SINGAPORE, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's Ministry of Social and Family Development announced on Friday that eligible working parents will soon be able to share an additional 10 weeks of paid leave under the new Shared Parental Leave scheme, effective April 1.
The scheme will be rolled out in two phases. Starting April 1, working parents of Singapore Citizen children born on or after this date will be entitled to six weeks of leave, to be shared between both parents. For children born on or after April 1, 2026, the leave will be extended to 10 weeks.
The ministry explained that the phased approach allows employers time to adjust their manpower and operational arrangements. The leave must be consumed within 12 months of the child's birth and only after other leave schemes have been fully utilized.
While the leave is usually equally distributed between parents, the scheme allows flexibility for parents to adjust the sharing arrangement based on their family's caregiving needs.
With these enhancements, eligible couples will be entitled to 30 weeks of paid parental leave during the child's first year, said the ministry.
This initiative highlights the government's commitment to providing stronger caregiving support during the critical infancy stage of a child's life, as well as encouraging shared parental responsibility and enabling fathers to take a more active role in caring for their children, it noted. ■
