Division of Assets in Divorce Singapore

Almost all of my clients are keen to know more about division of assets in divorce Singapore.

Division of Assets in Divorce Singapore

How does the Court make a decision on division of assets in divorce Singapore?

The general rule under the Women’s Charter Singapore is found in Section 112.

Under Section 112, the Court will take into account the following factors in deciding the division of assets in divorce Singapore:

Parties’ financial contributions;
Debts incurred by either party for their or their children’s joint benefit;
Needs of children;
Parties’ non-financial contributions;
Agreements between the parties on division of assets in divorce Singapore;
Rent-free occupation of matrimonial home enjoyed by one party; and
Assistance given by one party to the other for his/ her career.

In recent years, there have been a few landmark cases in Singapore which clarified the Court’s position on division of assets in divorce Singapore.

In the case of ANJ v ANK, the Court came up with a 3-step approach:

Determine the ratio of parties’ direct contributions towards the acquisition or improvement of matrimonial assets;
Determine the ratio of parties’ indirect contributions (both financial and non-financial) relative to each other;
Determine the overall ratios with regard to the above ratios. Ratio 1 and Ratio 2 may not be given the same weightage.

This approach generally works well for dual income marriages.

For long, single-income marriages, the Court of Appeal in TNL v TNK and another appeal and another matter [2017] SGCA 15 agreed with the approach of an equal division of assets in divorce Singapore.

See: TNL v TNK and another appeal and another matter [2017] SGCA 15, SingaporeLaw.sg

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