The Social Welfare Bureau will be distributing childcare allowances to the first batch of eligible residents tomorrow, according to a statement. Beneficiaries will receive a payment of 18,000 patacas (US$2,240) a year for three years.
Eligible applicants are those with children born below the age of three with a valid Special Administrative Region Permanent Resident Identity Card.
According to the Bureau, almost 13,000 residents have applied, and the total amount to be handed out in the first batch exceeds 230 million patacas (US$28.6 million). Parents can continue to apply through 30 June next year.
[See more: Workplace policies could ease Macao’s birth rate woes, experts say]
Applicants after the first batch will receive their payments within two months of being approved. According to the bureau, the money will be delivered via bank transfer.
The subsidy comes as Macao’s birth rates have fallen below replacement levels for a number of years, with officials and academics cautioning that the trend may result in an ageing population and diminished workforce.
Previous attempts to incentivise child raising have included video campaigns and subsidies for women on maternity leave, although experts have suggested that such financial measures may only create short-term impacts.
