- Both parents have a duty to maintain their children, usually until 21.
- A wife or former wife, or an incapacitated husband, can claim spousal maintenance, but it is not automatic.
- The court looks at needs, earning capacity, the family's standard of living and other factors.
- Unpaid maintenance can be enforced, including through the Maintenance Enforcement Process introduced in 2025.
Maintenance for children
Every parent has a legal duty to maintain their children, whoever the children live with. The duty usually lasts until the child turns 21, but the court can order maintenance beyond 21 where the child:
- has a physical or mental disability
- is serving full-time national service
- is still studying or training for a trade, profession or vocation
- has other special circumstances that justify it
There is no fixed formula. The court looks at the child's reasonable needs, such as food, housing, education and healthcare, and at what each parent can afford. Parents cannot agree to sign away a child's right to maintenance; the court will check that any agreement meets the child's needs.
Maintenance for a spouse
The court can order a husband to pay maintenance to his wife or former wife, and a wife to pay maintenance to her husband or former husband if he is incapacitated, meaning illness or a physical or mental disability prevents him from earning a living and supporting himself.
Spousal maintenance is not automatic. In deciding whether to order it, and how much, the court considers matters such as:
- each spouse's income, earning capacity and financial needs, now and in the foreseeable future
- the family's standard of living before the marriage broke down
- the age of each spouse and the length of the marriage
- any physical or mental disability
- each spouse's contributions to the family
A spouse who is self-sufficient, earns well, or receives a substantial share of the matrimonial assets may get little or no maintenance. In some cases the court makes a nominal order to preserve the right to ask for more later, but this is not given as a matter of course.
Changing an order
Either side can ask the court to vary or cancel a maintenance order if circumstances have materially changed, for example if the payer loses their job, the recipient becomes financially independent, or the recipient remarries. Until the court changes the order, it must be followed.
If maintenance isn't paid
The person owed maintenance can apply to the Family Justice Courts to enforce the order. The court has several options, including:
- ordering part of the payer's salary to be deducted by the employer and paid over directly
- fines, or imprisonment of up to one month for each month of arrears
- requiring security for future payments
- ordering financial counselling or community service
A fine or jail term does not wipe out the debt: the arrears must still be paid.
A new Maintenance Enforcement Process began on 16 January 2025, first for people who had already made an earlier enforcement application. From 1 October 2025 it was extended to first-time applications where the arrears are at least S$10,000. Eligible cases are referred to Maintenance Enforcement Officers, who can seek financial information from the parties, banks and public agencies, try to resolve the matter, and report to the court. A paying party referred to the process is charged a fee of S$180 for this service.
This article is general information on Singapore law and is not legal advice. Rules and agency policies change, and every situation is different. For advice on your own circumstances, speak with one of our lawyers.
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