SINGAPORE, Dec 24 — Ride-hailing giant Grab will raise its platform fee for transport bookings by 30 cents (RM0.95) from January 1 in Singapore, citing higher mandatory Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions for drivers under the city state’s Platform Workers Act.
The CPF is Singapore’s compulsory savings scheme that workers and employers pay into to fund retirement, housing and healthcare.
The fee will rise to S$1.20 from the current 90 cents, the company said in an e-mail notice today, as reported by The Straits Times.
Grab said the adjustment to its “platform and partner fees” would help support the upcoming CPF rate increases for younger workers born on or after January 1, 1995, who are now required to contribute more to their retirement savings.
“The hike… will support upcoming updates to drivers’ CPF contribution rates under the Platform Workers Act,” the firm said, noting that platform operators must also raise their own contribution share in line with the law.
The Act, which came into force in January 2025, phases in higher CPF contributions over five years.
According to The Straits Times, workers’ rates will rise by “up to 2.5 percentage points per year”, while platform operators’ portions will increase by “up to 3.5 percentage points per year”.
Grab added that the fee review is unlikely to be a one-off.
With the CPF rates climbing annually, the platform fee “may be adjusted ‘from time to time’” to match cost pressures linked to welfare and operational needs.
The increase applies only to ride-hailing trips. Fees for other services — GrabFood, GrabMart and GrabExpress — remain unchanged.
Grab also said its separate 50-cent driver fee, which “helps offset increased on-the-road costs”, will stay in place until 30 June 2026.
The company made a similar announcement on December 24, 2024, alongside other major ride-hailing platforms.
