Employment and Support Needs

Your child or ward should have the same employment rights and protections as any employee, such as entitlement to timely salary payments, paid medical leave, and standard protections under the Employment Act 1968.

The Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices require employers to hire and treat employees fairly based on merit, and discrimination based on disability is inconsistent with these guidelines. If your family member faces workplace discrimination because of their disability, you can report this to the Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practice (TAFEP).

The new Workplace Fairness Act 2025 is slated to take effect in end-2027. It aims to strengthen fair and harmonious workplaces in Singapore and protect employees from discrimination based on protected characteristics such as disability and mental health conditions.

As a general rule, no. Doctors owe a duty of confidentiality to their patients and must not disclose medical information without the patient's consent except in very limited circumstances.

If you discover that a healthcare provider has disclosed your mental health information (or that of the person you care for) to an employer or a third party without consent, you may:

1. Make a complaint to the Singapore Medical Council.
2. Seek legal advice on whether a civil claim for breach of confidence is available.

There are narrow exceptions to the duty of confidentiality, including:

• Where the patient has given consent.
• Where disclosure is required by law (for example, certain infectious diseases must be reported to the Ministry of Health).
• Where disclosure is necessary to prevent serious harm to the patient themselves or to others.
• For treatment purposes—sharing information with other members of the treating healthcare team.

Outside of these narrow exceptions, disclosing a patient's mental health information to others without consent can constitute a serious breach of professional standards.

An employer may ask general questions about your fitness for work. However, the extent to which you are required to disclose a mental health condition depends on the context. In Singapore, there is currently no specific anti-discrimination legislation for persons with disabilities in employment. However:

• The Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices advise employers not to make employment decisions based on protected characteristics such as disability.
• If you voluntarily disclose a condition, your employer should treat that information as confidential.
• It is advisable to seek legal advice before disclosing sensitive health information to an employer, and to understand your rights regarding medical privacy.

Not necessarily. A contract entered into by a person who did not have the mental capacity to understand it at the time of signing is voidable—meaning it can be set aside—but it is not automatically void. To set it aside, the person who lacked capacity must generally show that the other contracting party knew, or ought to have known, about the lack of capacity. The key test is whether the person understood the transaction.

You would generally need to:

1. Gather medical evidence establishing that the person lacked capacity at the time the contract was signed.
2. Show that the other party knew or should have known about this.
3. Bring a court application to have the contract declared voidable and set aside.

You should seek legal advice promptly, particularly if the contract involves significant financial commitments such as a loan, mortgage, or guarantee.

Find out more:

• Workright: Know Your Employment Rights by the Ministry of Manpower
• Guide on Workplace Fairness by TAFEP

Legal Guidance and Representation:

• Legal Aid: Check what legal aid you can apply for here (Note: legal aid is for individuals unable to afford a lawyer, and the application process will likely involve means-testing).
• Find a Lawyer: If you do not qualify for legal aid, you may find a lawyer using the following directories:
  • Ministry of Law Directory
  • Law Society of Singapore Directory

Social assistance: 

• Assistive Technology Fund by SG Enable: Provides subsidies for persons with disabilities to purchase assistive technology devices to enable independent living.