Working mother's child relief (WMCR) is a relief introduced from Year of Assessment (YA) 2005 onwards to serve the following objectives:
- Reward families with children holding Singapore citizenship
- Encourage parents to take up citizenship for their children
- Encourage married women to remain in the workforce after having children
Single or male taxpayers are not eligible for this relief.
Who can claim
You must be a working mother who satisfies ALL of the following conditions:
- Is a Singapore tax resident
- Is married, divorced or widowed in previous year
- Has earned income in the previous year. Earned income refers to income from employment, trade, pension, business, profession or vocation
- Has a child who is Singapore citizen as at 31 Dec of previous year and satisfied all conditions under qualifying child relief (QCR) or handicapped child relief (HCR).
You can claim this relief on the same child even if you and/ or your husband have already claimed qualifying child relief (QCR) or handicapped child relief (HCR).
How much you can claim
The amount of WMCR claimable for each child is based on a specified percentage of the working mother's earned income corresponding to the child order.
With effect from Year of Assessment (YA) 2009, the percentage quantum for WMCR has increased and WMCR is now extended to all qualifying children. Working mothers can claim WMCR up to 100% of their earned income for all her qualifying children. In addition, the total amount of QCR/ HCR and WMCR claimable for each child is capped at $50,000.
| Child order |
WMCR (YA 2008 and before)
|
WMCR (From YA 2009 onwards)
|
| 1st |
5% of mother's earned income
|
15% of mother's earned income
|
| 2nd |
15% of mother's earned income
|
20% of mother's earned income
|
| 3rd |
20% of mother's earned income
|
25% of mother's earned income
|
| 4th |
25% of mother's earned income
(for child born in or after 1987 but excludes child adopted before 1 Jan 2004)
|
25% of mother's earned income
|
| 5th and beyond |
0%
|
25% of mother's earned income
|
| Maximum claim allowable* |
QCR/ HCR + WMCR is capped at $25,000 per child
|
QCR/ HCR + WMCR is capped at $50,000 per child
Cumulative WMCR percentages are capped at 100% of mother's earned income
|
* QCR/ HCR, regardless of whether it is claimed by the father or mother, will be allowed first and WMCR will be limited to the remaining balance.
Example 1: YA 2010 and earned income is $100,000
Mrs Heng has 6 children. As the first child received income of more than $4,000 in 2009, no child relief is allowable on the child. Mrs Heng is eligible to claim WMCR on the rest of the children. Her earned income for year 2009 is $100,000.
Mr Heng had claimed QCR of $4,000 per child on 5 children.
For Year of Assessment (YA) 2010, the amount of WMCR allowable to Mrs Heng is as follows:
| Child Order |
% |
Amount ($) |
WMCR allowable ($) |
Cumulative WMCR allowable ($)
(percentage of earned income) |
| 1st |
15 |
15,000 |
0 |
0
(0% of her earned income) |
| 2nd |
20 |
20,000 |
20,000 |
20,000
(20% of her earned income) |
| 3rd |
25 |
25,000 |
25,000 |
45,000
(45% of her earned income) |
| 4th |
25 |
25,000 |
25,000 |
70,000
(70% of her earned income) |
| 5th |
25 |
25,000 |
25,000 |
95,000
(95% of her earned income) |
| 6th |
25 |
25,000 |
5,000 |
100,000
(100% of her earned income) |
Example 2: YA 2010 and earned income is $350,000
Mrs Lim has 8 children and she satisfies the conditions for claim of QCR and WMCR. She is claiming HCR for the first child. Her earned income for year 2009 is $350,000.
Mr Lim had claimed HCR for the first child and QCR for the other children.
For Year of Assessment (YA) 2010, the amount of WMCR allowable to Mrs Lim is as follows:
| Child Order |
% |
Amount ($) |
QCR/ HCR ($) claimed by Mr Lim |
WMCR allowable ($) to Mrs Lim |
Cumulative WMCR allowable ($)
(percentage of earned income) |
| 1st |
15 |
52,500 |
5,500 |
44,500 |
44,500
(12.7% of her earned income) |
| 2nd |
20 |
70,000 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
90,500
(25.8% of her earned income) |
| 3rd |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
136,500
(39% of her earned income) |
| 4th |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
182,500
(52% of her earned income) |
| 5th |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
228,500
(65.3% of her earned income) |
| 6th |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
274,500
(78.4% of her earned income) |
| 7th |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
46,000 |
320,500
(91.6% of her earned income) |
| 8th |
25 |
87,500 |
4,000 |
29,500 |
350,000
(100% of her earned income) |
Find out more about how to determine ranking of children.
How to claim
You need to enter your details of your claim under 'child relief' in your tax return.
If you are claiming WMCR only
Please enter claim type 'Q', and 'YES' under "Claim WMCR".
You do NOT need to enter any amount for WMCR. 'Amount of Child Relief' should be $0. We will automatically compute the amount based on your eligibility, when we process your tax return.
If you are claiming QCR or HCR + WMCR
Please enter claim type 'Q' for qualifying child relief or 'H' for handicapped child relief and 'YES' under claim WMCR.
You only need to enter amount for QCR or HCR. Example, $4,000 for QCR for YA 2010.
Please do NOT include amount for WMCR. We will automatically compute the allowable amount for WMCR based on your eligibility when we process your tax return.
If you are claiming for the first-time
- If you submit paper tax return, please enter your child's particulars in Appendix 2 of your tax return and submit together with your tax return.
- If you e-File your tax return, you need to click on the 'HERE' button under '9. Child' on 'Deductions and Reliefs' to enter your child's particulars.
Find out more about how to submit your tax return.