Last Updated on June 12, 2023 by Parentology
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If you are a working mother, you may have heard from your peers about Working Mother’s Child Relief (WMCR). This is a tax relief given to women who are both full-time mothers and employees. This is given to working mothers who are married, divorced, or widowed to recognize and encourage married women in Singapore to remain in the workforce after having children.
If you are a working mother, read on to understand how you can qualify for this relief and what are the benefits of this personal tax relief program.
Qualifying for the Working Mother’s Child Relief (WMCR)
You will have to satisfy all the conditions in 2021 before you are eligible to claim for the WMCR for the Year of Assessment 2022:
- You must be a working mother who is married, divorced, or widowed;
- You have taxable earned income from employment or through pensions, trade, business, or a profession or vocation. This taxable earned income includes your total earned income less allowable expenses.;
- You have maintained a child who is a Singapore Citizen as of 31 Dec 2021* and has satisfied all conditions under the Qualifying Child Relief (QCR)/Handicapped Child Relief (HCR).
*You may claim WMCR even if your child has passed away in 2021.
Determining child order
The amount claimable for WMCR differs on the child’s order in the family unit. In the event of any deceased sibling or stillborn child, IRAS will include them in determining the order of children.
The order of your child in the family unit is based on:
| For a child born to you and your spouse/ex-spouse | Date of birth shown in your child’s birth certificate |
| For a child born to you and your spouse/ex-spouse before you are married to your spouse/ex-spouse | Date of marriage |
| For a stepchild | Date of birth shown in your child’s birth certificate |
| For a legally adopted child | Date of legal adoption as shown in the adoption papers |
Source: IRAS
Amount of relief
As mentioned above, the amount claimable depends on the order of the child in the family. The table below gives a better understanding of how the WMCR amount is a specific percentage of the mother’s earned income.
If you are intending to claim for more than one child, the total amount of relief eligible is capped at 100% of the mother’s earned income.
The table below explains how the WMCR amount is calculated:
| Child Order | WMCR Amount |
| 1st | 15% of mother’s earned income |
| 2nd | 20% of mother’s earned income |
| 3rd and beyond | 25% of mother’s earned income |
Source: IRAS
If you are also planning to claim personal income tax relief, do remember that it is capped at $80,000 and it applies to the total amount of all tax reliefs claimed for each Year or Assessment.
To provide a better understanding, let’s say Mrs. Heng had an earned income of $100,000 in 2021. Her first child started working in 2021 and received an annual income exceeding $4,000. Mrs. Heng’s second child was below 16 and studying full-time in 2021. The amount of WMCR that Mrs. Heng may claim for Year of Assessment 2022 is:
| Child Order | WMCR amount based on Mrs. Heng’s earned income of $100,000 | WMCR Allowable ($) | Cumulative WMCR Allowable ($) |
| 1st | $15,000
(15% x $100,000) |
Nil | Nil
No WMCR is allowed on her first child as the child had income exceeding $4,000 in 2021 |
| 2nd | $20,000
(20% x $100,000) |
$20,000 | $20,000
(20% of her earned income) |
Source: IRAS
Mrs. Heng is not able to claim WMCR for the first child as the child had an income exceeding $4,000 in 2021. However, in the case of the second child, since she has just started full-time in 2021 with no income, she can claim for WMCR at 20% of her earned income.
Are you able to claim other reliefs for the same child?
Yes, you can. You and your husband/ ex-husband can even claim for WMCR even if you have already claimed for Qualifying Child Relief (QCR)/Handicapped Child Relief (HCR) on the same child. To use these two reliefs on the same child, you must satisfy the conditions below:
- QCR/HCR claims will be allowed first;
- The total QCR/HCR plus WMCR is capped at$50,000 per child; and
- The WMCR is limited to the remaining balance after the QCR/HCR claim is allowed.
In an instance where Mr. and Mrs. Lim has 2 children. Their first child is physically handicapped. Mr. Lim has claimed Handicapped Child Relief (HCR) for the first child and Qualifying Child Relief (QCR) for the second child. Mrs. Lim earned an income of $250,000 in 2021.
Apart from Earned Income Relief of $1,000 and WMCR, Mrs. Lim is not claiming any other personal reliefs for the Year of Assessment 2022.
Mrs. Lim’s WMCR claim:
| Child Order | WMCR amount based on Mrs. Heng’s earned income of $250,000 | QCR/HCR claimed by Mr. Lim | WMCR claimed by Mrs. Lim | Cumulative WMCR claimed by Mrs. Lim |
| 1st | $37,500
(15% x $250,000) |
$7,500
(HCR)
|
$37,500 | $37,500 |
| 2nd | $50,000
(20% x $250,000) |
$4,000
(QCR) |
$46,000* | $37,500 + $46,000 = $83,500 |
Source: IRAS
*QCR/HCR + WMCR is subject to a cap of $50,000 per child.
This means that the total personal reliefs Mrs. Lim can claim are capped at $80,000 due to the Personal income tax relief cap.
In another example, Mr. and Mrs. Chen’s first child was born in 2021. Mrs. Chen was working and had an earned income of $80,000 for that year.
They decided that Mrs. Chen would claim the full amount of QCR of $4,000.
Mr. and Mrs. Chen are Singapore tax residents for the Year of Assessment 2022 and are also entitled to a PTR of $5,000 for their first child. They have agreed to share the amount of PTR equally (i.e., $2,500 each).
Mrs. Chen’s tax computation for Year of Assessment 2022 is as follows:
| Employment income of Mrs. Tan | $80,000 |
| Less: Personal Reliefs
Earned income relief QCR WMCR CPF Relief |
($1,000) ($4,000) ($12,000) [15% X $80,000] ($16,000) |
| Chargeable Income | $47,000 [$80,000 – $33,000] |
Source: IRAS
We then calculate Mrs. Chen’s tax payable for the Year of Assessment 2022
| Chargeable Income | $47,000 |
| First $40,000 | $550 |
| Next $7,000 @ 7% | $490 |
| Gross Tax Payable | $1,040 |
| Less: PTR | $1,040
[Mr. and Mrs. Chen are sharing the PTR of $5,000 for their first child born in 2021 (i.e., $2,500 per person). Any unutilised amount of PTR will be carried forward to offset against the income tax payable for subsequent years until the rebate has been fully utilised.] |
| Net Tax Payable | $0 |
Source: IRAS
Claiming WMCR by e-Filing and Paper filing
The process varies depending on whether it is your first time claiming the rebate and whether you are planning to file it online or through a physical copy.
E-Filing
The process varies depending on whether it is your first time claiming the rebate.
| 1st Time |
|
| Subsequent Claim | If the relief has been allowed to you last year, the amount will be pre-filled and granted to you automatically this year.
Follow the steps above if you need to make any changes to your relief. |
Source: IRAS
Paper Filing
The process varies depending on whether it is your first time claiming the rebate.
| 1st Time | Form B1 & B
● Complete the item on “Child Relief” Under the “Claim for WMCR” column, indicate Y. ● Complete the particulars of your child in Appendix 2. |
| Subsequent Claim | Form B1 & B
Complete the item on “Child Relief” |
Source: IRAS
The allowable WMCR amount will be automatically computed once you file for the WMCR. This depends on your eligibility when IRAS processes your Income Tax Return.
Amending claim for WMCR
In the event, you forget to claim or need to make amendments to your claim for QCR/HCR, it depends on whether you claimed by e-filing, or you filed a paper income tax return.
If you e-Filed your Income Tax Return
You will need to re-file it within 7 days of your previous submission or by 18 Apr, whichever is earlier. You will only be able to re-file once.
When you re-file, you must include all your income details, expenses, donations, and relief claims. After successfully refiling it, your new submission will override the previous submission.
If you filed a paper Income Tax Return or are unable to re-file online
Please email IRAS:
- your request to claim or revise the relief;
- the name and identification number of your child;
- the child order to claim WMCR; and
- your confirmation that you have met the qualifying conditions and forward the certificate of Singapore Citizenship for your child who was not a Singapore Citizen at the time of birth.
Amending claim for WMCR
You will need to file an amendment using the “Object to Assessment” digital service at myTax Portal within 30 days from the date of your tax bill.
If you are unable to do so, you can email IRAS:
- your request to claim or revise the relief;
- the name and identification number of your child;
- the child order to claim WMCR; and
- your confirmation that you have met the qualifying conditions and forward the certificate of Singapore Citizenship for your child who was not a Singapore Citizen at the time of birth.
We are here to help!
It is not an easy task for working mothers like you to raise a child while also supporting your family financially. Therefore, the Working Mother’s Child Relief (WMCR) wishes to recognise the efforts of working mothers when it comes to supporting their children. It takes time to understand and plan, especially if you are also caring and planning for yourself and your family.
If you still have any queries, simply fill in the form below and contact us for a non-obligatory consultation now!
