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FJC
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Family Protection and Support

Maintenance

Applying for Maintenance
1.	Who may apply for maintenance? Married women whose husbands neglect or refuse to provide reasonable maintenance may apply; Children, regardless of legitimacy, who cannot provide for themselves may also apply through the guardian or person with actual custody of the child; Married Incapacitated husbands who are unable to maintain themselves whose wives neglect or refuse to provide reasonable maintenance may apply.
2.	How do I apply for maintenance? To apply for maintenance, you have to swear or affirm a complaint before a judge that you have not been provided any maintenance or that the amount of maintenance provided is not enough for you and/or our child's needs. You will have to apply in person at the Family Courts.
3.	Must I bring any document with me? Yes. Please bring the following document with you, where relevant: Your identity card; Copy of your marriage certificate; Copy of the birth certificate (s) of the child or children; and Copy of the Order of Court (e.g. custody order) that has been made which is relevant to the application.
4.	What happens in the Family Registry (Family Protection & Support Division)? You are required to fill in the particulars required in the standard application form. There are Chinese, Malay and Tamil Interpreters to assist you. You must swear or affirm your complaint before a Judge. If sufficient grounds are disclosed, a summons will be issued against the Respondent. You pay only a nominal sum of S$1.00 for the issuance of the summons. A letter will be sent to the Respondent for him/her to accept the summons at the Family Courts on a stipulated date and time If the Respondent fails to accept summons at the Family Courts, the Court's Process Server will serve the summons on the Respondent at his/her home or workplace. The Respondent will be notified to attend Court on the stipulated day. This normally takes place two to three weeks after the complaint is filed.
5.	What happens in Court? On the stipulated day; parties will attend mediation unless exempted by the Court. If settlement is reached, a consent order will be recorded before a Judge in Chambers. If there is no settlement, parties will attend before the Judge in Family Court 1 for a Court mention where the Judge will give directions to prepare parties for the eventual trial. At the Court mention, you may be asked by the Judge to confirm again the following: How much maintenance you are claiming; and For whom it is needed. If the Respondent agrees to your claim, the Judge will make a Consent Order that the Respondent pays as agreed. If Respondent disagrees, the Judge will direct parties to prepare three sets of the required documents for which one set is given to the Judge and the other to the other party at the next Court mention. At the next mention, the Judge will fix a hearing date if the case is ready for hearing. Please bring your set of required documents and your witness, if any, for the hearing Maintenance cases are heard before a Judge in open Court with only the parties present unless permission is given by the Judge for other persons to be present. At the trial, parties will be required to present their own cases if they have no lawyers to represent them. You, the Complainant, will present your case to the Judge first and can be questioned by the Respondent on what you had presented. Thereafter your witness, if any, will do the same. After your last witness had given evidence, the Respondent will present his case after which you will be allowed to question the Respondent. Thereafter the Respondent's witness, if any, will do the same. After all the evidence had been presented by both parties, the parties may be allowed to address the Judge on their case. The Judge will give his decision at the end of the hearing by either making an order for maintenance to be paid or dismissing the application. You may choose to represent yourself or engage a lawyer to represent you at the hearing. You should do so as early as possible. If you are unable to afford a lawyer, you can seek assistance from the Legal Aid Bureau. However, before deciding on whether you need a lawyer, you can approach the Community Justice Centre (CJC) located at Level 3 of the Family Justice Courts building for more information. Alternatively, if you wish to seek free legal advice, you may apply for CJC's legal clinic at Level 1 of the State Courts building.
6.	What factors does the Court consider in making a Maintenance Order to a wife or child? The Court will consider all the circumstances of the case including: The financial needs of the wife and/or the child; The income earning capacity (if any), property and other financial resources of the wife and/or the child; and The standard of living enjoyed by the person applying for maintenance before the husband or parent neglected or refused to provide reasonable maintenance.
7.	What will the Maintenance Order state? A Maintenance Order will state: The amount of maintenance to be paid; When it is to be paid; To whom it is to be paid; and The method of payment (whether payment is made to the Complainant directly or deposited into the Complainant's bank account). Payment to a bank account is preferred as there will be evidence of payment. A Maintenance Order must be obeyed unless and until it is rescinded (or cancelled), suspended or varied.