Understanding the New Shared Parental Leave and Government-Paid Paternity Leave in Singapore

Starting April 1, 2025, Singapore will enhance its parental leave benefits, providing a total of 30 weeks of paid leave for working parents to bond with their newborns. This initiative aims to support family bonding and shared parental responsibility, with changes implemented in phases to balance the impact on employers.

Key Changes:

• Mandatory Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL):

  • From April 1, 2025, the previously voluntary additional two weeks of GPPL will become mandatory, granting eligible working fathers a total of four weeks of paternity leave.

• New Shared Parental Leave (SPL):

  • The current SPL scheme will be replaced by a new scheme, offering 10 weeks of leave shared between both parents.

  • Implementation will occur in two phases:

    • From April 1, 2025: Eligible parents receive six weeks of SPL.

    • From April 1, 2026: The leave extends to 10 weeks.

How Parents Can Share the New SPL:

• Default Allocation:

  • Each parent is initially allocated half of the SPL to encourage shared responsibility.

• Flexibility in Sharing:

  • Parents can reallocate their share of the SPL to better suit their caregiving needs.

  • Changes to SPL allocation should be submitted via the LifeSG website or app within four weeks of the child's birth. Any changes after this period require the employer’s consent.

Guidance for Employees

• Early Notification:

  • Parents should inform their employers early about their pregnancy and discuss leave plans, including the use of SPL within the first 12 months after birth.

• Notice Requirements:

  • A minimum notice of four weeks is required before taking GPML, GPPL, and SPL.

• Discussion Points for Leave Plans:

  • Decide on the number of weeks of SPL to take.

  • Determine whether the leave will be in one continuous block or separate blocks.

  • Set start and end dates for the leave period(s).

Guidance for Employers

• Supportive Policies:

  • Employers are encouraged to facilitate and support employees’ leave plans.

• Verification and Claims:

  • Employers can verify employees’ SPL arrangements and submit leave reimbursement claims

    through the Government-Paid Leave Schemes portal at profamilyleave.msf.gov.sg.

Conclusion:

The expanded parental leave scheme in Singapore underscores the importance of family bonding and shared parental responsibilities. By understanding these changes and planning accordingly, both employees and employers can ensure a smooth transition and effective management of leave entitlements.

Note: This information is accurate as of the point of publishing.

For leave administration and claims submissions, contact us today.

Section 202 Relief – Exclusion of Directors’ Shareholding Interests in Financial Statement (Companies Act 1967)

With effect from 9 December 2024, the Registrar of Companies introduced a class exemption under Section 202(2) of the Companies Act 1967. This exemption allows private and non-listed public companies to exclude directors’ shareholding disclosures from their annual directors’ statements, provided that unanimous consent from shareholder(s) is obtained.  

This regulatory development offers a practical means to comply with the reporting obligations while maintaining statutory transparency through existing statutory registers. 

Our Corporate Secretarial team can assist with the implementation of this exemption, from preparing the necessary consent from shareholder(s) to drafting compliant directors’ statements, and supporting your process. 

We can help your company benefit from this relief compliance, contact us today. 

Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 Effective 9 June 2025

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (“ACRA”) has informed that the Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 ('CSP Act') and the accompanying Corporate Service Providers Regulations 2025 ('CSP Regulations'), detailing the CSP Act's requirements, effective 9 June 2025.

For entities which perform corporate services by way of business but are not currently registered with ACRA as a Registered Filing Agent, they will be given a 6-month period until 9 Dec 2025 to register as a Corporate Service Provider (“CSP”).

The legislative amendments introduced the following key changes: 

1. Requires all business entities carrying on a business of providing corporate services in or from Singapore to register with ACRA as registered corporate service providers ('CSPs').

2. Requires all registered CSPs to comply with obligations, including AML/CFT/PF obligations.

3. Introduce fines for breaches of AML/CFT/PF obligations by registered CSPs and their senior management.

4. Prohibit persons from acting as nominee directors by way of business unless the appointments are arranged by registered CSPs and they have been assessed as fit and proper by the registered CSPs.

5. Requires nominee directors’ and nominee shareholders’ nominee status and the identities of their nominators to be disclosed with ACRA.

6. Increase fines pertaining to the register of registrable controllers, register of nominee directors, and register of nominee shareholders.

For guidance on CSP Act compliance, contact us today.