The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) introduced the Stillbirths and Births (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill in Parliament on Nov. 7, 2023, which aims to allow parents of stillborns to register the name of their child within a year officially.

"This is in recognition that stillbirths are similar to the loss of any child, which can be a painful experience for parents, and the official naming of a stillborn child may help some bereaved parents," said MHA in a press release.

After the new provisions introduced by the bill are operationalised, parents who wish to name their stillborn child may apply for a "commemorative birth certificate" from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority that reflects the stillborn child’s name "for remembrance purposes".

In Singapore, the Registration of Births and Deaths Act 2021 (RBDA 2021) governs the registration of births, deaths, and stillbirths.

Under RBDA 2021, a "stillborn child" means a child that issues from the child’s mother after the twenty‑second week of pregnancy and does not show any sign of life at any time after birth.

Abortion not considered stillbirth

Besides provisions for the "commemorative birth certificate", the bill also introduces amendments to the definition of "stillborn child".

The bill will amend the definition of a stillborn child from after 22 weeks to after 24 weeks of pregnancy to align with the cut-off for abortions, legislated under the Termination of Pregnancy Act 1974.

MHA explained that the stillbirth threshold in the RBDA 2021 may be misinterpreted to be an indication of foetal viability, causing confusion for parents facing important and difficult decisions about medical interventions for their unborn child.

MHA added that there are also concerns from the medical community that such ambiguities may lead to pressure on medical practitioners to use more liberal treatment for or resuscitation of infants born between 22 and 24 weeks of pregnancy, resulting in potentially severe neurodevelopmental disabilities in infants who survive and higher rates of futile attempts at resuscitation.

Given the concerns, MHA clarified that the RBDA 2021 is not meant to indicate foetal viability nor guide medical practice, and the amendments introduced by the bill should remove any potential confusion regarding foetal viability.

In addition, the bill will make clear that abortion is not considered a stillbirth and makes miscellaneous amendments to the definition of “stillborn child” in the Income Tax Act 1947 for the purposes of administering tax benefits.

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