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Govt White Paper calls for legalising of elective egg freezing for women aged 21 to 35

SINGAPORE — Women aged between 21 and 35 in Singapore may be allowed to freeze their eggs for non-medical reasons as early as next year, with the Government recognising that there are women who are unable to find a partner when they are younger.

Egg freezing is a process which allows women to preserve their eggs while they are younger and of better quality. They can be thawed at a later date to achieve pregnancy.
Egg freezing is a process which allows women to preserve their eggs while they are younger and of better quality. They can be thawed at a later date to achieve pregnancy.
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SINGAPORE — Women aged between 21 and 35 in Singapore may be allowed to freeze their eggs for non-medical reasons as early as next year, with the Government recognising that there are women who are unable to find a partner when they are younger.

Women in this age group will have the choice to freeze their eggs regardless of their marital status.

However, they can only use their frozen eggs for procreation if they are legally married.

The recommendation to make elective egg freezing legal is one of several proposals put forth in a White Paper on women’s development in Singapore which was submitted to Parliament on Monday (March 28).

The White Paper, which aims to build a "fairer and more inclusive society, where men and women partner each other as equals", was put together after a year-long nationwide conversation on issues relating to women.

If the White Paper is endorsed by Parliament, the implementation of the elective egg freezing will take place in early 2023, in tandem with the introduction of the Assisted Reproduction Services Regulations under the Healthcare Services Act.

"The Government has studied the options and recognises that there is no compelling medical reason to prohibit elective egg freezing as it is medically viable," stated the paper. 

Egg freezing is a process which allows women to preserve their eggs while they are younger and of better quality.

The eggs are harvested from a woman’s ovaries, frozen and stored.

They can be thawed at a later date to achieve pregnancy. The pregnancy can be achieved by combining the egg with a sperm in a lab and implanted in the woman’s uterus. 

Currently, women in Singapore are only allowed to freeze their eggs for medical purposes, such as for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, which could adversely affect a woman’s fertility.

In comments to the media, Ms Sun Xueling, the Minister of State for Social and Family Development, said that the Government encourages Singaporeans to pursue their marriage and parenthood aspirations as early as possible.

“But we recognise through the conversations that there are women who worry that they are not able to find a suitable partner when they are young but they wish to have the chance to conceive and to start a family when they marry later.

“After considering various options, the Government thus proposes to allow women to have the choice to undergo elective egg freezing,” said Ms Sun.

She added that women will go through counselling so that they can make an informed choice before the egg freezing procedure takes place.

They will be informed of the invasive nature of the procedure, the risks associated with late parenthood as well as the costs of the operation and storage of frozen eggs, added Ms Sun.

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White Paper egg freezing women Parliament

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