Raised income threshold for civil legal aid to begin from Oct 1
The raised income threshold for civil legal aid and the asset threshold for both civil legal aid and criminal defence aid will come into effect from Oct 1, the Ministry of Law (MinLaw) said on Wednesday (Sept 30).The means test criteria for civil legal aid will be raised to a per capita household income threshold of $1,650, up from $1,050.Meanwhile, bank savings and non-CPF investments for applicants below the age of 60 will be raised from $10,000 to $12,000, while the threshold will increase from the present $40,000 to $42,000."Up to 1,000 more Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents are expected to benefit annually from the increased PCHI threshold for civil legal aid," MinLaw said in a statement.Means and merit testing are applied to determine eligibility for Government legal aid.The three most common categories of civil legal aid cases are matrimonial matters, monetary claims, and probate matters.