Quick answer
SCFA can take up to S$290 a month off a student care centre’s fee for children aged 7 to 14. Today it reaches households earning up to S$4,500 a month, or S$1,125 per person in larger families. From 1 January 2027 that rises to S$6,500, or S$1,625 per person. The centre must be registered with MSF to administer SCFA, so ask before you pay a deposit.
The useful number: From 1 January 2027, a family of four earning S$4,200 a month gets S$148 off a S$350 fee instead of S$59, so they pay S$202 a month instead of S$291.
Who is SCFA for?
Children aged 7 to 14 (Primary 1 to Secondary 2) at a student care centre registered with MSF to administer SCFA. The child is a Singapore Citizen or PR with at least one Singapore Citizen immediate family member in the household, and each parent in the home works at least 56 hours a month. For a single parent, MSF counts only that parent’s income.
Households of four or fewer are tested on gross household income; households of five or more on income per person.
How does the subsidy work?
If the centre charges under S$295 a month, SCFA pays a percentage of the fee. At S$295 or more, it pays the fixed maximum for your income band, up to S$290.
For example, a S$250 fee for a family of four earning S$2,800 a month is in the 70% band today: SCFA pays S$175 and the family pays S$75.
What changes on 1 January 2027?
The income bands widen. Today’s table, for a household of four or fewer:
- Income up to S$1,500
- 98% of the fee, or up to S$290
- Income up to S$2,000
- 95% of the fee, or up to S$280
- Income up to S$2,200
- 90% of the fee, or up to S$266
- Income up to S$2,400
- 85% of the fee, or up to S$251
- Income up to S$2,600
- 80% of the fee, or up to S$236
- Income up to S$2,800
- 70% of the fee, or up to S$207
- Income up to S$3,000
- 60% of the fee, or up to S$177
- Income up to S$3,200
- 50% of the fee, or up to S$148
- Income up to S$3,500
- 40% of the fee, or up to S$118
- Income up to S$4,000
- 30% of the fee, or up to S$89
- Income up to S$4,500
- 20% of the fee, or up to S$59
From 1 January 2027:
- Income up to S$2,000
- 98% of the fee, or up to S$290
- Income up to S$2,500
- 95% of the fee, or up to S$280
- Income up to S$3,000
- 90% of the fee, or up to S$266
- Income up to S$3,300
- 80% of the fee, or up to S$236
- Income up to S$3,600
- 70% of the fee, or up to S$207
- Income up to S$4,000
- 60% of the fee, or up to S$177
- Income up to S$4,400
- 50% of the fee, or up to S$148
- Income up to S$4,800
- 40% of the fee, or up to S$118
- Income up to S$5,200
- 30% of the fee, or up to S$89
- Income up to S$6,500
- 20% of the fee, or up to S$59
The 85% band goes, and the percentages and maximums for each band stay the same. More families qualify, and many get more.
How do you compare centres?
- List 2 to 4 centres near school or home. MSF’s directory shows the centres registered for SCFA.
- Ask each one for its monthly fee, registration fee, deposit, school holiday charges and opening hours.
- Check that the centre is registered with MSF to administer SCFA.
- Enter your household income and size to see SCFA on today’s table and on the 2027 one.
- Compare the first payment and the closing time against your work day and commute.
- Apply through the centre. MSF means-tests every application and its assessment decides.
What does this look like for a S$350 fee?
- Family of four earning S$4,200
- Today S$59 off, so S$291 a month; from January 2027 S$148 off, so S$202
- Family of four earning S$5,500
- Today no SCFA, so S$350; from January 2027 S$59 off, so S$291
- Family of four earning S$3,000
- Today S$177 off, so S$173; from January 2027 S$266 off, so S$84
Because S$350 is above S$295, each family gets its band’s fixed maximum, not a percentage.
What should you ask on a visit?
- Until what time is it open, and what are the hours in the school holidays?
- Who helps with homework, and when?
- Are meals included, and what do the children eat?
- What happens in the holiday programme, and does it cost extra?
- Does someone walk the children over from school?
- Is the centre registered with MSF to administer SCFA?
The tool adds the fee, registration fee and deposit into your first payment, and keeps anything a centre has not told you as unknown, never as zero.
Which tool and download help?
Open the Student care comparison and SCFA estimator and put 2 to 4 centres side by side in your own order. Then check the pick-up times in the Family care coverage planner.
Print the Homework help scripts and homework hour plan so homework time goes the same way at the centre and at home. SCFA is approved for up to 36 months at a time, with reviews at Primary 3 and Primary 6.
What does this estimate not cover?
MSF decides every application, and its assessment prevails. Fees, hours and registration status are what each centre tells you. Special Student Care Centres for children with disabilities use separate subsidies through SG Enable and are not covered. We never rank centres.
Printables for this guide
Homework help scripts and homework hour plan
A homework-hour plan for each school day, plus script cards for whoever supervises: parent, helper or grandparent. When to encourage, stop or step back.
Try it with your numbers
Put in your own details to see your answer.
Open student care comparison and SCFA estimator →Frequently asked questions
Who qualifies for SCFA?
Children aged 7 to 14 at a student care centre registered with MSF for SCFA. The child must be a Singapore Citizen, or a PR with a Singapore Citizen family member at home. Each parent in the home must work at least 56 hours a month; a single parent counts on their own.
How much can SCFA cover?
Up to S$290 a month at the lowest income band. For fees under S$295 the subsidy is a percentage of the fee, from 98% down to 20%; at S$295 or more it is the band’s fixed maximum.
What changes for SCFA in 2027?
From 1 January 2027 the income ceiling rises from S$4,500 to S$6,500 a month, or from S$1,125 to S$1,625 per person for households of five or more. The percentages and maximums per band stay the same.
Is every student care centre covered by SCFA?
No. SCFA applies only at student care centres registered with MSF to administer it. Ask the centre, or check MSF’s directory, before you pay a deposit.
How long does an SCFA approval last?
Up to 36 months at a time, with review points at Primary 3 and Primary 6. Tell the centre if your income or work changes.
Keep this guide for the next big decision.
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