New Shared Parental Leave Scheme

From 1 April 2025 onwards, Singapore will introduce a new Shared Parental Leave (SPL) scheme aimed at providing stronger support and for working parents. The new SPL scheme will replace the existing SPL scheme, in response to feedback received on the need for longer parental leave and greater shared parental responsibility.

The new SPL will be implemented in 2 phases

• From 1 April 2025: Eligible parents can receive up to 6 weeks of SPL, to be shared between both parents.
• From 1 April 2026: The SPL scheme will be enhanced and eligible working parents can receive up to 10 weeks of SPL, to be shared between both parents.

Key eligibility criteria

• The child must be a Singapore citizen or become a Singapore citizen within 12 months from their date of birth (inclusive).
• Fathers must be or have been lawfully married to the child's mother within certain timeframes.
• Employees must have served their employers for a continuous period of at least 3 months before their child's date of birth. That said, note that the Government may, at its discretion, reimburse an employer for voluntarily granting paid SPL to an employee who does not satisfy the 3-month employment criterion for paid SPL, if certain requirements are satisfied.

SPL arrangement

• SPL can only be consumed after maternity leave or paternity leave is fully consumed.
• SPL must be taken within 12 months from the child's date of birth (inclusive).
• By default, the 2 eligible parents will be allocated entitlements of equal periods. This can be reallocated within 4 weeks from the child's date of birth.
• Employees must give a minimum notice of at least 4 weeks before consuming SPL. Employers therefore have the discretion to not grant leave requested without sufficient notice, if they are unable to make the necessary covering arrangements in time.
• Therefore, after the first 4 weeks of the child's birth, any changes to the SPL arrangement will require mutual agreement between employees and employers.
• Where the employer and employee do not have a mutual agreement, SPL should be taken in 1 continuous block within 26 weeks from the child's date of birth (inclusive). Where there is mutual agreement between the employer and employee, it can be taken in 1 continuous block or non-continuously, within 12 months from the child's date of birth (inclusive). Employers and employees are therefore encouraged to mutually agree on leave plans, such as the number of weeks of SPL to be taken, whether it will be taken in one continuous block or in separate smaller blocks, and the start and end dates of leave period(s).
• The new SPL will be flexible – a spouse may take the entire SPL entitlement (while the other spouse takes no SPL), or both parents may take the new SPL concurrently on the same leave dates.

In terms of payment, the Singapore Government will reimburse employers for SPL, which is capped at the prevailing rate of SGD2,500 per week. SPL reimbursement claims should be submitted via the usual Government-Paid Leave portal.

With regard to termination of employment, it is important to note that it is not unlawful to terminate employees on the new SPL. The Singapore Government has explained that this is because the new SPL scheme will increase the overall duration of absence from work that a parent is entitled to take, and employers should still be able to carry out fair employment decisions, such as dismissals due to poor performance, that are necessary for their businesses. This is unlike the current statutory protections for government-paid maternity leave (which will be extended to government-paid paternity leave and adoption leave as well). Where employment is terminated before SPL has been fully consumed, the employee will not be able to carry over any unused leave to their new employer. This includes situations such as resignation, retrenchment, contract expiry and dismissal. Such situations may result in the reallocation of remaining SPL entitlement to the employee's spouse (with the employer's agreement), claiming unconsumed SPL entitlement in the form of a shared parental benefit top-up, or forfeiture of leave, depending on the specific circumstances.

In conclusion, the new SPL scheme represents a welcome enhancement to the current statutory parental leave entitlement in Singapore. Not only does it significantly increase leave benefits for employees, it also introduces a higher degree of flexibility by allowing parents to share SPL according to their individual needs and circumstances. However, the flexibility afforded is likely to come with its own set of operational and administrative challenges. Employers will need to manage workforce planning, coordinate varying leave arrangements and track leave entitlements carefully to ensure legal compliance while prioritising business needs. Employees should also navigate the intricacies of the new scheme in order to understand their rights and responsibilities, such as providing sufficient notice to their employers to avail themselves to SPL. Both employers and employees are encouraged to work together for the smooth implementation of the new SPL scheme.

Please note that this article primarily addresses common SPL arrangements. Variations may exist for other scenarios, such as those involving part-time employees, changes in employer, single unwed parents, working parents with a stay-at-home spouses, and adoptive parents.

DLA Piper is restricted for regulatory reasons from practising local law in Singapore. This article is not intended to constitute the general dispensation of advice on Singapore law.