How matrimonial assets are divided in a Singapore divorce

What goes into the pool

Matrimonial assets include anything either spouse acquired during the marriage. Assets owned before the marriage can also count if the family ordinarily used them, such as the home or a car, or if they were substantially improved during the marriage.

Gifts and inheritances are generally excluded, unless they became the matrimonial home or were substantially improved during the marriage. A typical pool includes the flat or other property, CPF savings, bank accounts, investments and vehicles.

When both spouses worked

For dual-income marriages, the courts use a structured approach set out in the case of ANJ v ANK. In broad terms, the court:

• works out each spouse's share of the direct financial contributions to acquiring or improving the assets
• works out each spouse's share of the indirect contributions, such as homemaking, caring for the children, supporting the other's career and paying household bills
• averages the two ratios
• adjusts the result where needed to reach a just and equitable outcome

When one spouse was the homemaker

In a single-income marriage, where one spouse was mainly the earner and the other mainly the homemaker, the courts do not use the structured approach, because it would unfairly favour the earning spouse (TNL v TNK). Long single-income marriages tend towards equal division unless the facts point elsewhere.

What matters is the roles the spouses actually played, not labels. Some part-time work by the homemaker does not by itself make it a dual-income marriage, and the approach applies equally where the husband was the homemaker.

The HDB flat and CPF

The usual options for an HDB flat are for one spouse to keep it, if eligible under HDB's rules; to sell it and divide the proceeds; or to return it to HDB if the Minimum Occupation Period has not been met. Eligibility rules change, so check HDB's current rules for your situation.

CPF savings built up during the marriage form part of the pool. The court can order a transfer between CPF accounts, but the money stays in CPF under the usual withdrawal rules.

Getting advice

The size of the pool and how contributions are counted often matter more than any general rule. A lawyer can help you list the assets, gather the evidence of contributions and form a realistic view of the likely division.