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With the costs of raising a family constantly increasing, parents have had to work harder than ever in order to ensure that their children are well provided for. As difficult as this may be for a husband-wife tandem, the task is significantly more daunting for a single parent. Good news for single mums in Singapore, though! In an effort to lighten the financial burden that single mothers carry, the Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing has recently announced that single mums are entitled to the same children’s benefits that married women are given.
Excluding benefits intended to support marriages and births within the context of families, Minister Chan reiterated that the Government provides support and benefits for the care and development of all Singaporean children whether or not their mothers are married. Said single parent benefits include:
- Child care leave and unpaid infant care leave
- Foreign domestic worker levy concession
- Centre-based infant and child care subsidies
- Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS)
- Education subsidies
- Student care subsidies
- Child Development Credits, Post-Secondary Education Account (PSEA) top-ups
- Edusave Pupils Fund; Edusave Scholarship and Awards
- Maternity leave of 8 weeks
- Medisave grant for newborns
- MediShield coverage for congenital and neonatal conditions
- Government healthcare subsidies and Medifund
On the other hand, the benefits for married mothers are:
- Baby Bonus Cash Gift and Child Development Account
- Maternity leave of 16 weeks
- Parenthood tax rebate, qualifying child relief, handicapped child relief, working mother’s child relief, and grandparent caregiver relief
- Housing grant for families
- Housing priority schemes
For more information on the different single parent benefits and how to avail of them, you may check out the following websites:
- Ministry of Social and Family Development
- Baby Bonus Singapore
- Hey Baby Singapore, and
- Singapore Motherhood
Are you raising your child on your own? Do you think these single parent benefits will help you? Share your thoughts in the comment box!