Take out Work Injury Compensation insurance
Work Injury Compensation Insurance (WICA cover) insures your liability for work-related injury or disease.
Work Injury Compensation Insurance (WICA cover) insures your liability for work-related injury or disease. It's compulsory for all employees doing manual work, regardless of salary, and for non-manual employees earning $2,600 a month or less. Cover has to come from a MOM-designated WICA insurer, not just any general liability policy.
Trading without required WICA cover is an offence, and if an employee is injured while you're uninsured, you become personally liable for the full compensation amount instead of an insurer picking it up.
No vetted directory yet — ask your landlord, a trade association, or an insurance broker for a MOM-designated WICA insurer.
Who this is for
Any venue with manual workers (e.g. kitchen staff), or non-manual staff earning $2,600/month or less.
Manual workers need cover regardless of salary; non-manual staff need it only below the $2,600/month threshold.
What you’ll hold
- WICA insurance policy schedule confirming a MOM-designated insurer
- Certificate of insurance on file
Watch out for
- Buying a general liability policy and assuming it covers WICA — it doesn't; cover has to come from a MOM-designated WICA insurer specifically.
- Applying the $2,600 non-manual threshold to manual workers — manual workers need cover regardless of salary, there's no threshold for them.
- Leaving it until a new hire's start date — insurers need lead time to bind cover, so finalise it at least 21 days before it needs to take effect.
Sources
- MOM — Employment Act, who is covered checked 2026-09-08
See also
This is item 35 of 36 in the free Singapore Launch Checklist. See the whole list →