Singapore has announced a new child support package that could provide each child with nearly S$70,000 in government assistance from birth through the teenage years, as the country intensifies efforts to address its declining birth rate.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced the measures during Singapore’s National Day Rally, outlining additional financial support for families alongside plans covering technology and long-term infrastructure development.
Under the new SG Child Support Package, eligible children will receive up to S$62,000 in support between birth and age 17. The assistance will be distributed through several programmes rather than paid as a single lump sum.
The cash component will amount to S$42,000. This includes a S$10,000 cash gift paid in two instalments during a child’s first year, followed by annual child credits of S$2,000 from age one through 16.
The package will also include S$5,000 deposited into a Child Development Account, with the government offering up to another S$5,000 in matching contributions.
At age 17, a further S$10,000 will be added to the child’s post-secondary education account.
Existing support measures are also included in the broader package, including the S$5,000 MediSave grant provided for newborns and approximately S$2,500 in education-related contributions. The overall value of the support, including measures covering existing children, is therefore expected to reach almost S$70,000.
Transitional payments under the new arrangements are scheduled to begin in 2027.
The Singapore government is also planning to reduce childcare costs. From 2028, monthly fees at government-supported childcare centres will be gradually reduced, with full-day childcare targeted at S$150 per month and infant care at S$300 per month by 2030.
The planned reductions would represent a significant cut from current costs, which are around S$600 per month for full-day childcare and more than S$1,000 for infant care.
The measures come as Singapore faces a continued decline in births. The country’s resident total fertility rate fell to 0.87 children per woman in 2025, compared with 0.97 in 2024.
Singapore recorded nearly 30,000 births in 2025, representing an 11.4 per cent decline from the previous year. Births among Singapore citizens also dropped by 10.8 per cent to slightly above 26,000.
The government has continued to increase spending on policies aimed at encouraging marriage and parenthood. Singapore allocated S$7 billion for marriage and parenthood measures in its 2026 fiscal year.
The city-state has a population of about 6.11 million, comprising approximately 3.66 million citizens, 540,000 permanent residents and 1.91 million non-residents.
The latest package forms part of Singapore’s broader effort to ease the financial burden of raising children and give families greater confidence to have and raise children amid the country’s persistently low birth rate.
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