In the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the Circuit Breaker measures put in place by the Government to counteract this health crisis, parents are reminded to discharge their responsibilities by cooperating with each other, and act sensibly and safely in all arrangements made for their child(ren). Turning to the Court should be the last resort. Parents should communicate with each other, or through their lawyers (if any), regarding existing orders relating to access. They should work together to find practical and suitable solutions to access issues, and any other child-related issues that arise, bearing in mind the best interests of their child(ren) and the need to comply with the measures put in place by the Government.

Kenneth Yap
Registrar, Family Justice Courts
7 April 2020

Child(ren) access arrangements

With the revision to the COVID-19 (temporary measures) Act 2020 on the restrictions on the movement of people, parents are allowed to transfer temporary custody or care of a child pursuant to any agreement regarding the access rights of a parent of the child, or in discharge of a legal obligation. Please refer to the regulation here.  

For Court-ordered Supervised Exchange or Supervised Visits (SESV), the Divorce Support Specialist Agencies (DSSA) also provide remote access sessions through online platforms. The DSSAs have put in place safe management measures for the safety of the families and staff, which include putting staff on split-team arrangements and allowing fewer persons at the venue. This has resulted in fewer face-to-face SESV slots due to the reduced operational capacity. DSSAs will be providing a mix of face-to-face sessions with remote sessions to enable services to continue.