIONS ARE MADE
As one of the continuous efforts to ensure that Employers carry out their responsibilities in
registering and paying contributions of their employees, TAP Enforcement Unit is actively
inspecting business premises to ensure that correct information is provided by the Employer to
TAP.
Employers are also advised to keep records and details of their employees and to update their
information as needed. This record will be viewed by TAP Inspectors during the inspection of the
business premises or the Employer's office.
Awareness of the Employer's responsibilities is often conducted through roadshows and briefings
with existing and newly registered Employers. In preparing future graduates who will undertake
job opportunities, TAP also shares its role in providing retirement benefits and other information
that graduates may need to know before starting a career.
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND INQUIRIES
Any inquiries from employers and TAP members can be made through the TAP Call Center at
2382929 or via email at ask@tap.com.bn.
To find out the latest news, the public may visit TAP's website via www.tap.com.bn, Facebook
page 'Tabung Amanah Pekerja (TAP)', or Instagram @TAP_Brunei.