After a Divorce in Singapore: Will, LPA, CPF and Insurance

Does a divorce revoke my will in Singapore?

No. Marriage revokes a will, but divorce does not. A will that leaves your estate to your former spouse, or names them as executor, remains valid after the final judgment until you revoke or replace it.

Section 13(1) of the Wills Act 1838 provides that a will is revoked by the testator’s marriage, subject to section 13(2), which saves a will expressed to be made in contemplation of that marriage. There is no matching provision for divorce or annulment. Section 14 adds that no will is revoked “by any presumption of an intention on the ground of an alteration in circumstances”, and section 15 lists the only other ways to revoke: a later will or codicil, a duly executed writing, or deliberate destruction.

Take a hypothetical. A woman’s will leaves everything to her husband and appoints him sole executor. They divorce and she never revisits it. On her death, her former husband takes the estate, even if she would plainly have preferred her children. The court cannot rewrite the will because her circumstances changed.

The fix is a new will that expressly revokes the old one. After a divorce the whole scheme usually needs rethinking, so a fresh will is often cleaner than a codicil. See our guides on how to make a valid will in Singapore and changing or revoking a will by codicil.

What if I have no will after my divorce?

If you are not Muslim, your estate passes under the Intestate Succession Act 1967. Once the divorce is final, your former spouse is no longer your spouse, so the share reserved for a “surviving spouse” goes to your children, or to your parents if you have no children.

Under section 7 of the Intestate Succession Act 1967, a surviving spouse takes half the estate where there are children (rule 2) and the children share the rest (rule 3). Section 2 excludes the estates of Muslims. Timing matters: the Family Justice Courts explain that the final judgment “finalises and completes the divorce process”, and it cannot be extracted until three months after interim judgment or until ancillary matters relating to the children are resolved, whichever is later. If you die between interim and final judgment, you are still married.

Is my CPF nomination cancelled by divorce?

No. The CPF Board states plainly that divorce does not revoke a CPF nomination. If you nominated your spouse during the marriage, your former spouse will still receive your CPF savings unless you make a new nomination.

Marriage revokes a CPF nomination, but divorce does not. In a parliamentary reply on 20 March 2023, the Minister for Manpower said that “Like wills, CPF nominations are not revoked in the event of a divorce”, because a member may still intend to provide for a former spouse.

You can make a new nomination online with Singpass, free of charge, with two witnesses aged 21 and above who are not your nominees. A CPF nomination covers your CPF savings, not a flat bought with them; see our guide on CPF and HDB after a death.

What happens to my insurance nominations?

The Insurance Act 1966 does not revoke a policy nomination on divorce. A revocable nomination can be changed by you at any time. A trust nomination in favour of your spouse is different: you generally cannot revoke it without your former spouse’s written consent.

The nomination provisions sit in Part 3C of the Insurance Act 1966:

• Trust nomination (section 132). Only a spouse and children may be nominated, and the policy moneys fall outside your estate (section 132(4)). Under section 132(7), revoking it needs prior written consent from a trustee other than you, or from each adult nominee and a parent or guardian (other than you) of each minor nominee. A revocation without that consent is void (section 132(10)).
• Revocable nomination (section 133). Any person can be nominated, and you may revoke it at any time in the prescribed manner (section 133(4)). A later nomination, or a qualifying will that deals with the policy, also revokes it (section 133(7)).

Divorce is not a revoking event for either type. Replace a revocable nomination through your insurer now; a trust nomination of your former spouse will usually need their signed consent to undo. It is sensible to raise this during the ancillary matters, while both parties are still negotiating.

Can my former spouse still act under my LPA?

Usually not. Under the Mental Capacity Act 2008, the dissolution or annulment of the marriage between donor and donee ends the donee’s appointment, unless the LPA itself provides that it should not.

Section 15(5)(c) of the Mental Capacity Act 2008 lists the dissolution or annulment of a marriage between the donor and the donee as a terminating event. Under section 15(4), it terminates the donee’s appointment and also revokes the whole power, unless a replacement donee is named or another donee appointed jointly and severally remains (section 15(6)). Section 15(8) preserves the appointment if the instrument provided that divorce was not to end it.

The practical risk is being left with no working LPA. If your former spouse was your only donee and you named no replacement, the LPA is revoked, and if you later lose mental capacity your family may need to apply to court for deputyship. The government’s MyLegacy service explains that to change a donee you must notify your donees in writing, revoke the existing LPA, and register a new one. Our LPA guide covers the process.

What about a home we own as joint tenants?

The divorce itself does not change the title. Until the court’s order on the matrimonial home is carried out and the title is updated, the register may still show you as joint tenants, and on a death the whole property can pass to the surviving co-owner by survivorship regardless of any will.

The court divides matrimonial assets, including the home, under section 112 of the Women’s Charter 1961, often by ordering a sale or a transfer to one party. The next steps depend on the property:

• Private property. Under section 53(5) of the Land Titles Act 1993, a joint tenant of registered land may sever the joint tenancy by registering an instrument of declaration and serving a copy on the other joint tenants. Once registered, the owners hold as tenants-in-common (section 53(6)), and each share can pass under a will. This can be a useful interim step while a sale or transfer is pending.
• HDB flats. Changes of ownership go through HDB, which applies conditions to divorce cases and eligibility rules to proposed owners. Follow the timetable in the court order closely.

See our guides on what happens when an HDB flat owner dies and on the divorce process and ancillary matters.

How do I protect children who are still minors?

If you die while your children are young, your former spouse, as the surviving parent, will normally become their guardian. You cannot exclude them by will, but you can appoint a testamentary guardian to act alongside them, and you can choose who manages the money you leave.

Under section 6 of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1934, on the death of one parent the surviving parent is guardian, alone or jointly with any guardian the deceased parent appointed. Section 7 allows each parent to appoint a guardian by deed or will. That guardian acts jointly with the surviving parent unless the parent objects, in which case the guardian may apply to court (section 7(4)). The child’s welfare is the paramount consideration (section 3).

Money is a separate question. The CPF Board pays a nominee’s share to the Public Trustee’s Office to hold until the child turns 18, unless you nominate a trustee or trust company instead. In your will, you can leave a child’s share on trust with a trustee you choose.

What should I do once my divorce is final?

Work through each item in turn. None of them updates itself.

Item	Effect of divorce	Action
Will	Not revoked	Make a new will revoking the old one
No will	Former spouse no longer takes on intestacy after final judgment	Make a will to choose your executor, trustees and guardians
CPF nomination	Not revoked	Make a new nomination online
Insurance: revocable nomination	Not revoked	Submit a new nomination to your insurer
Insurance: trust nomination of spouse	Not revoked	Obtain the required consent to revoke; raise it in the ancillary matters
LPA naming former spouse	Appointment ends unless the LPA says otherwise; power may be revoked entirely	Check whether a donee remains; make a new LPA
Jointly held property	Title unchanged until order carried out	Complete the sale or transfer; consider severance for private property
Minor children	Surviving parent normally becomes guardian	Appoint a testamentary guardian and trustee in your will

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Frequently asked questions

Should I update my will after interim judgment or wait for final judgment?

You do not have to wait. You remain married until final judgment, but you can make a new will at any time, and it will govern your estate if you die between the two judgments.

My will names my former spouse as executor. Can they still act?

Yes. The Wills Act 1838 contains no rule removing a former spouse as executor on divorce, so the appointment stands until you make a new will or codicil changing it.

Can I remove my former spouse from a trust nomination on my insurance policy?

Only with the consent required by section 132(7) of the Insurance Act 1966, usually your former spouse’s written consent or that of an independent trustee. Without it, a revocation is void.

Does divorce cancel my whole LPA?

It can. If your former spouse was your only donee, with no replacement donee named, section 15 of the Mental Capacity Act 2008 means the power is revoked, not just their appointment. Check your registered LPA and consider making a new one.

Does my CPF nomination cover my HDB flat?

No. A CPF nomination covers your CPF savings. A flat passes according to how it is held: by survivorship if held as joint tenants, or under your will or intestacy if held as tenants-in-common.

This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. The law stated is as at October 2026.