FIRST SCHEDULE
Regulations 3 and 8(1)(e)
PRESCRIBED MEANS CRITERIA
1. The prescribed means criteria for legal aid are all the following:
the average per capita gross monthly household income for the
household of the applicant during the relevant period must be $1,650
or lower;
[S 235/2024 wef 01/04/2024]
[S 730/2026 wef 01/10/2026]
on the date of the application, the applicant —
is not the owner of any property; or
is the owner of only one property (whether by himself, or
jointly with any other individual) that satisfies the requirements
of sub‑paragraph (c);
where the applicant is the owner of a property —
the property must be used by the applicant (whether by himself,
or together with any other individual) as his place of residence;
and
the annual value of that property during the relevant period
must be $21,000 or lower;
[S 235/2024 wef 01/04/2024]
the total amount of savings and investments of the applicant on the date
of the application must be —
in a case where the applicant is 60 years of age or older on the
date of the application — $42,000 or lower; and
[S 730/2026 wef 01/10/2026]
in any other case — $12,000 or lower.
[S 730/2026 wef 01/10/2026]
2. In this Schedule —
“annual value” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Property Tax Act
1960;
[S 235/2024 wef 31/12/2021]
“applicant” means an applicant for legal aid;
“application” means an application for legal aid;
Legal Aid and Advice
Regulations
p. 22
[CAP. 160, Rg 1
“gross monthly household income”, in relation to the household of an
applicant, means the total sum of the gross monthly income payable for
any month to the applicant and every other individual (if any) in that
household;
“household”, in relation to an applicant, means —
the applicant; and
every other individual (if any) who lives in the same place of
residence as the applicant and is related to the applicant by
adoption (by virtue of a court order in Singapore or elsewhere),
blood or marriage;
“investment” excludes any investment, using moneys withdrawn from an
applicant’s account in the Central Provident Fund, made in accordance
with the Central Provident Fund (Investment Schemes) Regulations
(Rg 9);
[S 235/2024 wef 31/12/2021]
“owner”, in relation to any property, includes —
a purchaser of any property sold under Part 4 or 4B of the
Housing and Development Act 1959; and
[S 235/2024 wef 31/12/2021]
a
purchaser
of
any
property
sold
under
an
executive
condominium scheme within the meaning of section 2(1) of
the Executive Condominium Housing Scheme Act 1996;
[S 235/2024 wef 31/12/2021]
“per capita gross monthly household income”, in relation to the household of
the applicant, means the gross monthly household income of that
household divided by the total number of individuals (including the
applicant) in that household;
“place of residence” means the address specified on the applicant’s identity
card on the date of the application;
“relevant period”, in relation to an application, means a continuous period of
12 months immediately preceding the date of the application.
[S 692/2019 wef 16/10/2019]
[S 215/2025 wef 01/04/2025]
Legal Aid and Advice
Regulations
CAP. 160, Rg 1]
p. 23