Thursday, October 1, 2020

Law on Abortion in Singapore

With the Abortion Act coming into effect on 20 March 1970, abortion was made legal in Singapore under most cases, but it was only in 1974 that the law was further liberalised, and abortion was made legal and available to any woman who wanted one. According to the United Nations World Abortion Policies 2013, Singapore’s current Termination of Pregnancy Act (“the Act“) makes the Republic one of three countries in Southeast Asia that legally allows for abortion upon request by a woman, with the other two countries being Vietnam and Cambodia.


Does this law on abortion only apply to Singaporean women?

Currently, the Termination of Pregnancy Act states that abortions may only be carried out with the written consent of the patient by an authorised medical practitioner in an approved institution for women who meet the following criteria:

  • The woman is a Singapore citizen or is the spouse of a Singaporean;
  • The woman is the holder of a valid work pass or is the spouse of someone holding a valid work pass;
  • The woman has been a resident in Singapore for a period of at least 4 months preceding the medical procedure.

However, even if a woman does not meet any of these criteria, it would still be legal to carry out an abortion in Singapore if the procedure is necessary and urgent to save the life of the pregnant woman.

Currently, there is no defined age limit for the procedure, nor is it legally required for minors to seek parental consent for the procedure if they are under 21. Additionally, while the law does not mandate it, the Ministry of Health has imposed a requirement for women seeking an abortion that they must undergo personal counselling and a 48-hour cooling-off period. Unmarried minors under the age of 16 are required to attend pre-abortion counselling at the Health Promotion Board Counselling Centre.


Are there any limitations to the abortion law?

Section 4 of the Termination of Pregnancy Act states that no abortion procedure should be carried out if the pregnancy is more than 24 weeks old unless the treatment is necessary and urgent to save the life of the woman, or to prevent grave permanent injury to the mental or physical health of the woman.

The Courts recognise two ways of determining the duration of the pregnancy: Either by clinical examination; or it may be calculated from the first day of the last normal menstruation of the pregnant woman to the end of the 24th week.


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