Spend and Claim of CDC Vouchers Scheme

Written PQ 6477. Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) for each of the past four years, what is the redemption or utilization of the Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers expressed in terms of percentage at (i) supermarkets and (ii) small businesses; and (b) whether the Ministry can consider issuing a higher proportion of CDC vouchers for use at supermarkets instead of other businesses.

Written PQ 6479. Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth whether the Ministry will allow eligible residents who reside in, and whose NRIC-registered addresses reflect, a non-residential premise such as farms and businesses in Lim Chu Kang, Neo Tiew estate and neighbouring areas to claim Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers.

Written PQ 6484. Ms He Ting Ru: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) what is the total value of CDC Vouchers 2004 that are unclaimed on 31 December 2024; and (b) what is the breakdown of the nature of households who have these unclaimed CDC vouchers.

Written PQ 6485. Ms He Ting Ru: To ask Minister for Culture, Community and Youth with regard to the 2023 and 2024 CDC vouchers (a) how many appeals were received for disputes which tenants alleged that the landlord had claimed CDC vouchers that should have been allocated to them; (b) how many such cases resulted in CDC vouchers being issued to the tenants instead; (c) how many individuals were found to have made false claims for CDC vouchers; and (d) whether any penalties have been meted out to such individuals and, if so, what are the penalties.

Since January 2023, CDC Vouchers have been split equally between the hawkers and heartland merchant category and the supermarket category. This strikes a balance between supporting Singaporean households with their daily expenses and supporting hawkers and heartland merchants.

2. Across the 2023 and 2024 tranches of CDC vouchers, more than $1.3 billion worth of CDC vouchers have been spent.  Of this, about 49.6% were spent at heartland merchants and 50.4% were spent at supermarkets.

3. Every Singaporean household can only claim one set of CDC Vouchers per tranche. Some Singaporean households might be unable to claim their CDC vouchers for a variety of reasons, for example, when more than one Singaporean household resides in the same rental address, or their registered address is not a residential address.

4. Singaporean households living in co-tenanted premises are not disadvantaged as long as they can provide proof of their separate households. In such cases, the household that has yet to claim their vouchers may make an appeal at any community centre/club.

5. If Singaporean households experience difficulty in claiming their CDC Vouchers digitally, they can bring along their NRIC (showing their current registered address), CDC Vouchers Scheme notification letter and relevant official documents (showing their name and current address) e.g. utilities bill, property tax to the nearest Community Centre/Club (CC) to apply for their vouchers.

6. Under the Regulation 11A of the National Registration Act, all IC holders need to report a change of address within 28 days of moving into a new residence, whether the residence is located in or outside of Singapore. Singaporean households who come across previous owner/occupants who did not update their address with the authorities after they have moved out, and have made false claims of the CDC Vouchers, may report the incident to the ICA and the police.

7. For CDC Vouchers Scheme 2024, as of 31 December 2024, 97%, or about 1.3 million, Singaporean households had claimed their CDC Vouchers 2024 (January) and (June), which is the highest claim figures since the launch of the digital scheme in 2021. There remains a small group of households that did not claim, for example, households whose residents are living overseas. The CDCs continue to work on ensuring all eligible Singaporean households can claim and spend their vouchers by reaching out especially to digitally less-savvy residents.

8. The Government remains committed to ensuring that the CDC Vouchers Scheme best serves Singaporean households and local businesses. We will continue to monitor its implementation and review where needed to ensure its effectiveness.