SINGAPORE: Singaporean households can claim and use S$300 (US$220) in Community Development Council (CDC) vouchers from Friday (Jan 3). 

The CDC vouchers, meant to help households manage cost of living challenges, are for use at participating hawkers, heartland merchants and supermarkets. 

Similar to the previous rounds, the vouchers can be claimed digitally at go.gov.sg/cdcv. 

On behalf of their household, one member can log in with their Singpass account to claim the latest tranche of vouchers, which are valid until Dec 31, 2025. 

After claiming the vouchers, the claimant will receive an SMS with a unique voucher link sent from "gov.sg" to their registered mobile number. This link can be shared with other household members.

Similar to previous rounds, half of the vouchers can be spent at participating heartland merchants and hawkers, and the rest at supermarkets.

Private coffee shop operators were recently onboarded as participating merchants, with about 600 coffee shop stalls providing budget meal options and accepting CDC vouchers. 

Residents can find the list of participating businesses near them at go.gov.sg/cdcvouchers.

Participating hawkers and heartland merchants may benefit from a total possible spend of about S$194 million in vouchers for this tranche, according to a media fact sheet issued by the CDC. 

The CDC voucher scheme was first launched in June 2020 to help lower-income households defray their cost of living, and to support hawkers and heartland merchants affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at a launch event at Marine Parade Town Centre on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong said that post-pandemic, inflation remained high due to a combination of factors. 

These included pent-up demand for services, geopolitical crises such as the war in Ukraine and supply chain disruptions. 

"We therefore continued with the CDC vouchers scheme to help Singaporeans cushion the impact of rising prices," said Mr Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry. 

In 2021, the scheme was expanded to include all households, and digital vouchers were also introduced. 

Last year, households could claim two tranches of vouchers worth S$800 in total. These vouchers were valid up until Dec 31.

Almost all Singaporean households have claimed and spent their 2024 CDC vouchers, said Mr Gan.

A media release issued for the event stated that about 97 per cent of Singaporean households - including new households formed - claimed the vouchers last year. 

Of these, more than S$1 billion - or 97.5 per cent - were spent at participating hawkers, heartland merchants and supermarkets.  Overall, around S$1.6 billion has been spent since the launch of the digital CDC vouchers scheme in December 2021. A total of S$907 million has been spent at participating hawkers and heartland merchants, while S$689 million has been spent at participating supermarkets.

The vouchers launched on Friday were announced at Budget 2024 as part of the S$1.9 billion in enhancements to the Assurance Package, when then-Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said Singaporeans would get more payouts to help with cost-of-living concerns. 

He announced that households would get S$600 CDC vouchers, with half disbursed in June 2024 and the remaining half to be disbursed in January 2025. 

Some of the supermarkets that participated last year also bundled their own promotions for customers who used CDC vouchers at their outlets. 

This year, in celebration of SG60, some heartland merchants and hawkers will provide additional discounts or gifts for customers who use CDC vouchers at their stores, while some supermarkets will also have in-house promotions. 

A total of eight supermarkets with close to 400 outlets are participating. The supermarkets are: Ang Mo Supermarket, Cold Storage, Giant Singapore, HAO Mart, NTUC FairPrice, Prime Supermarket, Sheng Siong, and U Stars Supermarket.

Those who encounter difficulties claiming the vouchers digitally can approach community centres or clubs and SG Digital Community Hubs for help. 

Over the first two weeks of the launch, youth and student volunteers from institutions such as ITE College Central and Republic Polytechnic will assist at selected community centres or clubs alongside CDC ambassadors. 

SG Digital Office’s Digital Ambassadors and Silver Infocomm Wellness Ambassadors will be stationed at community centres or clubs to help residents from Jan 3 to Jan 16, 2025. 

On Friday, the People’s Association (PA) and CDCs also reminded the public to stay vigilant of scams, adding that claiming the vouchers does not require any bank applications or transactions.

Suspicious messages relating to gov.sg or CDC vouchers can be reported to the PA at 6225 5322 or the police at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness or 1800 2550 000.

INFLATION EXPECTED TO FALL

In his speech on Friday, Mr Gan added that inflation cooled in recent months, and is expected to fall further.

Core inflation last year is expected to average at about 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent, down from more than 4 per cent in 2023.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, core inflation is expected to ease to 1.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent this year, Mr Gan said. 

"Even though prices may not be rising as fast, we understand that Singaporeans remain concerned about cost of living. We have taken several measures to address these concerns, and we stand ready to do more to support Singaporeans if necessary," he added. 

He cited the one-off cash payment of up to S$600 disbursed to adult Singaporeans last month. 

This month, eligible households will receive up to S$285 worth of U-Save, and up to one month of service and conservancy charges rebates, depending on their Housing and Development Board flat type. 

These were also announced during Budget 2024, as part of enhancements to the Assurance Package. 

Singapore's 2025 Budget statement will be delivered on Feb 18, with the government currently seeking feedback from members of the public.