From the moment our child is born, they are covered under Singapore’s universal basic health insurance plan – MediShield Life. MediShield Life coverage is sized for large hospital bills and selected costly outpatient treatments that are already subsidised by the government in public hospitals. This also keeps MediShield Life premiums at an affordable level.
If we wish to provide more comprehensive healthcare coverage for our child, we can consider purchasing a private integrated shield plan (IP).
Read Also: Beginner’s Guide To Understanding How MediShield Life Works
Your Child’s MediShield Life Premiums
When a Singapore Citizen child is born, their CPF account is also opened. More specifically, this is because the Government makes a one-off top-up of $5,000 in MediSave Grant for Newborns, into their MediSave Account (MA). This grant supports parents in paying for their child’s MediShield Life premiums, and can be used for other approved healthcare expenses.
Recently, MediShield Life premiums for everyone were increased in April 2025, and the annual MediShield Life premium for newborns is currently $200, before any government subsidies. This annual premium remains the same for those turning 1 to 20 years old. MediShield Life premiums will then increase for individuals whose next birthday is 21 years and when they enter subsequent age groups.
For our children, this means that the $5,000 in MediSave Grant for Newborns they get will be more than sufficient to pay for his or her own MediShield Life coverage until they turn 21 or older. Of course, MediShield Life premiums may increase in time to come, as it has in 2025. Parents may also tap on our child’s MediSave grant for other important healthcare expenditure – which may leave an amount that does not cover their MediShield Life premiums until adulthood.
Read Also: How Much Your MediShield Life Premiums Will Be Going Up From April 2025
Why You Should Pay For Your Child’s MediShield Life Premiums
At DollarsAndSense, some of us are parents. This got us thinking – should we pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums from our own MediSave Account (MA) or let our child pay for their own MediShield Life premiums from the MediSave Grant for Newborns that is in their MA?
Beyond the fact that we love our children and would do anything for them, there are several reasons why it may make financial sense to pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums, with our own MediSave Account savings.
Read Also: What Type Of Child Insurance Should You Buy For Your Little One?
#1 The First $60,000 In Our CPF Earns An Extra 1% Interest Annually
Even as young working adults, parents may have a combined CPF savings worth more than $60,000. On the other hand, our newborn will only have $5,000 in their CPF. This makes a difference, albeit a small one, as the first $60,000 in our CPF accounts earn an extra 1% of interest.
By paying for our child’s MediShield Life premiums, we allow our child’s MA balances to take full advantage of this extra 1% annual interest, and grow at a faster rate of 5%. Since our own combined CPF savings may already be above the $60,000 threshold, our MA balances would only be growing at 4% per annum.
As a family, we may be better off paying for our child’s MediShield Life premiums from our own MediSave Account.
#2 You Receive Regular CPF Contributions From Employment
With regular CPF contributions from your employment, your CPF balances will increase. On the other hand, your child’s CPF MA remains static or likely to fall as a result of using the funds for approved medical expenses.
By using your own MA balances to pay for approved expenses, such as your child’s MediShield Life premiums, you are safeguarding his or her future by keeping their MA pot intact, and compounding over the long term.
When they eventually become young adults and take charge of their own healthcare, this can form a reassuring safety net for them while they build up their savings and MediSave Account balances.
#3 Effectively Gaining Tax Relief For “Top-Ups” To Your Child’s CPF MediSave Account
When you make top-ups to your own MA, you receive a dollar-for-dollar tax relief of up to $8,000. Your MA also has to be within the $75,500 Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS) in 2025.
However, you do not receive any tax relief for CPF top-ups made into your child’s MediSave Account. Instead, your child will be the recipient of the tax relief. Obviously, your newborn is unlikely to earn an income or pay any taxes, to benefit from the tax relief.
By using your MediSave to pay for your child’s MediShield Life premiums, or other healthcare expenditures, you are effectively able to receive a tax relief for “topping up” your child’s MediSave Account, by making the corresponding top-up into your own MA.
Even better, you will have the flexibility to convert your MA balances into SA balances at the same time by making use the Retirement Sum Topping-Up (RSTU) Scheme rather than topping up your MA.
Of course, these are relatively small amounts, but can still add up if you consistently do this over several decades and for multiple children.
If we ever find ourselves in a situation of having to pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums in cash, whether by choice or because their MA balances have been fully utilised, we should always contribute to our MediSave Account first. Thereafter, we can use our MediSave Account balances to pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums. This is because we get to enjoy the dollar-for-dollar tax relief (if we qualify) for doing so.
Read Also: Topping Up Your CPF MediSave or Special Account – Which Makes More Financial Sense?
Consider How This Will Impact Your MediSave Account Balances Or Savings
While there may be financially sensible reasons to pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums, we need to consider how our own MA balances or cash savings will be impacted.
Firstly, we should already understand that any cash top-ups that go into the CPF system is irreversible. This means that if we find ourselves short of liquid savings or become financially distressed, we cannot tap into these funds anymore. While trying to maximise tax reliefs and other benefits, we should not lose sight of longer-term sustainability of our actions.
Using our own MediSave Account balances to pay for our child’s MediShield Life premiums also diminishes our ability to pay for our own healthcare – perhaps further down the road, when we stop working and contributing to our MA. Again, if we find ourselves in a healthcare emergency and require more MediSave Account balances to afford treatments, tapping on our child’s MA balances may not be straightforward, especially if they are still minors.
How To Apply To Pay For Your Child’s MediShield Life Premiums?
If we want to embark on this strategy of paying for our child’s MediShield Life premiums, we need to submit an online request on the MediShield Life website. On it, we will see an option to “Change of Payer for MediShield Life Cover”, and we can simply apply online by logging in with our SingPass.
By taking over the premiums payments on your child’s MediShield Life coverage today, you are not beholden to continue paying for it forever. You can also apply to stop payment via your MediSave Account balances, and to use your child’s MA balances instead.
Read Also: Complete Guide to Baby Grants in Singapore
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