January is a contribution month of the Social Security Fund.  Employers are required to pay in this month the obligatory system contributions for their local long-term employees for the fourth quarter of 2019.  If a non-resident worker is hired, the employer is required to pay the employment fee at the same time.  In addition, beneficiaries of the arbitrary system are also required to pay contributions within January.  In addition, the Social Security Fund (abbreviated to FSS in Macao) will be closed for the Lunar New Year from the afternoon of 24th January to 29th January.  In order to avoid long queues at peak period at the end of the month, employers and individuals should make their payment as early as possible and make good use of the electronic payment channels.

For employers and beneficiaries of the arbitrary system who have already applied for the use of electronic filing service, they are advised to use the AutoPay service of nine designated banks (including Bank of China Macau Branch, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Macau) Ltd., Banco Comercial de Macau, Tai Fung Bank, Banco Nacional Ultramarino, OCBC Wing Hang Bank, Macau Chinese Bank, Luso International Banking Limited and Delta Asia Bank), or the following payment options:

1. JETCO ATMs with JETCO logo, or online banking (including Bank of China Macau Branch, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Macau) Ltd., Banco Comercial de Macau, Tai Fung Bank, Banco Nacional Ultramarino and OCBC Wing Hang Bank);
2. Self-service machines of BOC EXPRESS;
3. Service points of the FSS (including FSS temporary office at Tap Seac, FSS office at NAPE located on the 13th floor of the China Civil Plaza Building, Macao Government Services Centre at Areia Preta (Area of Social Security and Employment) and Macao Government Services Centre in Islands (Area of Social Security));
4. Municipal Affairs Bureau's Public Services Centres and its sub-station;
5. The payment counters of the nine designated banks above.

Beneficiaries of the arbitrary system can also make their payments using their MACAU Pass Cards or UnionPay QuickPass Cards at the self-service machines with the FSS contribution logo.

Employers who have not yet applied for the use of electronic filing service not only can pay contributions and the employment fee at a service point of the FSS.  If there is no staff change of local long-term employees during the quarter, the payment can also be made at Municipal Affairs Bureau's Public Services Centres and its sub-station, or at the nine designated banks.

In addition, if a beneficiary or an employer chooses to make the payment using AutoPay, the bank will deduct the related amount on the last working day of the contribution month.  Beneficiaries and employers are therefore advised to prepare sufficient funds in their accounts in due course to make sure that the money can be deducted on time.

For more information, especially the procedures for applying for the use of electronic filing service, please visit the website of the FSS at www.fss.gov.mo, or call 2853 2850 during office hours for enquiries.