SINGAPORE, Aug 19 — From April 1 next year, four weeks of government-paid paternity leave will be mandatory.

For now, two weeks of government-paid paternity leave are given to eligible fathers on a voluntary basis by employers.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said during his first National Day Rally speech yesterday that the move is to encourage fathers to play a bigger role in caregiving and housework responsibilities.

Laying out his plans to create a family-friendly environment, he spoke about keeping preschools affordable and promoting women’s development in Singapore.

Although the country has "come a long way” in the sphere of women’s development, some people still believe that "fathers should be the exclusive breadwinners, and mothers the main caregivers”.

"That has to change,” Wong said.

"Women these days have every opportunity to excel in their careers. It’s not possible for them to pursue their goals, and still carry a heavier share of the caregiving and housework responsibilities.”

In addition, a new Shared Parental Leave scheme will be introduced, allowing parents to take 10 more weeks of shared leave. It will be rolled out in two phases, starting on April 1 next year, to manage the impact of manpower on employers.

The 10 weeks of shared leave will be paid for by the Government.

Wong said that the Government has studied countries where parents enjoy more generous parental leave, with some stretching to a year or more. However, a portion of the leave period may be unpaid or provided at reduced pay.

Employees must also be open to taking on a different role when they return to work a year later in these overseas cases.

"In Singapore, our leave provisions are shorter, but most of it is fully paid. And in most cases, you can return to the same job when you come back to work,” he noted.

"Because we have a different system, it is hard to make a direct comparison with other countries. But having studied the matter carefully, I think we can enhance our leave schemes.”

Enhanced paternity leave for eligible working fathers

In a statement by the National Population and Talent Division under the Prime Minister’s Office, eligible working fathers with Singaporean children born on or after April 1, 2025 will be entitled to four weeks of government-paid paternity leave.

Wong said in his speech that when paternity leave was introduced more than a decade ago, only about 25 per cent of fathers took it up.

Today, the take-up rate is at 53 per cent.

"That’s a big improvement. But it means that nearly half of fathers still don’t take their paternity leave,” he added, hoping that with the longer leave, more fathers will use it to spend quality time with their babies.

Currently, eligible working fathers whose children are Singapore citizens are entitled to two weeks of government-paid paternity leave. They may take an extra two weeks if their employers allow it.

Employers who grant the extra leave will be reimbursed by the Government.

Extra 10 weeks’ parental leave under new scheme

The National Population and Talent Division said that the new Shared Parental Leave scheme will replace the existing one from April 1 next year.

The present scheme allows a working mother to share up to four weeks of her 16-week government-paid maternity leave with her husband.

The new scheme introduces 10 more weeks of paid parental leave, shared between both parents. This leave should be used within the first 12 months of the child’s birth.

It will be rolled out in two phases starting next April to give employers time to adjust their operational and manpower arrangements:

• Phase 1 – Eligible working parents of Singaporean children born on or after April 1, 2025 will be entitled to six weeks of shared leave
• Phase 2 – Eligible working parents of Singaporean children born on or after April 1, 2026 will be entitled to 10 weeks of shared leave

By default, the shared parental leave will be shared equally between the two parents. For example, in Phase 1, the mother and father each get three weeks of leave. In Phase 2, each gets five weeks.

However, parents are free to reallocate their shared parental leave to each other based on their caregiving needs. Changes should be made within four weeks after the child’s birth.

The National Population and Talent Division added that the various parental leave (maternity, paternity, shared and adoption leave) would require a new minimum notice period of four weeks to help employers better adjust their operations.

Parents with irregular work arrangements, such as short-term contract workers and those self-employed, are also included. Under the new Shared Parental Leave Benefit scheme, eligible parents can share the six- or 10-week entitlement with their spouses.

Eligible parents may claim reimbursement from the Government for time taken off work to care for their infants. More details on the reimbursement process will be released in due time.

Once the enhanced parental leave schemes are fully launched on April 1, 2026, parents will have a total of 30 weeks of paid leave to spend with their newborns. — TODAY