Unutilised SkillsFuture Credits and Transfer Options to Immediate Family Members
Ministry of EducationSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the average amount of unutilised SkillsFuture Credit and the potential for credit transfers to family members, as raised by Ms Joan Pereira. Minister Desmond Lee reported that as of December 2024, the average utilised amount was $330 for the base tier and $420 for the mid-career tier. He maintained that credits are non-transferable, even for the elderly or ill, to ensure individuals take personal ownership of their lifelong learning and skills development. Minister Desmond Lee noted that Singaporeans aged 25 and above receive $500 in credits, supplemented by a $4,000 mid-career top-up for those aged 40 and above. For those who have used their credits, the government continues to provide course fee subsidies of up to 90% for programmes supported by SkillsFuture Singapore.
Transcript
42 Ms Joan Pereira asked the Minister for Education (a) what is the average amount of unutilised SkillsFuture credit for each eligible Singaporean; and (b) whether the Ministry will reconsider its position regarding transfers of SkillsFuture credits to immediate family members, particularly if the donor member is elderly, or suffering from debilitating illnesses or disabilities.
Mr Desmond Lee: The SkillsFuture Credit encourages Singaporeans to take individual ownership of their lifelong learning and skills development, to support their learning needs across different stages of their career and life. From January 2016, Singaporeans aged 25 and above are provided with the opening SkillsFuture Credit of $500 to pursue skills-related training. Since May 2024, we have provided a $4,000 SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) top-up to Singaporeans aged 40 and above to support substantive training.
As of December 2024, more than one in three eligible Singaporeans have utilised their SkillsFuture Credit. The average utilised amount in the base tier is approximately $330. The average utilised amount in the mid-career tier is approximately $420. Data for December 2025 will be available in February 2026.
As the SkillsFuture Credit is intended to support Singaporeans to take ownership of their own lifelong learning journey, unused credits are not transferable between individuals, including immediate family members. Those who have used up their SkillsFuture Credit can continue to benefit from the generous course fee subsidies of up to 90% for SSG-supported programmes.