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Given that the new scheme — which includes the mandatory four-week Government-Paid Paternity Leave — is less straightforward, employers will need more time to update their respective administrative processes and HR systems to prepare, she explained.
Setting 1 April 2025 as a timeline for mandating Singapore's four-week Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL), and introducing the Shared Parental Leave scheme (SPL) was decided after extensive consultation with the Tripartite Partners, according to Minister in the Prime Minister's Office and Second Minister for Finance Indranee Rajah.
Sharing this on Tuesday (4 February 2025), the minister was responding to a couple of Parliamentary queries on behalf of Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong. In particular, PM Wong was asked if the Government would consider implementing the mandatory four-week GPPL and SPL scheme ahead of the planned timeline.
Minister Indranee clarified that the additional two weeks of GPPL have been in place since 1 January 2024 but on a voluntary basis. Employers who feel ready to grant the additional two weeks of GPPL to fathers may take a total of four weeks of leave and their employers will be reimbursed by the government.
However, she explained, the earliest date for making it mandatory remains 1 April, taking into consideration the time needed to process system changes by the government and employers, ensuring that there is a balance between giving employers sufficient time to make necessary adjustments while parents are able to benefit from the leave enhancements as soon as they can.
The minister also added that the sharing of leave entitlements is a key feature of the SPL, allowing couples to decide how they wish to allocate the leave entitlement between both parties based on their personal schedules. This new scheme serves to be less straightforward, and employers will have to update their respective administrative processes and HR systems to prepare. To ensure parity across all employers including those in smaller firms to be ready to implement the changes, 1 April was also the agreed date to roll out the new scheme.
Finally, Minister Indranee shared that to ensure there is an organised process of tracking leave records and receiving the right reimbursements, the government is developing a centralised system to facilitate the coordination of leave sharing arrangements between parents and employers.
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