Welcoming a new baby brings both joy and financial responsibilities. Basic expenses for a newborn include vaccination costs of $800-1,100, childcare costs of $1,000-1,500 per month, and hiring a domestic helper for $300-450 per month plus additional expenses. It is important for parents to consider different types of insurance policies like basic Medishield coverage, private integrated plans, and coverage for critical illnesses, accidents, and more to protect their family's financial well-being in case of unforeseen health events. Financial advisors recommend discussing options thoroughly to choose protection suitable for each family's needs and risk tolerance.

1. Concrete
Plan
A
Good financial planning skills
are important especially now
that you have a child to raise
157

2. Purchasing insurance with cash value is something that attracts Sin-
gaporeans, as not many people enjoy paying for premiums without an
insurance payout. There is another school of thought which is “buy term
and invest the rest” but many people may not have the patience, self-discipline,
investment expertise and risk tolerance to invest the rest. The common life
insurance with cash value is endowment insurance and whole life insurance.
If you consider purchasing a more affordable life insurance, you can opt for
group term insurance policy offered by associations like SAFRA or Automo-
bile Association and Singapore Armed Forces, also known as SAF insurance.
going undercover domestic help / infant care
vaccination
It is overwhelming to figure out what type of insurance is suitable for your
firstborn as people from all walks of life give different opinions and advice.
Our financial adviser, Andrew Ang explains.
Welcoming a new member to the fam-
ily can be fun but you need to be financial-
ly prepared. Although many couples enjoy
a Double Income No Kids lifestyle before
the arrival of the little one, some will
eventually have to be a stay-home mother
due to the added responsibilities. And that
means reduction in terms of household
income with increased expenditure.
However, if you decide to return to
work after your maternity leave, you can
hire a domestic helper to care for the
baby. Their monthly salary ranges from
$300 - $450, but you will also have to
factor in extra costs like levy, food and
utilities, insurance coverage, and medical
check-ups.
Alternatively, you can place your baby
at an infant care centre. These centres
typically charge $1,000 - $1,500 a month
for full day care.
All babies are required to be immunised under Sin-
gapore’s National Childhood Immunisation Programme
(NCIP). All recommended immunisations under the NCIP
may cost from $80 per dose up to $170 per dose, depending
on the type of vaccine and recommended number of doses.
Only MMR (vaccination against Measles, Mumps and
Rubella) is subsidised by the government at all polyclin-
ics for babies who are Singapore citizens and this should
be taken when your child is 12 months old and 18 months
old respectively. However, if you are considering a GP or a
paediatrician, you can only expect more cost. In total, the
charges for childhood immunisation will cost approximately
between $800 - $1,100, excluding 7% GST and consulta-
tion fees, depending on the type of healthcare institution.
Babies who are Singapore citizens can use the savings from
the Children Development Account (CDA) to pay for the
immunisation at healthcare institutions licensed under the
Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Act.
Every parent should
consider getting a
basic coverage for their
newborn as provid-
ing for medical needs is
essential. All newborn Singaporeans
and permanent residents (PRs) are
automatically covered by Medishield,
a basic national insurance scheme that
helps policy holders pay for large hos-
pitalisation costs at class B2/C level.
However, you may want to reconsider
this option of staying in class B2/C
level in the event of hospitalization. If
your answer is NO, you can upgrade
your Medishield insurance to Private
Integrated Plan offered by five life
insurers in Singapore.
Life insurance is commonly recommended
by financial planners in Singapore. It cov-
ers unforeseen events like death, total and
permanent disability, personal accidents and
critical illnesses. Usually, coverage for per-
sonal accidents, critical illnesses, children’s
illnesses, female illnesses, hospital inform
and early critical illnesses is recommended
by financial planners to the parents of the
newborn. It is important to ask yourself
whether you have enough financial resources
to provide for your baby and how many
children you are planning to have.
There are many different types
of insurance policies offered in
Singapore and paying for the
premiums can become challeng-
ing in the long term.
With more competition in the insurance industry in Singapore, different ways of
pricing, structuring, marketing and different types of premium payment make the
decision challenging, not only for parents but also for the financial planners.
On top of $300 universal childcare
subsidy from the government, addi-
tional subsidy of maximum $340 will be
provided under Centre-Based Financial
Assistance Scheme for Child (CFAC)
based on household income of minimum
$1,500 or lower and maximum of $3,500
if the parents of the child – who must be a
Singapore citizen – are both working.
More information on the CFAC can
be found at www.mcys.gov.sg.
2 intermediate coverage
good
to
have!
shouldhave!
3 advanced coverage
musthave!
1 basic coverage
Every parent
should consider
getting a basic
coverage for their
newborn as
providing for
medical needs
is essential.
babycare
158 159