Parents with 3 or more young children to get S$1,000 LifeSG credits from Sep 10

SINGAPORE: Parents with three or more young children will receive S$1,000 (US$778) in LifeSG credits from Wednesday (Sep 10), as part of Singapore's efforts to support large families. 

The LifeSG credits are for each third and subsequent Singaporean child, aged one to six this year.

Each eligible child will receive S$1,000 each year until he or she turns six years old.

The initiative was first announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at Budget 2025, under the new Large Families Scheme that includes a doubling of the CDA First Step Grant to S$10,000. 

Announcing the timeline for the disbursement of Life SG credits, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said on Wednesday that the first payouts will be made from Sep 10 for families with a third and subsequent child born between Jan 1, 2019 and Dec 31, 2024. 

"Subsequent disbursements will be made in April annually, with the next disbursement in April 2026 for children born between 2020 to 2025," said MSF.

The parent who is the trustee of an eligible Singaporean's Child Development Account (CDA) will automatically receive the credits, which can be accessed via the LifeSG app.

Recipients will be notified via SMS once the LifeSG funds have been credited. 

"To safeguard against scams, SMS notifications sent to parents will only be from 'gov.sg'," MSF said. "The SMS notifications will only contain information on the status of disbursements."

CDA trustees should also ensure that the mobile number in their Singpass profile is accurate to receive these notifications.

LifeSG credits can be used at a range of physical and online stores to defray household expenses such as groceries, pharmacy items, utilities and transport, as long as the merchant accepts payment via PayNow UEN QR or NETS QR. 

The S$1,000 in credits for children in large families is double the amount for eligible Singaporean children born between 2013 and 2024. Those were disbursed in July.

LARGE FAMILIES SCHEME

Apart from the S$1,000 in SG Life credits and a doubling of the CDA First Step Grant, eligible parents with three or more young children also stand to receive a S$5,000 Large Family MediSave grant.

This will be credited to the mother’s MediSave account and can be used to offset either her pregnancy and delivery expenses or her family members’ healthcare expenses. Those eligible will receive the money around two weeks after their successful enrolment into the Baby Bonus scheme.

Mr Wong said in February that the Large Family Scheme aims to support married couples who have or aspire to have three or more children.

The government expects to spend about S$80 million on the initiative each year.

MSF said on Wednesday that beyond government support, some merchants also offer deals to large families through Families for Life’s Large Families Deals initiative.

These include deals for daily essentials such as groceries and meals, diapers, as well as family-friendly transport services.

There are also discounts on furniture, indoor playgrounds, dining perks and family activity classes, MSF said.