FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
| Q1 |
What is Adoption Leave? |
| A1 |
Adoption Leave is 4 weeks of flexible leave for adoptive mothers to care for adopted newborn children aged 6 months and below, if their employers agree to grant them the leave. The Government will reimburse employers up to 4 weeks of salary, capped at $10,000, if they voluntarily grant leave to married, widowed or divorced female employees who have an adopted citizen child aged six months or younger.
The Adoption Leave may be taken flexibly or in a continuous block within a period of 6 months from the birth of the child. |
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Q2 I am a working mother. When can I apply for the Adoption Leave?
| A2 |
You can apply for the leave when:
i. the Court appoints Director of Social Welfare as Guardian in Adoption for your local born child, or
ii. the adoptive parents (you) are issued with a Dependant’s Pass by MCYS for your foreign born child. Parents of foreign born children, however, would have to obtain Singapore citizenship for the child within 6 months of the adoption order being granted.
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Q3 What are the eligibility criteria?
| A3 |
An employed mother must satisfy the following criteria:
a. the adopted child is a Singapore citizen or becomes one within 6 months of the adoption order being granted, whichever is later;
b. she has fewer than 4 living children (excludes adopted and step children) at the point of application of Adoption Leave;
c. she is lawfully married* at the point of application of Adoption Leave.
In addition to satisfying the above criteria, a self-employed mother must show that she has lost income as a result of not engaging in her trade, business, profession or vocation during the adoption leave period.
* Widows and divorcees are also eligible.
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| Q4 |
How much reimbursement am I entitled to? |
| A4 |
You are entitled to up to 4 weeks of salary capped at $10,000. This paid leave must be in addition to:
• rest days, holidays, annual leave, sick leave and childcare leave to which an employee is entitled under the Employment Act; and
• any type of leave of absence to which an employee is entitled under your contract of service with the employer that does not relate to the adoption of a child.
This leave must be taken within 6 months of the child’s birth. Employers will be entitled to claim for up to 4 weeks of leave up to the fourth child of the eligible employee.
Please note that your foreign adopted child must become a Singapore Citizen within 6 months of the Adoption Order being granted by the Court. Otherwise, the Adoption Leave payment will need to be refunded.
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| Q5 |
What salary components can my employer claim from the Government if he grants me the Adoption Leave? |
| A5 |
Your employer can claim reimbursement from the Government for the amount paid to you at your gross rate of pay, including employer's CPF contribution. It will be pro-rated according to the actual duration of Adoption Leave taken, capped at $10,000 (including CPF contributions).
Please note that the following salary components cannot be claimed:
• Overtime payments;
• Bonus payments or annual wage supplements;
• Reimbursement for expenses incurred by the employee in the course of her employment;
• Productivity incentive payments; and
• Travelling, food or housing allowances.
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| Q6 |
If I have been reimbursed for the Adoption Leave, but I did not obtain the Adoption Order eventually or choose not to have my child become a Singapore citizen, do I need to refund the payment? |
| A6 |
Yes, MCYS will seek a refund for the Adoption Leave payment if you do not obtain the Adoption Order eventually or if your child does not become a citizen within 6 months of successful adoption.
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| Q7 |
I have already started the adoption process and obtained the Dependant’s Pass for my adoptive child before 10 March 2005. Can I still apply for Adoption Leave? |
| A7 |
If your adopted child is less than 6 months old on 10 March 2005, you can apply for Adoption Leave.
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| Q8 |
How do I claim for reimbursement for Adoptive Leave taken? |
| A8 |
You can submit your claim to the Central Provident Fund Board after you / your employee (if you are the employer) has consumed all the Adoption Leave or after 6 months from the birth of the child, whichever is earlier.
Claims should be submitted within 3 months after the end of the Adoption Leave period. Any claim made outside this period will not be accepted.
The forms (GML1-A and/or GML5) can be downloaded from this website http://www.maternityleave.gov.sg.
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| Q9 |
How is the reimbursement calculated? |
| A9 |
The formula to calculate the amount that can be reimbursed is as follows:
a) Leave taken continuously en bloc:
(MGP+ECPF) x 12 x N
365 days
b) Leave not taken en bloc:
(MGP+ECPF) x 12 x B
No. working days per week x 52 weeks
Where :
• MGP is the monthly gross rate of pay of the female employee in respect of whom the claim is made;
• ECPF is the contribution which an employer is liable to make to the Central Provident Fund under the Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36) in respect of that female employee and which is not recoverable from the monthly wages of that female employee;
• N is the total number of calendar days on which the female employee absented herself from work;
• B is the total number of working days on which the female employee absented herself from work.
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Who to contact for enquiries and feedback on:
Government reimbursement of the Adoption Leave payment:
Agency Services Department
Central Provident Fund Board
Hotline: 1800 - 2271188
Email: gml@cpf.gov.sg
Website: http://www.maternityleave.gov.sg
Adoption Process:
Adoption Service
Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports
Hotline: 6355 6388
Website: http://www.fcd.ecitizen.gov.sg/ChildrenNParenthood/AdoptAChild/