Establishment of Child Development Co-Savings Scheme to assist families
3.—(1) The Minister may by regulations establish a scheme to be called the Child Development Co-Savings Scheme —(a)
to encourage married women to have more children, by the provision of financial assistance for the development of the children of families through a co-savings arrangement;
(aa)
to provide financial assistance for the development of any other child through a co‑savings arrangement;
(b)
to facilitate the provision of cash grants made by the Government from time to time for the development of children;
(c)
to facilitate the making of financial provision for the development of a child, whether or not the child is eligible for a co‑savings arrangement, through the making of contributions to the child’s bank account by or on behalf of any parent of the child; and
(d)
to make financial provision for a child whose parents have obtained a judgment for the dissolution or annulment of their marriage or judicial separation, through the transfer of matrimonial assets divided between the parents by a court pursuant to the divorce, annulment or judicial separation proceedings into the child’s bank account.[13/2011; 17/2016]
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), the regulations may provide for —(a)
different types of membership of the Scheme, and the eligibility criteria, benefits and terms and conditions for each type of membership of the Scheme;
(b)
the appointment of one or more managing agents responsible for the operation and administration of the Scheme and the powers, functions and duties of the managing agents, including the duty of the managing agents to comply with any requirement relating to confidentiality of information;
(c)
the payment of contributions to the Scheme by or on behalf of any parent of a member, whether or not the member is eligible for a co‑savings arrangement;
(d)
the payment of moneys to a member, and the amount, mode, manner and terms and conditions of any such payment;
(e)
the opening of and the type of bank account for each member into which moneys will be paid;
(f)
the suspension or termination of such bank account and the circumstances in which the account may be suspended or terminated;
(g)
the terms and conditions governing the relationship between the bank at which a bank account under the Scheme is opened and maintained and the member and the trustee of the bank account;
(h)
the purposes for which the moneys paid under the Scheme can be utilised and the terms and conditions subject to which withdrawals of the moneys can be made;
(i)
the transfer of any moneys standing to the credit of a member in his or her bank account to his or her PSE account or one or more other accounts opened for the member’s benefit as may be prescribed, or the withdrawal of such moneys, at such time, in such manner and in such circumstances, as may be prescribed;
(j)
the consequences for any breach of the regulations, including making any act or omission in contravention of the regulations an offence and prescribing penalties for such offence not exceeding a fine of $20,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both; and
(k)
different provisions in respect of a child eligible for membership of the Scheme whose parents have not attained the age of majority.[9/2007; 52/2007; 13/2011; 17/2016; 19/2021]
(3) In this section, “co‑savings arrangement”, in relation to a child, means an arrangement by which the Government makes contributions to the bank account of a child eligible for that arrangement, equal to the contributions made by or on behalf of any parent of the child.[17/2016]
Compulsory substitution of trustee
4.—(1) Unless otherwise provided in an order of court or directed by the Minister, the trustee of the moneys standing to the credit of a member’s bank account must —(a)
where the custody, care and control of the member is granted (under an order of court or by agreement between the parents of the member) to the parent of the member who is not the trustee, be substituted with the parent to whom custody, care and control has been granted;
(b)
where the care and control of the member is granted (under an order of court or by agreement between the parents of the member) to the parent of the member who is not the trustee, be substituted with the parent to whom care and control has been granted, even though custody of the member remains with the parent who is the trustee;
(c)
where the custody, care and control, or care and control, of the member is granted (under an order of court or by agreement between the parents of the member) to a person other than the parents of the member, be substituted with the person granted custody, care and control, or care and control, of the member;
(d)
where the member is legally adopted by any person, be substituted with the adopter of the member;
(da)
where the circumstances in paragraph (e), (f) or (g) exist in relation to the trustee and the member has a legal guardian, be substituted with that legal guardian instead of the substitute trustee mentioned in any of those paragraphs;
(e)
where the trustee is dead, be substituted with the trustee’s personal representative;
(f)
where the trustee is no longer able to act as trustee by reason that the trustee lacks capacity (within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2008) to exercise the trustee’s functions as trustee, be substituted with —(i)
a donee of a lasting power of attorney granted by the trustee under that Act, and under which the trustee confers on the donee authority either to make decisions concerning the trustee’s property and affairs or to exercise the functions as trustee;
(ii)
a deputy appointed or deemed to be appointed for the trustee by the court under that Act, and who is conferred power either to make decisions concerning the trustee’s property and affairs or to exercise the functions as trustee; or
(iii)
if there is no such donee or deputy, a person nominated by the Minister;
(g)
where the trustee is unable or unwilling to act as trustee for any other reason —(i)
be substituted with the person nominated by the trustee and approved by the Minister to act in the place of the existing trustee; or
(ii)
if no person was nominated to act in place of the existing trustee, be substituted with a person appointed by a Director until sub‑paragraph (i) applies;
(h)
where the trustee is a parent of the member and both parents of the member agree to his or her substitution as trustee, be substituted with a person whom both parents have nominated to act in place of the existing trustee;
(i)
where the trustee is not a parent of the member, and both parents of the member and the trustee agree to the substitution of that trustee, be substituted with a person whom both parents have nominated to act in place of the existing trustee; and
(j)
where the trustee is a parent (A) of the member, and the other parent (B) of the member is of the opinion that circumstances exist such that A is unable to act as trustee and A’s agreement for A’s substitution as trustee cannot practically be obtained, be substituted with B or a trustee nominated by B to act in place of A if a Director is satisfied that those circumstances exist.[21/2008; 33/2016; 19/2021]
(2) Despite subsection (1), the Minister may, if he or she considers it necessary, direct that a trustee be removed and substituted with any other person that the Minister may nominate.
(3) This section has effect despite anything to the contrary in the Trustees Act 1967.
Protection of benefits
5. Subject to the Education Endowment and Savings Schemes Act 1992 and any regulations made under section 3 (insofar as they provide for the withdrawal, transfer or utilisation of any moneys paid into a member’s bank account), the ownership of any moneys paid into a member’s bank account by the Government or the member’s parent under the Scheme belongs, with effect from the date of the payment, to the member absolutely and —(a)
the payment by the parent does not constitute a “matrimonial asset” within the meaning of section 112 of the Women’s Charter 1961;
(b)
the payment by the parent does not constitute a transaction at an undervalue or an unfair preference under section 361 or 362 of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018, or form part of the estate of a parent who has been adjudicated bankrupt; and
(c)
the moneys in the member’s bank account are not assignable or liable to be attached, sequestered or levied upon for or in respect of any debt or claim.[52/2007; 40/2018]
Moneys payable on death of member
6.—(1) Where a member dies, the moneys standing to his or her credit in his or her bank account must be paid to the Public Trustee for disposal in accordance with —(a)
the Intestate Succession Act 1967, if the member was not a Muslim at the time of death; or
(b)
section 112 of the Administration of Muslim Law Act 1966, if the member was a Muslim at the time of death.[2/2012]
(2) The receipt of the Public Trustee is a good discharge to the Minister and the managing agent for those portions of the moneys payable out of the bank account on the death of a member that are payable to the Public Trustee under subsection (1).
(3) All moneys paid out of the bank account on the death of any member are deemed to be impressed with a trust in favour of the person or persons determined by the Public Trustee in accordance with subsection (1) to be entitled to the moneys but are, without prejudice to the Estate Duty Act 1929, deemed not to form part of the deceased member’s estate or to be subject to the member’s debts.
Approved persons
7.—(1) The Minister may make regulations to approve a person as an approved person for the purposes of, and connected with, the Scheme.
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), the regulations may —(a)
prescribe the manner in which applications for approval as an approved person may be made, or provide for the circumstances in which the Minister may appoint an approved person without such applications being made;
(b)
provide for the refund of any payment made to an approved person under the Scheme (including the circumstances for refund and the manner of refund);
(c)
require the approved person to execute a security bond as a precondition for such approval;
(d)
specify any other terms and conditions subject to which the approval of the Minister is granted;
(e)
provide for the circumstances in which approval granted to a person is revoked, and other circumstances in which the approval may be suspended or revoked by the Minister;[Act 32 of 2023 wef 01/01/2024]
(f)
empower a Director to require an approved person to appoint an auditor to conduct an audit of the approved person’s compliance with this Act, its regulations or any terms and conditions of approval applicable to that person, and to make provision for other matters with respect to such audit; and[19/2021]
[Act 32 of 2023 wef 01/01/2024]
(g)
specify duties of officers and employees of an approved person.[Act 32 of 2023 wef 01/01/2024]
Recovery of payment by Government
8.—(1) Where any payment has been made into a member’s bank account by the Government under the Scheme and the payment is —(a)
made in reliance on any false or misleading statement, document or information made or provided by a parent of the member or any other person;
(b)
made by reason of any error (however caused); or
(c)
utilised for purposes not authorised by the Scheme,
the Government may —
(d)
recover that payment from any moneys standing to the credit of the member’s bank account;
(e)
deduct or set off the amount of that payment from any other payment made or to be made by the Government under the Scheme or a prescribed scheme to the member’s bank account;
(f)
deduct or set off the amount of that payment from any other payment made or to be made by the Government under a prescribed scheme to a parent of the member or a person nominated by the parent;
(g)
where the payment was made on account of any false or misleading statement, document or information made or provided by, or any error caused or permitted to be caused by, a parent of the member or any other person (called the person in default), recover that payment from the person in default as a civil debt; or
(h)
recover that payment from a parent or legal guardian of the member as a civil debt, even if he or she is not the person in default under paragraph (g), if the Government is unable to recover that payment under paragraph (d) or (g) or make the deduction or set‑off under paragraph (e) or (f).[19/2021]
(2) Where the Government is entitled to recover any payment from a member’s bank account under subsection (1), the bank at which the account is opened and maintained must not authorise any further withdrawal from the account until the payment due to the Government has been deducted from the moneys standing to the credit of the account and paid to the Government.
(3) Where a trustee of a member’s bank account or an approved person utilises any moneys from the member’s bank account for purposes not authorised by the Scheme, the Government may —(a)
require the trustee or approved person (as the case may be) to refund the amount so utilised to the member’s bank account, or if there is no longer a bank account under the Scheme to which the refund may be made, to such other account for the member’s benefit as a Director may determine; and
(b)
where the approved person, the trustee or any other person had deposited moneys into the member’s bank account for the purpose of facilitating such utilisation for unauthorised purposes, recover as a civil debt from that approved person, trustee or other person (as the case may be) any contributions made by the Government under a co‑savings arrangement mentioned in section 3(3) relating to such deposited moneys.[19/2021]
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
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