As the Office of the Public Guardian, we enable and provide safeguards to protect persons who lack mental capacity.
What We Do
The Office of the Public Guardian carries out various functions towards enabling and protecting persons who lack mental capacity.
The office supports the Public Guardian, who is appointed under the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act. The Public Guardian’s key statutory functions under the Act include:
- Setting up and maintaining registers of Lasting Power of Attorneys and of court orders appointing deputies.
- Supervising deputies.
- Receiving reports from donees and deputies.
- Investigating any alleged violation of any provision in the Mental Capacity Act, including complaints about the way in which donees and deputies are exercising their powers.
The OPG is currently consulting stakeholders extensively to develop a registration framework for professional deputies and finalising the prescribed classes of persons to be professional donees following the MCA amendments. More details will be provided in due course.
For More Information
Who We Help
- Persons who lack mental capacity and have court appointed deputies to act and make decisions on their behalf.
- Donors – Persons who are 21 years or older and wish to voluntarily appoint others to act and make decisions on their behalf when they lack mental capacity in the future.
- Donees – Persons appointed by donors to act or make decisions on their behalf when they lack mental capacity.
- Deputies – Persons appointed by the Courts to act or make decisions on behalf of someone who lacks mental capacity.
- Parents of children with intellectual disabilities (where the children are below the age of 21 years) who apply to the court to appoint a deputy for their children.
- Caregivers – Persons caring for individuals who lack mental capacity.
- Stakeholders – Persons in the medical, financial, legal and social work sector, who may come into contact with donors, donees and deputies.
- General members of the public who wish to find out more about the Mental Capacity Act and the Office of the Public Guardian.
- Professional Donees – Persons appointed by individuals with mental capacity to provide doneeship services to donors for remuneration. They must be unrelated to the donor.
- Professional Deputies – Persons appointed by the Courts to provide deputyship services for remuneration. They must be unrelated to the person whom they are appointed to act for.
Background on the Office of the Public Guardian
The office supports the Public Guardian in carrying out his statutory duties.
The Act sets out a clear legislative framework to empower Singaporeans to appoint trusted persons to make decisions on their behalf in the event they lose their mental capacity due to conditions such as dementia, traumatic brain damage or stroke.
It also sets out safeguards to protect these vulnerable members of our society.
