- A PPO restrains a family member from using family violence against the protected person.
- Since 2 January 2025, family violence includes sexual, emotional and psychological abuse as well as physical harm.
- The court must be satisfied that family violence has been or is likely to be committed, and that the order is needed for protection.
- Urgent protection is available through an Expedited Order while the PPO application is pending.
- Breaching a PPO is a criminal offence. A PPO and a divorce are separate proceedings.
What a PPO does
A personal protection order is an order made by the Family Courts to protect a person from family violence. It restrains the person named in it from committing further family violence against the protected person.
Protection can extend to a spouse or former spouse, a child (including an adopted child or stepchild), a parent, a parent-in-law, a sibling, and certain other relatives whom the court considers part of the family.
What counts as family violence
Amendments to the Women's Charter that took effect on 2 January 2025 widened the definition of family violence. Before then, it focused on hurt, fear of hurt, wrongful confinement and continual harassment. It now expressly covers:
- physical abuse, including causing or threatening injury, and wrongfully confining or restraining a person
- sexual abuse, meaning conduct that coerces or tries to coerce a person into sexual activity
- emotional or psychological abuse, meaning conduct that torments, intimidates, harasses or distresses a person, or that may reasonably be expected to cause mental harm
One example given in the law is threatening to stop a spouse's monthly allowance if they contact their family, where the spouse suffers mental harm as a result. Firms point out that the courts have also made clear that not every family disagreement or unpleasant exchange will amount to family violence.
The test the court applies
The court can grant a PPO if it is satisfied, on a balance of probabilities, that family violence has been or is likely to be committed against the family member, and that the order is necessary for their protection. This is a lower standard than in a criminal case. A PPO can also be made by consent.
Following the amendments, people aged 18 and over can apply for themselves. For a younger child, or a person who cannot apply on their own, an application can be made by a parent, guardian or another person permitted by law.
Other orders
Depending on the situation, the court can make further orders alongside or instead of a PPO:
- Expedited Order: interim protection while the PPO application is pending. Since the amendments, the court can grant one where there is a danger of family violence; previously the danger had to be imminent.
- Domestic Exclusion Order: excludes the person from all or part of the protected person's home.
- Orders such as counselling orders, mandatory treatment orders, and orders keeping the person away from specific places or stopping contact.
The amendments also created Protectors appointed by the Ministry of Social and Family Development. In high-risk cases they can intervene and issue an emergency order on the spot, which lasts for 14 days to give the survivor time to apply for a PPO.
Evidence
Evidence helps in any application. It can include police reports, medical reports, photographs of injuries or damage, and messages or emails. Keeping a dated record of incidents can also be useful. Emotional abuse can be harder to prove because it may leave no visible signs, so contemporaneous records matter.
If an application has been made against you, it should not be ignored. Being named does not mean the allegations are proven, and you will have the chance to respond.
Breach of a PPO
A breach of a PPO or a related order is a criminal offence. If it happens, a police report should be made, and the person can be arrested and charged. The 2023 amendments increased the maximum penalties for breaching family violence orders.
PPOs and divorce
A PPO and a divorce are separate proceedings, and a PPO does not by itself decide the outcome of a divorce. Findings of family violence may still be relevant to other family matters, such as arrangements for the children.
Help is also available outside the courts, including from the Ministry of Social and Family Development's Protection Specialist Centres. In an emergency, call the police.
This guide is general information only. Whether a PPO is appropriate depends on the facts of each case.
This article is general information on Singapore law and is not legal advice. Rules and agency policies change, and every situation is different. For advice on your own circumstances, speak with a lawyer at the firm.
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