BETTER TAX RELIEFS FOR MORE HOUSEHOLDS

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SINGAPORE - Missing are the direct cash transfers in the form of shares or credits seen in past budgets.

But the Government will still be setting aside $1.4 billion of this year's Budget for households to benefit mainly lower- and middle-income families with elderly dependants.

A slew of enhanced tax reliefs was announced during Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam's 2010 Budget statement, noteworthy of which was a gender-equal spouse relief.

Soon, wives who are taxpayers and breadwinners can claim a spouse relief of $2,000, similar to the current tax relief for husbands. This will help families where the wife is the main source of income, especially in instances where the husband has retired, Mr Shanmugaratnam said in Parliament yesterday.

Accordingly, the wife relief will be renamed "spouse relief".

The Government will also increase the income threshold for dependant-related reliefs from $2,000 to $4,000.

This increase recognises taxpayers' efforts in supporting family members who are genuinely dependent while giving these members the flexibility to do some incidental work, Mr Shanmugaratnam said.

The Government will also remove the income threshold for handicapped dependant-related relief.

The $1.4 billion also includes a one-off top up to the Medisave account of Singaporeans aged 50 and above, as well as to the Post-Secondary Education Account Scheme; 650,000 young Singaporeans will get additional top-ups of between $100 and $500.

It also includes transfers to households that have been announced in previous budgets, such as the Senior Citizens' Bonus.

Sales manager Khalid Ismail, who has several dependants including a handicapped mother living with him in his four-room HDB flat, said: "I feel better because the Government recognises that taking care of my family is important." The 37-year old is the sole breadwinner.

Ms Dana Lam, president of the Association for Woman's Action and Research, applauded the decision to grant tax breaks to working wives and those with elderly dependants.

But she hopes greater attention will be paid to singles who have devoted most of their lives to care for dependant family members, but end up with little CPF funds and other financial resources to support themselves.

Many in this category tend to be single women, she said.

From TODAY, Tuesday, 23-Feb-2010

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