Child custody in Singapore
In Singapore both parents of a married couple are joint guardians, an unmarried father is not automatically a guardian, and the court decides by the child's welfare.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
If the parents are married
Both parents are joint guardians of the child with equal rights.
If the parents are not married
The mother is the guardian. The father can apply to the court to be appointed a guardian.
The unmarried father, in one line: The mother has it; the father needs a court order.
After a divorce or separation
The court decides custody and care and control by the child's welfare. Joint custody, with the child living mainly with one parent, is common, and the court can order shared care in some cases. Parents are encouraged to use mediation first.
What the child can say
The court takes the child's wishes into account where the child is old enough to express them.
Moving house or moving abroad with the child
A parent needs the other's consent, or a court's, to take the child to live abroad.
If the parents live in different countries
Singapore is a party to the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention, which lets a parent ask for a child wrongly taken to another country to be returned. It works only with countries that have accepted its accession, so check the other country on the treaty status table.
What to watch for
- Muslims in Singapore are governed by Syariah law on custody.
Understand the legal system first
Singapore belongs to the Common law family. Family law grows out of the legal tradition, so it helps to know how the system works.
Read the Singapore legal-system profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
Who owns what in a marriage in Singapore? →
Official sources
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TheLawToKnow Tools’s child custody guide is an educational overview of general rules. It is not legal advice, and it does not replace the official source or a lawyer in the country. Report a mistake.
