Under ACA 2022, applicants must reside in Singapore for a continuous period of one year immediately preceding the date of the making of the application for the Adoption Suitability Assessment (ASA) e.g. the PAs must have resided in Singapore from 1 May 2024 till 31 Apr 2025 in order to apply to the Court to adopt a child on 1 May 2025. Besides ensuring an accurate assessment, this ensures that the applicants have settled down and have support networks in Singapore. The continuous one-year period of residence excludes short trips overseas. Hence, if a married couple takes a two-week vacation overseas, and subsequently returns to Singapore, they will still be considered as having fulfilled the habitual residency requirement of a continuous period of one year.

Where there is doubt about the applicant’s habitual residency, the applicant’s habitual residence will be determined by the Court.