Provision of Direct Grants and Support to Caregivers to Address Financial Insecurity and Retirement Inadequacy
Ministry of Social and Family DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang’s inquiry into whether the government is studying direct caregiver grants to address financial insecurity and retirement inadequacy and what other plans exist to support caregivers. Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli B M M highlighted enhancements to the Home Caregiving Grant, expanded long-term care subsidies with a higher income cap of $4,800, and existing preschool subsidies. He explained that retirement adequacy is bolstered through the Majulah Package, Silver Support Scheme, and Matched Retirement Savings Scheme, while employment support is provided through flexible work arrangements and the Workfare Income Supplement. The response also detailed improved leave provisions like Shared Parental Leave, enhanced paternity leave, and centralized information resources through SupportGoWhere and SG Enable. Finally, the Minister noted that Community Outreach Teams provide mental health support to address the physical and emotional toll experienced by caregivers in their daily roles.
Transcript
8 Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang asked the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether the Ministry is studying the possibility of providing direct caregiver grants to address the financial insecurity and retirement inadequacy that some caregivers face; and (b) what other plans does the Ministry have to support caregivers.
Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The Government regularly reviews and enhances support for caregivers of various profiles. This includes initiatives to defray daily costs of living and care services. For example, at Budget 2025, we announced enhancements to the Home Caregiving Grant, to alleviate the caregiving expenses of persons who require assistance with their Activities of Daily Living. Caregivers of seniors and persons with disabilities can look forward to enhanced subsidies for long-term care services in 2026, with more eligible for such subsidies with the raise in maximum qualifying per capita household income to $4,800. Parents with young children also receive a wide range of financial support to defray costs relating to their children's development, such as the Baby Bonus Cash Gift and preschool subsidies.
Supporting caregivers to stay working where possible, enables them to continue progressing in meaningful careers, while saving for their retirement and building financial resilience. In this area, we support the employment of caregivers by enabling working caregivers to balance work with caregiving through flexible work arrangements and by providing job placement and skills upgrading support for those who wish to return to work. Caregivers may also be eligible for the Workfare Income Supplement, which supplements eligible lower-wage workers' income and retirement savings.
The Majulah Package, introduced in 2024, as well as enhancements to the Silver Support Scheme and Matched Retirement Savings Scheme from January 2025, help to boost the retirement and healthcare adequacy of seniors, some of whom may have caregiving duties. Eligible seniors, including caregivers, can benefit from these support measures which supplement their retirement income and Central Provident Fund savings.
Beyond addressing financial stability and retirement adequacy, the Government has also introduced other measures to support caregivers in fulfilling their caregiving duties. These include enhancing Government-Paid Paternity Leave and introducing the new Shared Parental Leave scheme, to provide stronger caregiving support to working parents of infants. We have also improved access to information on caregiver schemes and services through the SupportGoWhere Care Services Recommender and the Enabling Guide on SG Enable's website. Caregiver-led initiatives, like CaringSG, which is supported by SG Enable; and Enabling Services Hubs also aim to bring peer and community-based support closer to home for these caregivers.
Additionally, we recognise that the emotional, mental and physical toll on caregivers is often heavy, and are committed to providing holistic support to help caregivers overcome the day-to-day demands of caregiving. Caregivers who are feeling stressed or experiencing depressive and anxiety symptoms may reach out to the Community Outreach Teams funded by Ministry of Health for mental health support.