Child Custody in Singapore

It is for us to discuss your matter briefly and to provide you with a general overview. There will be no review of documents during the free first consultation.

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However if you are truly unable to afford the services of lawyers, we will recommend that you approach the legal aid bureau or law society pro bono services to see if you qualify.

Custody refers to who makes the major decision for the child such as whether the child can be brought overseas or which school the child attends amongst others. Care & Control refers to who takes care of the child on a daily basis and makes day to day decisions. Generally, if the child is below 7 years of age, the mother will obtain care & control but if the father can prove that he is a better caregiver, the court may award care & control to the father. In relation to custody, the court normally awards joint custody to ensure that both parents continue to make major decisions for the child.

Access to a parent is a right unless the parent is a danger to the child. There is no formula on whether overnight access is given once a week or once every 2 weeks and it will depend on how close the parent is to the child. For the week where there is no overnight access, day access will be given. Again, each case turns on its own facts.

Generally, there are 2 types of access orders, namely reasonable access and supervised access. Within the category of reasonable access, you may also include overnight access. However, reasonable access does not automatically include overnight access. It is best to stipulate what happens during school holidays as well.

There is generally reasonable access and supervised access. Within the category of reasonable access, you may also include overnight access. However reasonable access does not automatically include overnight access. It is best to stipulate what happens during school holidays as well.

You may apply for a variation application (mengubah pengadilan mahkamah). There is no time limit for this. Please refer to the article on variation.

It is extremely rare for the court to totally restrict access. The court may likely make an order for supervised access, i.e. for you to be present when the children see your spouse.

In such situations, access will be incremental. Your husband may not get overnight access for now, but in the future, he may get overnight access.

There is no such law. Care and control can go to husband or wife depending on who is the better caregiver. Islamic Law also states that the mother has the general right for children below 7 years of age.

There is no straightforward answer to this question but there is a basis to say that one may lose the right. However, this must be proven, and it may be challenging.

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If you have filed for divorce at the Syariah Court, then you should urgently take out an interim application (temporary application) for the Court to decide when you can see the kids pending the outcome of the divorce. However, if you have not filed for a divorce at the Syariah Court, the temporary application must be taken out at the Family Court.

You may read more on relocation in our article here.

The court usually awards joint custody to both parents to ensure both mother & father play a key role in their child’s life and development.

Having Child custody gives custodial parents the authority to make major decisions concerning religion, education and healthcare for the child. 

While there is a presumption that a young child is better placed with the mother, it must be noted that the welfare of the child is of paramount importance. For a father to gain care & control of the child, the father must prove that he has been the child’s primary caregiver. In addition, the father would have to show the judge that he can take care of his child’s daily needs – from school, health and personal development. 

The father must also facilitate the child’s access with the mother.

These factors would be taken into consideration by the court when deciding who should gain custody of the child.  

Children above the age of 7 will have their wishes taken into consideration.