❓FAQs

General

What is the difference between LetterSG and Postman?

LetterSG	Postman
Helps public officers to issue and send personalised & verifiable digital official communications to citizens quickly	Mass broadcasting communication tool for public officers to reach citizens. Offers both email and SMS (via gov.sg) channels

What is the difference between LetterSG and FileSG/ TrustDocs/ OpenAttestation?

LetterSG	FileSG/ TrustDocs/ OpenAttestation
Helps public officers to issue and send personalised & verifiable digital official communications to citizens quickly	Offers tamper-proof certifications on the blockchain that meet international standards for verification

How can we check if the recipient has read the letter?

You will be able to check the read status of the letter via your LetterSG dashboard. After logging in, click on Dashboard → Select the relevant batch → Find the relevant recipient letter → Read status column.

Is there a maximum limit for the number of letters that can be sent via LetterSG?

Currently, we support a maximum batch size of 500 letters. If you have more recipients, consider splitting your recipients into multiple batches of 500 for issuance.

How long will the letters be accessible for?

Letters issued will be accessible at all times and will not expire.

Security

What is the security and sensitivity classification of LetterSG?

We can handle up to restricted sensitive-normal data.

Is it safe to send out LetterSG links to citizens?

• Yes, you may refer to SNDGO's press release for the whole of government here: https://www.smartnation.gov.sg/media-hub/parliament/04072022/

  • In essence, this outlines the SNDGO policy that states that links ending with ".gov.sg" are allowed in SMSes to citizens.

• If you require to send out links that need password protection and are in doubt of policy clearance, please contact us here for further assistance.

When should/shouldn't I use LetterSG?

LetterSG should only be used for documents that can be safely shared in public, where any unintended exposure would have minimal impact on your agency or recipients. Anyone with the link can access the e-letter, so please avoid using LetterSG for private or confidential documents.

While we ensure the LetterSG platform is secure, we cannot prevent third parties (individuals or automated systems) from exposing links. This can happen if a recipient publishes the link, or if a third-party application on their device inadvertently “leaks” it. In such cases, LetterSG will not carry out remediation (e.g., proactive web scans or link takedowns). If removal is necessary, agencies may contact the relevant platforms or services directly.

Where is the data on LetterSG stored?

It is stored on servers in Singapore, complying with IM8 policy.

Can we attach our signature at the end of the letter?

We do not allow the hosting of digital signature images on our platform as it could be a potential security risk. Instead, we advise our users to use the Brush script font as a digital signature. The document is recognised as a valid e-document as it is issued on a .gov.sg domain.

Getting started

I've issued a test letter and opened the letter link to check the contents. When viewing the dashboard, why doesn't the letter's read status change to "Read"?

If you're logged in as an agency user, we do not register an update to the read status for a letter. This is to allow agency users to check the contents of the letter without accidentally registering a "Read" count. To test for a status update, please open the letter in a separate device or log out of letters.gov.sg beforehand.

If you see this at the top of the letter, you will not see an update to the read status as you are logged in as an agency user. Log out of letters.gov.sg or open the letter link in incognito to test the read receipt.

Sending letters via email and SMS

Can we change the title name and content in the letter email and SMS notifications?

Outgoing emails sent via LetterSG will have the email title ”Letter from {{template_name}}” . We are able to change the template name for you, but we are unable to customise the body of the email any further as it is intentionally standardised for all outgoing emails from LetterSG to improve legitimacy and readership of letters.

However, if you need to change the copy in the outgoing email/SMS to your recipients, you could choose to use Postman where you would be able to set your own email/SMS copy, and embed the generated LetterSG letter link within the email/SMS.

Can we customise the logo and agency information in the letter email and SMS notifications?

The logo and agency name cannot be customised as it is automatically determined based off your user email domain.

If you'd like to update the logo or have other concerns, please write to our team via this form.

Can we change the reply-to email address in the letter email notification?

The reply-to email address will correspond to the email address of the user who sent the letters. Users can consider using a shared team email address to issue the letters.

Can we resend a letter to the same recipient?

We do not support resending of the same letter to recipients to prevent spamming. If you wish to use the same letter, you can consider sharing the original letter link with the recipient, or using Postman to send another SMS or email containing this letter link, to the same recipient.

Alternatively, you may issue a new letter to the recipient which will generate a new letter link.

Can we use our agency sender ID to send SMSes?

From June 2024, all SMSes will be sent using Gov.sg sender under securing government wide communications initiative. However, if you’d still like to use your agency sender ID (e.g. HDB, MOH etc.) before June 2024, you can setup or reuse your Twilio (SMS Aggregator) account via Postman. Please reach to us here for further assistance.

What is the cost involved with using the SMS function?

We will be migrating over to GovSG sender ID by end of Q2 2024. Prior to migration, we are happy to absorb the costs for sending SMS to users. After switching over, the cost attribution will be dependent on the cost attribution policy that GovSG adopts, and we will provide more information on this at a later date.

Can we add attachments / images / files / PDFs to letters?

We do not support attachments in the letter currently. If you would like to add files which are not of a sensitive nature, we recommend uploading the files on GoGov first, generating a GoGov link and then adding that link into the letter content itself.

Others

I am unable to receive an OTP/ unable to log into LetterSG. What should I do?

Please write to our team via this form. We will get back to you as soon as we can.

I am interested in using LetterSG but I am unable to register or log in. What should I do?

LetterSG is only available for public officers. For schools, we are only available for use in (i) Polytechnics or ITEs; or (ii) government-funded schools.

If you have an email address with a government agency domain but are unable to log in, please write to our team via this form. We will get back to you as soon as we can.

I cannot find an answer to my question on this guide. What should I do?

Please write to our team via this form. We will get back to you as soon as we can.