The Singapore Working Parent’s Guide to Childcare Leave
Childcare leave is an important benefit for working parents in Singapore. It allows them to take time off from work to care for their young children, ensuring that they are able to balance their professional and personal responsibilities.
The Singaporean government partially pays for childcare leave under the Government-Paid Childcare Leave (GPCL) scheme, which reduces the financial strain on companies when employees take childcare leave. This also applies to parents who are self-employed and may experience income loss during childcare leave.
Alongside parental leave, childcare leave supports working parents in caring for, bonding with, and enjoying quality time with their children. These benefits are designed to support Singaporean parents during the crucial early, formative years of their child’s life.
The Entitlement to Childcare Leave
Under Singapore’s Employment Act 1968, working parents are entitled to six days of paid childcare leave per year if their youngest child is below the age of seven. This entitlement applies regardless of the number of children.
On the other hand, if their youngest child is between 7 and 12 years old (inclusive), working parents are entitled to two days of extended paid childcare leave.
This leave can be taken in blocks of one day or more and can be used for a variety of purposes, including:
- caring for a sick child
- accompanying a child to their first day of school
- attending to a child’s needs during school holidays
Unused childcare leave cannot be:
- encashed
- carried over to the following year
- carried over to a new employer
- used to offset the resignation notice period
- transferred to the spouse
Childcare leave already claimed under previous employer(s) will be deducted from their total yearly childcare leave entitlement.
What if both parents work for the same company?
As long as both parents meet the eligibility criteria, they will be entitled to six days each of paid childcare leave, or two days each of extended paid childcare leave.
Eligibility for Childcare Leave
To be eligible for childcare leave, the following criteria must be fulfilled:
- The child must be a Singapore citizen.
- The parent must have worked for the same employer (or have been self-employed) for three continuous months.
What if the employee is not the biological parent?
It makes no difference whether a working parent’s child is their biological child, stepchild, or adopted child in order for the working parent to be eligible for childcare leave. For adoptive parents to be eligible for childcare leave, the Adoption Order must be passed.
What if the employee is a single parent?
They will be entitled to childcare leave as well. The entitlement to childcare leave does not discriminate based on marital status.
What if the employee is a foreigner?
As long as the child is a Singapore citizen, parents who are foreigners or permanent residents are entitled to childcare leave.
What if the child is not a Singaporean citizen?
The parent will only be entitled to the statutory minimum of two days of childcare leave per year, instead of six days of childcare leave. They will not be entitled to extended childcare leave.
Prorating Childcare Leave
For new joiners or employees intending to leave the company during the year, their childcare leave entitlement will need to be prorated. Generally, childcare leave will be prorated according to number of months worked.
Note that extended childcare leave cannot be prorated.
For new hires who have joined for less than a year, the following applies:
For employees intending to leave the company during the year, the following applies:
Applying for Childcare Leave
When applying for childcare leave, working parents must download and complete the Government-Paid Childcare Leave (GPCL) or Extended Childcare Leave (ECL) declaration form and submit it to their employers, along with any other relevant supporting documentation.
Employers can then submit the claim for reimbursement online via the Government-Paid Leave (GPL) Portal no later than 3 months after the last day of the 12-month period.
Working parents are highly advised to discuss their childcare leave plans with their employers as soon as possible to minimise disruption and allow the company to establish alternate work arrangements.
Get Childcare Leave Right With BrioHR
Tracking leave isn’t easy, especially with multiple types of leave like sick leave, annual leave, parental leave, and of course childcare leave. It gets even harder when you have to manage leave for multiple employees!
With BrioHR’s leave management module, managers can check at a glance who is on leave and approve leave requests seamlessly. Employees can also check their leave balances and request for leave – all on a user-friendly, mobile-ready app.
With a secure, scalable, user-friendly platform, BrioHR covers the entire employee journey from recruitment to onboarding, payroll and claims, to performance and analytics, and more.
This enables business owners and HR teams to truly focus on what matters most – people.
Visit briohr.com and get a free demo now.
Childcare leave is an important benefit for working parents in Singapore. It allows them to take time off from work to care for their young children, ensuring that they are able to balance their professional and personal responsibilities.
The Singaporean government partially pays for childcare leave under the Government-Paid Childcare Leave (GPCL) scheme, which reduces the financial strain on companies when employees take childcare leave. This also applies to parents who are self-employed and may experience income loss during childcare leave.
Alongside parental leave, childcare leave supports working parents in caring for, bonding with, and enjoying quality time with their children. These benefits are designed to support Singaporean parents during the crucial early, formative years of their child’s life.
The Entitlement to Childcare Leave
Under Singapore’s Employment Act 1968, working parents are entitled to six days of paid childcare leave per year if their youngest child is below the age of seven. This entitlement applies regardless of the number of children.
On the other hand, if their youngest child is between 7 and 12 years old (inclusive), working parents are entitled to two days of extended paid childcare leave.
This leave can be taken in blocks of one day or more and can be used for a variety of purposes, including:
- caring for a sick child
- accompanying a child to their first day of school
- attending to a child’s needs during school holidays
Unused childcare leave cannot be:
- encashed
- carried over to the following year
- carried over to a new employer
- used to offset the resignation notice period
- transferred to the spouse
Childcare leave already claimed under previous employer(s) will be deducted from their total yearly childcare leave entitlement.
What if both parents work for the same company?
As long as both parents meet the eligibility criteria, they will be entitled to six days each of paid childcare leave, or two days each of extended paid childcare leave.
Eligibility for Childcare Leave
To be eligible for childcare leave, the following criteria must be fulfilled:
- The child must be a Singapore citizen.
- The parent must have worked for the same employer (or have been self-employed) for three continuous months.
What if the employee is not the biological parent?
It makes no difference whether a working parent’s child is their biological child, stepchild, or adopted child in order for the working parent to be eligible for childcare leave. For adoptive parents to be eligible for childcare leave, the Adoption Order must be passed.
What if the employee is a single parent?
They will be entitled to childcare leave as well. The entitlement to childcare leave does not discriminate based on marital status.
What if the employee is a foreigner?
As long as the child is a Singapore citizen, parents who are foreigners or permanent residents are entitled to childcare leave.
What if the child is not a Singaporean citizen?
The parent will only be entitled to the statutory minimum of two days of childcare leave per year, instead of six days of childcare leave. They will not be entitled to extended childcare leave.
Prorating Childcare Leave
For new joiners or employees intending to leave the company during the year, their childcare leave entitlement will need to be prorated. Generally, childcare leave will be prorated according to number of months worked.
Note that extended childcare leave cannot be prorated.
For new hires who have joined for less than a year, the following applies:
For employees intending to leave the company during the year, the following applies:
Applying for Childcare Leave
When applying for childcare leave, working parents must download and complete the Government-Paid Childcare Leave (GPCL) or Extended Childcare Leave (ECL) declaration form and submit it to their employers, along with any other relevant supporting documentation.
Employers can then submit the claim for reimbursement online via the Government-Paid Leave (GPL) Portal no later than 3 months after the last day of the 12-month period.
Working parents are highly advised to discuss their childcare leave plans with their employers as soon as possible to minimise disruption and allow the company to establish alternate work arrangements.
Get Childcare Leave Right With BrioHR
Tracking leave isn’t easy, especially with multiple types of leave like sick leave, annual leave, parental leave, and of course childcare leave. It gets even harder when you have to manage leave for multiple employees!
With BrioHR’s leave management module, managers can check at a glance who is on leave and approve leave requests seamlessly. Employees can also check their leave balances and request for leave – all on a user-friendly, mobile-ready app.
