Introduction
It’s easy to get confused over what constitutes a “ground” of divorce in Singapore. When you visit a divorce lawyer, or even when you speak with friends, you’ll often hear terms such as “unreasonable behaviour” and “adultery” being thrown around.
These are not grounds of divorce in Singapore.
In Singapore, there is only ONE ground of divorce – the irretrievable breakdown of marriage. The other terms used are the facts illustrating the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.
Requirements for Divorce in Singapore
While we’ve spoken about these requirements in some of our other articles, these requirements bear repeating. Simply put, if you don’t fulfil these requirements, you can’t get divorced in Singapore barring certain exceptional circumstances.
- You can only get a divorce in Singapore if you/your spouse:
- Are a Singapore Citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident
- Have lived in Singapore for a minimum of three years immediately before the commencement of divorce proceedings OR are domiciled (treated as your home) in Singapore
- Have been married for a minimum of three years
The time bar of three years for divorce in Singapore is a fairly long time by Singaporean standards. There may still be solutions to terminate your marriage under annulment proceedings in Singapore and you may wish to speak with a Singapore divorce lawyer regarding this if you have not been married for at least three years.
Facts of Divorce
There are five facts of divorce and one of these five facts will have to be proven to illustrate irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. These five facts can be found in Section 95(3) of the Women’s Charter.
Section 95(3) Women's Charter
The court hearing any proceedings for divorce shall not hold the marriage to have broken down irretrievably unless the plaintiff satisfies the court of one or more of the following facts:
(a) that the defendant has committed adultery and the plaintiff finds it intolerable to live with the defendant;
(b) that the defendant has behaved in such a way that the plaintiff cannot reasonably be expected to live with the defendant;
(c) that the defendant has deserted the plaintiff for a continuous period of at least 2 years immediately preceding the filing of the writ;
(d) that the parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 3 years immediately preceding the filing of the writ and the defendant consents to a judgment being granted;
(e) that the parties to the marriage have lived apart for a continuous period of at least 4 years immediately preceding the filing of the writ.
Main Features of the Facts of Divorce
ADULTERY
If you’re a frequent consumer of Chinese/Korean/Taiwanese dramas, you’ll probably be quite familiar with the concept of adultery. If you’re certain that your spouse has committed adultery and you find it intolerable to live with him or her, you can file for divorce. However, adultery is not always the easiest fact to prove and you may wish to hire a private investigator if you wish to rely on this fact.
UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR
Unreasonable behaviour is exactly that. Unreasonable behaviour. If you wish to rely on this as a fact to show the irretrievable breakdown of your marriage, you’ll have to show that your spouse behaved in such a way that you cannot reasonably be expected to live with him or her.
Unreasonable behaviour is a subjective concept and you will have to demonstrate to the court that the circumstances of your case actually constitute unreasonable behaviour.
Sometimes, divorce clients having difficulty proving ‘adultery’ may choose to pursue ending the marriage through ‘unreasonable behaviour’ instead.
DESERTION
This isn’t a commonly used fact to prove an irretrievable breakdown of marriage in Singapore. If you wish to rely on this fact, you’ll need to show your spouse has deserted you for a continuous period of at least two years immediately before the filing of your divorce proceedings.
You must show that both parties have been living separately for two years, and that your spouse intended to desert you.
LIVING APART (SEPARATION)
These actually constitute two separate facts in the Women’s Charter. You will have to prove that you and your spouse have been living separately for a continuous period of three years or four years.
This has to be as a result of a choice made by the parties and not because of extenuating circumstances (e.g. working overseas for an extended period of time).
The main difference between the two separate facts for ‘living apart’ is that your spouse will have to consent to the divorce under ‘separation for three years’ whereas consent is not required under ‘separation for four years’.
Other Options
As mentioned earlier, you may be able to consider annulment proceedings in certain limited situations. However, if annulment isn’t an available option as well, you may wish to consider speaking to a good divorce lawyer about legal separation in Singapore.
The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information and content available on this website are for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information.
