The true cost of a confinement nanny in Singapore

The true cost of a confinement nanny is the agreed care fee plus every cost needed to make the arrangement work. In Singapore, that can include permit administration, levy, insurance, transport, groceries, meals, ang baos, household setup, extension days and festive surcharges.

The useful number is not the lowest advertised package. It is the amount your household may actually pay from booking until the nanny leaves.

Start With A Dated Market Range

Price guides are useful only when the date and inclusions are visible.

Income's guide published on 12 August 2026 cites about S$3,700 to S$4,200 for a typical 28-day agency live-in package. It cites about S$2,000 to S$3,500 for daytime arrangements. Income also notes that agency and freelance quotes may cover different things, including administration, transport, insurance and replacement support.

Treat those figures as a dated market reference, not a promised price. BulanBloom does not yet have enough completed-placement data to publish its own market average.

A direct nanny may quote one service fee. An agency may split the same arrangement into a nanny salary, agency or booking fee and administrative charges. Another package may combine several of those lines. Two quotes with the same headline amount can therefore have different final costs.

Before comparing, turn each quote into the same list.

Separate The Care Fee From The Booking Structure

Ask who receives each payment and what it buys.

Record:

• the nanny's service fee for the agreed number of days
• any agency, referral, matching or platform fee
• the deposit and whether it forms part of the final fee
• the balance-payment date
• the refund or transfer rules if dates move
• the pro-rate formula if the arrangement ends early
• any replacement administration charge

A deposit is not automatically an extra cost if it is credited toward the balance. It becomes a separate risk when it is non-refundable, tied to a narrow cancellation window, or payable again after a date change.

The same applies to replacement. A package may advertise replacement support but still charge for a new permit, insurance, transport or pro-rated administration. Read the trigger conditions before treating replacement as fully included.

The direct agreement checklist gives you a place to record these terms before money changes hands.

Add The MOM Costs Line By Line

For a Malaysian confinement nanny working in your Singapore home, check the current Work Permit rules directly with MOM.

MOM's application page, fetched for this guide on 3 November 2026, states that the Work Permit application costs S$35. The employer or an appointed employment agency can apply. MOM also says the application can be made from four weeks before the expected delivery date up to 16 weeks after the child's birth.

MOM's eligibility page states that the monthly levy is:

• S$60 per month if the newborn is a Singapore citizen
• S$300 per month if the newborn is not a Singapore citizen

The levy is monthly, so do not silently treat it as a fixed 28-day fee. Confirm how MOM bills the actual permit period and when GIRO deduction starts or stops.

Medical insurance is also required. MOM states that the coverage must be at least S$60,000 per year for policies with a start date on or after 1 July 2023. The government page states the required coverage, not one universal premium. Ask for the insurer, policy period, coverage and actual premium instead of inserting a guessed amount.

Your permit budget therefore needs at least four distinct lines:

Item	What to record
Work Permit application	S$35, and who submits it
Levy	S$60 or S$300 monthly, based on the newborn's citizenship
Medical insurance	Actual premium and policy period
Stay extension	Any ICA or administrative cost if the visit pass does not cover the work period

An agency may handle these tasks without absorbing every cost. "We arrange it" and "included in the package" are different statements.

Budget For The Household Costs

The nanny's work happens inside your home. The household usually carries costs that do not appear in a care-fee quote.

Income's August 2026 guide estimates S$200 to S$300 for confinement herbs and ingredients, S$100 to S$300 for transport, and S$150 to S$200 for a mattress and bedding if the home needs them. These are secondary-source estimates. Your grocery choices, existing equipment and transport arrangement may produce a different amount.

Create separate lines for:

• confinement ingredients and ordinary groceries
• the nanny's meals or an agreed food allowance
• transport into Singapore, local transfer and return travel
• mattress, bedding and storage space
• kitchen items you do not already own
• extra utilities and laundry

Do not put baby formula, diapers and ordinary newborn purchases into the nanny fee. They matter to the family budget, but they do not help you compare care arrangements.

Meals deserve special attention. If the nanny cooks for the mother, partner, toddler or grandparents, the ingredient budget and workload both change. The guide to settling the nanny's cooking scope helps separate the care fee from an expanding household meal plan.

Treat Ang Baos As A Visible Convention

Some families give one red packet when the nanny arrives and another when she leaves. This is a convention, not a MOM charge.

Income's August 2026 guide gives an indicative S$38 to S$88 for the first-day ang bao and S$100 to S$500 for the last-day ang bao. Treat these as a published estimate, not a rule. Agency terms, nanny expectations and family practice differ.

Ask three simple questions:

1. Are red packets expected under this booking?
2. Is any amount specified, suggested or entirely discretionary?
3. Is an additional festive red packet expected if the booking overlaps Lunar New Year?

Keep a voluntary ang bao separate from a contractual surcharge. One is a gesture. The other is part of the price.

Price Extensions Before You Need Them

An extension often becomes attractive in week three, when the household has settled into a routine. That is also when the family has less negotiating room and the nanny may already have another booking.

Write down before the start:

• the extra-day rate
• whether an extension must be booked in blocks
• whether the same daily rate applies on weekends or public holidays
• whether a new agency or appointed-nanny fee applies
• whether levy, insurance or immigration arrangements need extending
• how much notice both sides need

Do not derive the daily rate by dividing a 28-day package by 28. A package can contain fixed costs that do not repeat, while an extension can carry new administrative costs.

Make Lunar New Year A Separate Scenario

Lunar New Year pricing is not a small note at the bottom of the budget. It can change the quote materially and may affect availability.

Ask whether the surcharge is triggered by the nanny's start date, any working day inside a defined festive period, or the whole booking. Record the exact dates and amount. Also ask whether there is a separate festive ang bao and whether extension days inside the period use another rate.

Do not copy last year's surcharge into a new booking. Festive periods, availability and provider terms change. The only useful figure is the one written into your current quote.

Build One All-In Worksheet

Use one page with four columns: item, amount, who receives it, and when it is due.

Budget line	Included	Amount or method
Nanny service fee
Agency, referral or platform fee
Deposit credited to balance
Work Permit application		S$35 if applicable
Monthly levy		S$60 or S$300 if applicable
Medical insurance		Actual premium
Transport
Groceries, herbs and nanny meals
Bedding or kitchen setup
Arrival and departure ang baos
Lunar New Year surcharge or ang bao
Extra-day or extension rate
Cancellation or replacement costs

Mark uncertain lines as estimates. Add a contingency rather than pretending the estimate is fixed. Then compare quotes on the final worksheet, care scope and terms together.

Questions To Send Before Paying

Send these in one message and keep the reply:

• What is the total care fee and exact service period?
• Which part is the deposit, and does it reduce the balance?
• Which permit, levy, insurance and transport costs are included?
• Who pays for groceries, herbs and the nanny's meals?
• Are ang baos expected, and are any amounts specified?
• Is there a Lunar New Year or public-holiday surcharge?
• What is the extra-day rate and extension notice period?
• What costs recur if a replacement is needed?
• What happens financially if the baby arrives early or late?
• What is refunded or pro-rated if either side ends early?

The answer should be a number and a rule, not "usually included" or "we will discuss later."

How BulanBloom Thinks About Cost

BulanBloom treats price as part of fit and documentation. A clear quote should let you see who is being paid, what support is included, which costs depend on the permit period, and what changes if the dates or care scope move.

The cheapest headline can become expensive when the assumptions are hidden. A higher quote can still be poor value when the household needs do not match the nanny's scope. Compare the whole arrangement, not one number.

BulanBloom is a platform, not an employment agency. Families and nannies contract directly with each other, and BulanBloom is not a party to that agreement. This article is general information for Singapore families, not legal, immigration, insurance or financial advice.