Extending Incentives to Support Caregivers of Children beyond their Parents

100 Ms Valerie Lee asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) whether the Government will consider expanding incentives to support caregivers beyond parents, such as grandparents, extended family members and domestic helpers, who can play a significant role in raising children; and (b) whether the Government has any views on schemes, like Australia's Grandparent Child Care Subsidy, which provides additional childcare subsidies for grandparents who are primary caregivers.

Ms Indranee Rajah: Caregiving arrangements vary widely across families depending on their circumstances and preferences. In some families, grandparents and extended family members play an integral role in caregiving while in others, they do not.

To recognise and promote intergenerational support, we have today the Grandparent Caregiver Relief which provides a $3,000 tax relief to eligible working mothers who engage a parent, parent-in-law or grandparent to help with caregiving, while the Proximity Housing Grant helps couples live with or near their parents for mutual support. Households with children under 16 years old can also qualify for a concessionary levy for migrant domestic workers at a reduced rate of $60 per month.

Australia's Grandparent Child Care Subsidy scheme provides additional childcare subsidies to eligible grandparents who are the primary caregivers of their grandchildren, in place of the parents, and is intended to defray the cost of approved childcare services.

In Singapore, all Singapore Citizen children are already eligible for preschool subsidies, regardless of who their primary caregiver is. As announced by the Prime Minister at the recent National Day Rally, the Government will further improve the affordability of preschools for all Singapore Citizen children.

The Government will continue to review our support measures to ensure that they remain relevant and responsive to the needs of families.