How Means-Testing Works for Home Care Subsidies
Whether you get a little off or most of the bill comes down to one calculation. Here's how means-testing actually works.
homenurse.sgGeneral care information, not personal medical advice. Draft — pending clinical review.
What means-testing decides
When you apply for subsidised home nursing or therapy through the Agency for Integrated Care, a means-test sets how much subsidy you get. It's done once and generally applies across the community-care services you use, so you don't repeat it for every service.
The main number: income per person
The key figure is monthly household income per person — the total income of everyone living in the home, divided by the number of people. A lower figure means a higher subsidy. Both the Home Caregiving Grant and subsidised home nursing use this same idea, which is why one household's out-of-pocket cost can be a fraction of another's for the same visit.
If there's no income: the home's value
When no one in the household is working, there's no salary to test — so the home's Annual Value is used instead. This is a figure IRAS assigns to the property. For example, the top tier of the Home Caregiving Grant applies where income is $1,500 or less per person, or the Annual Value is $21,000 or less.
Citizenship, and keeping details current
Subsidies are for Singapore Citizens and PRs, with PRs receiving lower rates. The assessment relies on your household income being up to date, so if a family member stops working or moves out, updating the record can change the subsidy. Figures here are as published in August 2026; AIC confirms the exact rate for your situation.