What is Maintenance?

by | Mar 7, 2016 | Knowledge & Insights

What is Maintenance?

  • Maintenance is the financial support gave to pay for the reasonable costs of accommodation, clothing, food and living expenses required by a Wife or Child
  • Every Husband has a statutory (legal) duty to provide Maintenance for his Wife, and every parent has the same responsibility to provide Maintenance for the parent’s Child
  • A party can formally apply to the Family Justice Court to get a Maintenance Order which will officially order the Husband or parent to provide Maintenance to his Wife or Children
    • The Wife has a right to claim Maintenance from the Husband regardless of her misconduct
    • However, a Wife’s misconduct can affect the amount of Maintenance that the Family Justice Court awards her
    • The duty to provide Maintenance for the Wife and Child exists regardless of whether Divorce Court cases are ongoing (i.e. the Husband or Father must maintain his Wife and Children even when the marriage has not broken down and when the marriage has not been ended)
  • Maintenance can be paid by giving a monthly allowance or making a lump sum payment
About the author

About the author

Jonathan Wong

Jonathan is the Founder and Managing Director of Tembusu Law. He is also the founder of LawGuide Singapore, a prominent legaltech startup which successfully created and launched Singapore’s first legal chatbot in 2017.