Shared Parental Leave (SPL)

• 1. I wish to apply for Shared Parental Leave (SPL). How do I go about it?

   

  You and your spouse will first have to discuss the arrangement with your respective employers. When an agreement has been reached, the mother can log on to the Shared Parental Leave  Allocation System (SPLAS), which is available at www.profamilyleave.gov.sg, to indicate her decision to allocate between 1-4 weeks of SPL to the father. You and your spouse will need to print out the confirmation letter from the website and submit it to both your employers to confirm the allocation of the SPL. Employers will refer to this recorded allocated leave when considering Maternity/Adoption Leave (whichever is applicable) and SPL applications by the female employee and her spouse respectively.

  Parents should carefully consider their allocation before making an election, as the election can only be cancelled in certain circumstances. While we are mindful of parents' need for flexibility, any changes in SPL allocation would require significant adjustment and administration on the parts of both employers involved as well as the Government. Please email contactus@profamilyleave.gov.sg if you wish to cancel your election.

   

• 2. What is the duration within which I have to use my SPL? Must I take it immediately when my child is born?

  SPL is to be taken within 12 months from the child's birth (inclusive of date of birth). You can choose to start from the day your child is born or, any time before your child turns 12 months old.

• 3. Will the father be paid at his salary or the mother's salary when he takes SPL?

  The father will be paid at his salary, capped at $2,500 per week.

• 4. My spouse and I work different numbers of days per week. How is 1 week of SPL defined?

  The leave allocation of ’1 week’ is defined in terms of the work week of the relevant parent employee.

  For example, let's consider how a mother who has a 5-day work week, will share a week of Government-Paid Maternity Leave with her husband who has a 6-day work week.

  Work Week	Mum with a 5-day work week	Dad with a 6-day work week
  Duration of leave after sharing 1 week of Government-Paid Maternity Leave	16 weeks – 1 week = 15 weeks of Maternity Leave based on a 5 day work week	+ 1 week of SPL based on a 6 day work week

• 5. Can I take SPL flexibly in separate days, rather than as a continuous block or blocks of weeks?

  SPL is to be taken within 12 months from the birth of the child (inclusive of date of birth). By default, SPL is to be taken in a continuous block or blocks of weeks. If there is mutual agreement between the employer and employee, SPL can be taken flexibly (i.e. on a per-day basis).

• 6. Can the mother and father take maternity leave and SPL respectively at the same time?

  Yes, both parents can take Maternity Leave and SPL at the same time.

• 7. I have just started work with a new employer. Can I apply for SPL?

  Yes, a father can apply for SPL as long as the mother is eligible for Government-Paid Maternity Leave and has allocated to share the leave with the father for that employer. There is no minimum employment duration for the father to qualify for SPL, as long as the mother meets the minimum employment duration and other eligibility criteria for Government-Paid Maternity Leave, and the father has not been allocated SPL under his previous employer for the same child.

• 8. Can I share a few days rather than 1-4 full weeks of leave with my spouse?

  No, SPL is allocated in blocks of full weeks. Your wife can choose to allocate 1-4 weeks (in full weeks) of her Government-Paid Maternity Leave or Adoption Leave to you as SPL, or none at all.

  Once allocated, SPL is to be taken in a continuous block or blocks of weeks by default. However, as long as there is mutual agreement with your employer, you may also take the leave flexibly (i.e. a few days at a time). Please note that any part of allocated SPL not taken within 12 months from the birth of the child (inclusive of date of birth) will be forfeited.

• 9. Why are employees not allowed to change their allocation once it is registered in the system?

  Couples have the flexibility to declare the allocation of SPL to the father any time before the child turns 12 months old. This should be sufficient to enable a couple to discuss and decide on an arrangement that best suits their needs. Couples should also consult their respective employers before deciding on their allocation. If fathers are unsure whether they can commit to taking the leave, they can wait until they have more certainty before making the declaration, within 12 months from the birth of the child (inclusive of date of birth). A SPL election can only be cancelled in certain circumstances. Please email contactus@profamilyleave.gov.sg if you wish to do so.

  This approach balances parents' needs for flexibility with employers' concerns on the impact on business operations and productivity, particularly given the implementation complexities of the SPL, a complex leave scheme that involves 4 parties – the father, mother, and their respective employers.

  [Note: The amount of SPL that can be elected to the father will depend on the remaining Maternity Leave/ Adoption Leave for Mothers (whichever is applicable) that the mother has. For example, if the mother had used 14 weeks of her Maternity Leave, she can only share up to 2 weeks with her spouse as SPL.]

• 10. I have made a declaration to share my Government-Paid Maternity Leave with my husband. However, he has resigned/was retrenched/terminated and is unable to take the SPL. Can I cancel the declaration?

  In circumstances where the father's employment is terminated, any whole weeks of SPL that was not consumed will be returned to the mother. Please send the following documents to contactus@profamilyleave.gov.sg: 

  1. Letter of resignation/retrenchment/termination
  2. Email/letter from your employer to show the remaining amount of SPL that has not been utilised

• 11. How does an employer check if his employee's wife has agreed to share a portion of her Government-Paid Maternity Leave with him?

  If an eligible employee is planning to take SPL, his spouse will need to indicate the decision in the SPL Allocation System available on the Profamily Leave website (www.profamilyleave.gov.sg) and obtain a printout from the system on the decision. A copy of this letter should be handed his employer, to show his employer that his wife had made an election to allocate up to 4 weeks of leave to him. He will have to apply for leave according to his company's usual leave-taking procedures. Employers may visit www.profamilyleave.gov.sg for details.

• 12. As an employer, how do I claim for reimbursement of SPL?

  Employers can claim for reimbursement for SPL from www.profamilyleave.gov.sg.

For more answers to frequently asked questions by employers or about specific employment arrangements, please refer to the MOM website.