MDW levy concession conditions and Home Caregiving Grant eligibility today

Two caregiving supports already apply to a Singapore household: the $60 per month migrant domestic worker levy concession, and the Home Caregiving Grant. What was announced on 4 September 2026 is wider eligibility for four financial support schemes from 2027 — including that same levy concession for persons with disabilities — with the Ministry of Social and Family Development saying it would share more details. ^[1]

So for a family planning care at home for a young child with additional needs this year, the useful work is checking today's written tests rather than budgeting on the announcement. Here is each condition, which document it depends on, and what is still unpublished. ^[2]

Today's levy concession: $60, and the tests behind it

MOM's current levy table lists three monthly rates: $300 for the first helper, $450 for each subsequent helper and $60 at the concessionary rate. The daily rates apply only when a helper does not complete a full calendar month. The $60 rate comes with conditions: one helper per eligible person and a cap of two helpers per household, so a second helper needs two eligible persons. Once the steps are done, the lower rate and adjustments backdated to that date appear in your next two levy bills. ^{[3] [4]}

A Singapore citizen child below 16 qualifies from the birth date if you are the parent, or from the date you add the child to FDW eService as a household member if you are not. A citizen senior from 67 covers you or your spouse; for another person, both NRICs must show the same address and a household-member listing on FDW eService. For a permanent resident senior from 67, MOM's page sets the rule by relationship: as yourself, your spouse must be a Singapore citizen; as your spouse, you must be one; as a parent or grandparent, you or your spouse must be one — and that route adds the same-address and household-member conditions. ^[4]

The person-with-disabilities route carries more steps: a Singapore-registered doctor must certify that the person needs help with at least one activity of daily living; the person is a Singapore citizen, or a permanent resident with a citizen parent, spouse or child; both NRICs show the same address; the person is listed as a household member on FDW eService; and the Agency for Integrated Care issues a recommendation letter after you apply. MOM's May 2026 reply confirms that people below 67 who need help with at least one ADL still qualify. A hypothetical example that would carry the test: an adult citizen child certified as needing help with washing and feeding, registered at the employer's address, listed as a household member on FDW eService, and covered by an AIC recommendation letter. ^{[4] [5]}

The Home Caregiving Grant: two figures on official pages

MOM's levy concession page says that if you hire a helper to care for a family member who needs permanent assistance with three or more activities of daily living, you may qualify for the Home Caregiving Grant, described there as a monthly grant of up to $400, with criteria and application through AIC — its website or the hotline 1800 650 6060. The Minister of State for Social and Family Development told the Committee of Supply in March 2025 that the grant had been doubled from $200 to up to $400 in 2023 and would be further increased to up to $600 a month from April 2026. September 2026 reporting also gives $600. ^{[4] [6] [1]}

That difference between pages is the practical point: MOM's levy page still describes up to $400, while MSF records an increase to up to $600 from April 2026. The full grant criteria are not on MOM's page, so a single page cannot settle whether a household qualifies. One suggestion, not a tested routine: before you commit to a care budget, write a one-page care brief — who is cared for, which daily living tasks need help, who certifies that, and which month you would need the money — and take it to AIC. ^{[4] [6]}

Announced for 1Q 2027: four schemes, criteria pending

MSF's annex on key measures states that eligibility criteria for selected financial support schemes will be expanded to explicitly include the care needs of persons with intellectual disabilities or autism with significant care needs by 1Q 2027. A footnote in that annex names the four schemes: the Home Caregiving Grant, the Caregivers Training Grant, the Pioneer Generation Disability Assistance Scheme and the Migrant Domestic Worker Levy Concession for Persons with Disabilities. ^[2]

The Health Minister's remarks, as reported on 4 September 2026, explain the gap: some people with intellectual disabilities or autism may be able to perform activities of daily living yet have significant care needs that an ADL assessment does not reflect. The minister said MSF would share more details. Neither that announcement nor MSF's annex sets out an assessment method or an application route, so treat the four-scheme expansion as a watch item rather than a budget line. ^[1]

Where a young child sits among today's care options

Early intervention centre-based programmes are one route for a young child: ECDA states they are for children from birth to six years old who are Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents, assessed by a paediatrician to be at risk of a developmental, intellectual, sensory or physical disability, and not concurrently enrolled in another MSF-funded early intervention programme. Out-of-pocket fees for Singapore Citizen children range from $5 to $430, depending on monthly household per capita income. ^{[7] [8]}

The ECDA childminding pilot sits on a narrower age band: Singapore Citizen infants aged two to 18 months, not concurrently enrolled at an ECDA-licensed infant care centre, with subsidised half-day fees of $16.50 and full-day fees of $33.00 before GST, between 7am and 7pm on Mondays to Fridays excluding public holidays. ECDA has appointed three operators to run it. ^{[7] [8]}

The subsidy route for a non-working carer is separate: ECDA states that a main subsidy applicant who is not working because they are taking care of a special needs child may apply for time-limited higher preschool subsidy support under Special Approval, with supporting documents required. From 1 January 2027 the gross monthly household income threshold for additional subsidies rises to $15,000. The per capita income figure, $3,400, applies to households of five or more family members related by blood, marriage or legal adoption who share the same registered residential address. The full childcare subsidy thresholds rise to $7,500, with the matching per capita figure at $1,700. ^[9]

Bottom line: budget on the $60 levy concession and the Home Caregiving Grant as they stand today, each with a written test to check, and re-check MOM, MSF and AIC pages when the 1Q 2027 criteria are published. ^[9]

Sources

EduNanny Editorial · AI-assisted research and writing, reviewed by our automated editorial team. Sources checked 2026-10-10. Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration.