Paternity Leave Take-Up in Singapore Rises, Maternity Leave Usage Stays High

Slightly more fathers are using their paternity leave to take care of their newborns.

- Syarafana Shafeeq

The take-up rate for government-paid paternity leave rose from 53 percent in 2022 to 56 percent in 2023, according to the latest figures published by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF).

Maternity leave usage remained high at 74 percent, similar to past years, said the Family Trends Report 2025 published on July 7.

The number of mothers who used their childcare leave dipped slightly from 61 percent in 2022 to 58 percent in 2023. For fathers, 53 percent of them used their childcare leave in 2023, inching up from 52 percent in 2022 and 49 percent in 2021.

The latest available data was for 2023 as employers have three months after a year ends to submit reimbursement claims to the government. All data available excludes employers who do not submit claims.

Paternity leave was enhanced in April, with fathers now entitled to four weeks of paternity leave, up from two.

From April, parents have also been able to share up to six weeks of paid parental leave, which replaces the previous scheme that allowed fathers to share their wives' maternity leave quota. This shared leave scheme will be increased to 10 weeks in April 2026.