Career Impact of SkillsFuture Credits, Mid-Career Training Allowance and Level-Up Programme

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan, Pioneer

Question

To ask the Minister for Education whether the Ministry tracks the career impact of SkillsFuture credits on Singaporeans who have utilised them in terms of (i) employment status (ii) hours worked and (iii) wage outcomes, since such data may increase take-up rates.

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Vikram Nair, Sembawang GRC

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) in 2025, how many Singaporeans have (i) used their SkillsFuture credits or (ii) received training allowances to pursue upskilling and reskilling under the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance scheme; and (b) how do the numbers in 2025 compare with that of 2024.

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Dr Charlene Chen, Tampines GRC

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) what are the employment outcomes for unemployed individuals who have utilised SkillsFuture credit, the SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme, and the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme; (b) which segments of jobseekers have seen lower success rates; and (c) how does the Ministry plan to narrow the gap between skills upgrading and actual job placements.

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Kwek Hian Chuan Henry, Kebun Baru

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) what percentage of SkillsFuture Level-Up participants secured new employment within nine months of enrolment, with a breakdown by age groups 40–49 and 50–59; and (b) what were their median wages before and after completion of training.

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Dr Hamid Razak, West Coast-Jurong West GRC

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) whether the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance for mid-career workers aged 40 and above can also cover Singaporeans in their 30s who need to pick up new skills for fast-growing industries; and (b) whether more flexibility can be given for its use for further studies such as to pursue postgraduate qualifications.

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Kenneth Tiong Boon Kiat, Aljunied GRC

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) what is the rationale for restricting the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance to citizens aged 40 years and above since skills obsolescence affects all ages; (b) whether the Ministry will consider the reskilling needs of workers in their 30s; and (c) whether the Ministry will expand SkillsFuture to support postgraduate qualifications (i) in critical sectors or (ii) in general.

Combined Response

1. To help Singaporeans develop to their full potential throughout life, SkillsFuture Singapore provides a range of broad-based training support that is kept affordable and accessible. Industry-relevant training programmes are subsidised at up to 70% of the course fees for all Singaporeans. At age 25, Singaporeans receive $500 in SkillsFuture Credit, which they can use to develop their skills or interests.

2. For Singaporeans who are 40 and above, they can use the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme (SFLP) to pursue a substantive skills reboot, to help them stay competitive in a rapidly changing economy. We are prioritising support for our mid-career Singaporeans, as they may face higher risk of skills obsolescence, having completed their original work-ready qualifications many years ago. At this stage in life, given their heavy family and work responsibilities, they also face higher opportunity costs in pursuing upskilling and reskilling, particularly when they take up substantive courses that require greater time and financial commitment.

3. If they choose to pursue substantive training, the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme helps them lower the opportunity cost in two ways:

1. First, by providing further course fee support in the form of the SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) top-up of $4,000. Introduced in May 2024, individuals can use the Credit to further offset out-of-pocket training costs. This is over and above course fee subsidies of up to 90%.
2. Second, we provide financial support for those pursuing longer substantive training, such as full qualifications. The SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance helps to partially offset income loss during full-time training. From 1 May 2025, eligible individuals can receive a training allowance, sized at 50% of their average income over the last 12 months, up to a cap of $3,000 per month, for 24 months in their lifetime.

4. Today, the SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) top-up can be used for over 7,000 courses – of which, about 700 full-time training programmes qualify for training allowance. The SkillsFuture Level-Up courses are carefully curated to support substantive training, with the aim of improving a person's employability.

1. They include full qualifications offered by the Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs). These programmes provide good upgrading pathways that continue to enjoy good wage premium as our studies have shown.
2. Individuals looking to transition into another sector can consider SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes (SCTPs) that provide training for up to 12 months as well as employment facilitation. Between June 2022 when the Programme started and December 2024, about 55% of almost 4,300 SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme trainees who were previously unemployed found new jobs within six months after course completion. As of July 2025, there are about 330 SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes offered in 21 sectors with good hiring opportunities such as Information and Communications, Professional Services, and Food Services.

5. Take-up of the Level-Up Programme has been positive.

1. In the first year of implementation from 1 May 2024 to 30 April 2025, over 36,000 Singapore Citizens used their SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) with claims amounting to over $24 million. From the claims data, the number of individuals taking SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes increased by about six times from around 1,500 to around 8,500, compared to the same period in the preceding year, and those who used the SkillsFuture Credit for full qualifications increased by about 2.5 times from around 3,000 to around 7,000.
2. Within the first three months of implementation, over 3,200 Singapore Citizens have been successful in their training allowance applications for full-time long-form training, with over $30 million in claims committed as at end-July 2025.

6. To build on this momentum, we will expand the Level-Up Programme in the following ways for the immediate term:

1. First, as announced at Budget 2025, we will expand the training allowance to part-time long-form training from early next year, to support mid-career Singaporeans who choose to pursue such training while continuing to work. This is estimated to benefit 10,000 Singaporeans annually.
2. Second, we will continue to refresh and expand the number of IHL full qualifications and stackable micro-credentials, as well as SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes to meet emerging skills needs. For example, over 100 SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes were launched this year in high-demand areas such as Artificial Intelligence.
3. Third, we will work with sector agencies and industry partners to include more courses offered by industry leaders and private training providers that are well-recognised by industry and confer credentials that lead to strong employment outcomes.

7. We will continue to monitor the training needs of adult learners over their life stages as we expand the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme. In particular, let me respond to two suggestions that Members have raised.

8. First, on extending the Level-Up Programme to younger Singaporeans. For now, younger Singaporeans in their 30s can continue to benefit from the broad-based training support that I mentioned earlier that includes subsidies at up to 70% of course fees. Additional support will be given to lower-wage workers in their 30s. Earlier this year, MOM announced the Workfare Skills Support Level-Up Programme to better support these workers in upgrading to full qualifications that can uplift their wages. From early 2026, lower-wage workers in their 30s will receive monthly training allowance when they pursue eligible long-form training, similar to the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme.

9. Second suggestion is to extend the training allowance to postgraduate programmes. Today, the training allowance supports mid-career substantive training up to the undergraduate degree level. Mid-career Singaporeans can use their SkillsFuture Credit (Mid-Career) of $4,000 to offset the out-of-pocket training fees for postgraduate Masters' programmes offered by the Autonomous Universities. We have not extended the training allowance to postgraduate programmes as most jobs in Singapore do not require such qualifications. We are also careful not to inadvertently perpetuate a paper chase at the Masters' level. Individuals can decide whether it is worthwhile to invest in a Masters' degree, given its high cost but also potentially high returns on investment, however this applies to a small number of jobs in Singapore. We will continue to monitor the needs for postgraduate training in emerging sectors and adjust our level of support accordingly.

10. We welcome feedback and will continue to monitor the employment outcomes from the increased training take-up. Success of the SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme ultimately must be measured by how confident mid-career Singaporeans are in using their newly acquired skills to navigate the disruptions in the economy ahead, and cannot just be measured by employment outcomes alone, since training alone cannot guarantee jobs and may not lead to immediate employment gains. To help our people succeed, we need to continue strengthening the whole-of-society partnerships between Government, individuals, unions, industry, and training institutions to build a culture of lifelong learning so Singaporeans can stay resilient, employable and competitive.