- Every parent has a duty to maintain their children, generally until 21, whatever the custody arrangement.
- Maintenance for a child over 21 can be ordered in specific situations, such as national service, further study or disability.
- Spousal maintenance is not automatic; the court considers income, needs, the standard of living and the length of the marriage.
- Orders can be varied if circumstances materially change.
- Since 16 January 2025, a new Maintenance Enforcement Process has applied to some enforcement applications.
The duty to maintain children
Under the Women’s Charter, every parent has a duty to provide reasonable maintenance for their children. The duty applies whether the child lives with that parent, the other parent or someone else, and it continues after divorce or remarriage.
Child maintenance usually ends when the child turns 21. The court can order maintenance for an older child where the child has a mental or physical disability, is serving full-time national service, is studying or training for a trade or profession, or where other special circumstances justify it.
Parents can agree arrangements between themselves, but they cannot sign away a child’s right to be maintained. The court will look closely at any such agreement and can disregard it if it does not meet the child’s needs.
How child maintenance is assessed
There is no fixed formula. The court starts with the child’s reasonable needs, such as food, clothing, housing, healthcare and education, and then looks at how the cost should fairly be shared between the parents according to their means. If one parent earns significantly more, they may be asked to pay a larger share.
Factors include the child’s financial needs, each parent’s income and earning capacity, any disability, the standard of living the child has enjoyed, how the child is expected to be educated, and each parent’s contributions to the family. You should be ready to explain and support the expenses you claim; luxury items may not be accepted unless they match the child’s established way of life.
Spousal maintenance
In divorce proceedings, the court can order a husband to pay maintenance to his wife or former wife. Since 2016, a wife can also be ordered to maintain a husband who is incapacitated by a physical or mental disability or illness and cannot support himself. During the marriage, a wife or incapacitated husband can apply for maintenance if the other spouse has neglected or refused to provide it.
Maintenance is not automatic. When deciding whether to order it and how much, the court considers all the circumstances, including:
- Each spouse’s income, earning capacity and financial resources, now and in the foreseeable future.
- Each spouse’s financial needs and obligations.
- The standard of living the family enjoyed 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, including looking after the home and children.
- Any benefit lost because of the divorce, such as a pension.
Lump sums, nominal orders and changes
Maintenance can be paid monthly or as a lump sum. A lump sum can help both spouses make a clean break where the paying spouse can afford it, or where the division of assets allows for it.
A spouse who is earning well, or who receives a substantial share of the matrimonial assets, may receive little or no maintenance. In some cases the court may make a nominal order, which keeps open the option of asking for more if circumstances change significantly later, but it will not do so automatically.
Either party can ask the court to vary or end an order if there has been a material change, such as the recipient remarrying or becoming financially independent, or the payer losing their job or falling seriously ill. Spousal maintenance ordered on divorce ends if the recipient remarries.
If maintenance is not paid
A person ordered to pay maintenance cannot simply stop because their circumstances have changed; they must ask the court to vary the order. If payments are missed, the person owed money can apply to the Family Justice Courts to enforce the order.
The court’s enforcement powers include ordering deductions directly from the payer’s salary, fines, imprisonment for persistent default, requiring security for future payments, financial counselling and community service. Any punishment does not cancel the arrears, which still have to be paid.
Since 16 January 2025, certain enforcement applications have been referred to the Maintenance Enforcement Division at the Ministry of Law. Its officers can hold conciliation sessions and obtain financial information from banks and public agencies, helping the court tell the difference between a payer who cannot pay and one who will not. As at 2026, law firms report that the process covers repeat enforcement applications and, from 1 October 2025, some first-time applications with larger arrears.
When to speak with a lawyer
Maintenance claims depend on evidence of income and expenses, and on how they fit with the division of assets. A lawyer can help you work out a realistic figure, prepare supporting documents, respond to a claim, or take steps to enforce or vary an existing order.
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 a lawyer.
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