Fri. Dec 6th, 2024
Singapore cost of living

TL;DR – Some support measures to help you cope with your cost of living, especially your expensive BBTs, and grab rides. 

Money is on everyone’s minds as we slowly ease into a world post-Covid. Global inflation means = an increase in prices, and this is happening worldwide, not just in Singapore. Here are some support measures you can look forward to this year, to help you cope with your expensive BBTs and grab rides. 

1. Mid-May 2022: $100 CDC Vouchers 

CDC Vouchers worth $100 will be given to every Singaporean household, disbursement by mid-May 2022. This is on top of the $100 that was disbursed in December in 2021.Find out how to use your CDC vouchers in this video: 

To use your CDC vouchers, look out for this decal at participating hawkers and heartland merchants: 

CDC Voucher cost of living

You can check out the full list of participating hawkers and heartland merchants at this link. Note! You can’t use the CDC vouchers at NTUC FairPrice, Giant or Sheng Siong. However, shoppers at all NTUC FairPrice supermarkets and hypermarkets will enjoy a 5 per cent discount every Friday on about 100 “key essential items”. They comprise daily household staples such as rice, oil, eggs, milk, vegetables, meat, laundry and paper products.

2. April, July, October 2022 and January 2023 – S&CC and U-Save Rebates 

To support Singaporeans with the cost of living, Service and Conservancy Charges (S&CC) and U-Save Rebate will be disbursed, over a few times this year, starting in April 2022.  

  • S&CC and U-Save Rebates: Used to directly offset your bills of the corresponding month for eligible households 
  • Rebates are to offset between 1.5and 3.5 months of Service and Conservancy Charges  for eligible households 
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U-Save Rebate Summary table: 

To check your eligibility for the U-Save rebates, you may contact SP Group (6671-7117 / customersupport@spgroup.com.sg

S&CC Rebate Summary Table:

Source: Ministry of Finance website

You can check or enquire on your eligibility of the S&CC rebates by following these steps: 

  1. Log into My HDBPage with your Singpass
  2. Click on My Flat < Purchase Flat/Rental Flat > S&CC Rebate  

3. GST Voucher (Cash & Medisave Top Ups)

The GST Voucher is a permanent scheme with benefits given out yearly. The scheme aims to provide more support to lower- and middle-income Singaporean households, as part of our overall system of taxes and transfers.

Eligible Singaporeans that qualify for the Cash and Medisave payouts will be notified in July 2022.

4. Social Service Offices to provide 6-month support (minimum) 

This applies to all new ComCare Short to Medium-Term Assistance (SMTA) clients who apply between Apr and Sep 2022. Households already on ComCare SMTA who require further assistance can extend assistance for at least another three months. 

Find out more here.

5. COVID-19 Recovery Grant – in place till Dec 2022 

This grant, which helps lower to middle-income households, experiencing job losses or sustained income losses, will be kept in place until the end of 2022. 

6. $60 of Public Transport Vouchers 

In light of the rising public transport fares, an additional ground of public transport vouchers will be disbursed this month for ComCare recipients. In total, ComCare recipients will receive $60 of Public Transport Vouchers. The vouchers will also be made available to those whose monthly income per capita does not exceed S$1,600

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Applications for public transport vouchers are open from now to 31 October 2022. If you have already received the first voucher and need a second voucher, you can apply again. 

7. Up to $10,000 Small Business Recovery Grant for Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) 

Most eligible businesses can expect to receive the Small Business Recovery Grant by June, brought forward in light of the global rise in prices.

By Zahra