PART 21: ELECTRONIC FILING SERVICES

21A: General
169. Application
21B: Electronic Filing under the IELS
170. Proceedings for which the IELS is to be used
171. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and appointment of electronic filing service provider
172. Appointment of agent to establish service bureau
173. Registered user and authorised user
174. Certificate of Service
175. Form of documents
176. Pagination of documents
177. Filing documents through service bureau
178. Filing of documents to the Family Justice Courts through another service bureau
179. Limits on the size and number of documents submitted using the IELS
180. Documents which cannot be converted into an electronic format
181. Rejection of documents, back-dating and refund of penalty
182. Hard copies of documents
183. Responsibility for accuracy and completeness of information submitted using the IELS
21C: Electronic Filing under the iFAMS
184. Proceedings for which the iFAMS is to be used
185. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and appointment of electronic filing service provider
186. Authorised user and authorised agent
187. Electronic filing of written complaints
188. Documents
189. Documents which cannot be converted into electronic format
190. Amendment of documents
191. Limits on size and number of documents submitted using the iFAMS
21D: Electronic Filing under the ICMS
192. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and proceedings for which the ICMS is to be used

21A: General

169. Application

(1) Where the words and phrases set out in Part 28, Rule 2 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 are used in Part 21, they shall have the same meaning as defined in Part 28, Rule 2 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, unless otherwise specified.

(2) The directions in Part 21B apply in relation to the IELS only.

(3) The directions in Part 21C apply in relation to the iFAMS only.

(4) The directions in Part 21D apply in relation to the ICMS only.

21B: Electronic Filing under the IELS

170. Proceedings for which the IELS is to be used

Pursuant to Part 28, Rules 3 and 6 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar hereby specifies that the IELS is to be used for all civil proceedings in the Family Justice Courts (including appeals from quasi-criminal proceedings) and all documents to be filed with, served on, delivered or otherwise conveyed to the Registrar in such proceedings must be so filed, served, delivered or otherwise conveyed using the IELS.

171. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and appointment of electronic filing service provider

In exercise of the powers conferred by Part 28, Rules 3 and 4 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar, with the approval of the Chief Justice, has established an Electronic Filing Service known as the Integrated Electronic Litigation System or eLitigation and accessible at https://www.elitigation.sg and has appointed CrimsonLogic Pte Ltd as the Electronic Filing Service provider.

172. Appointment of agent to establish service bureau

Pursuant to Part 28, Rule 13 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar has appointed CrimsonLogic Pte Ltd as an agent to establish a service bureau or service bureaux at such address or addresses in Singapore as may be deemed suitable.

173. Registered user and authorised user

(1) For the purposes of Part 28 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the identification code of an authorised user is the authorised user’s SingPass ID.

(2) For the purposes of Part 28, Rule 14(1) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, an application to the Registrar to be a registered user is to be made using Form 151 of Appendix B of these Practice Directions. For the purposes of Part 28, Rule 14(2) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, a registered user may designate one or more authorised users by nominating at least 1 authorised user in Form 151 of Appendix B of these Practice Directions. In either case, Form 151 must be accompanied by the following:

(a) a recent business profile report of the registered user from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA);
(b) an application form including the subscriber agreement for subscription to the IELS; and
(c) 2 sets of GIRO application forms for the electronic payment of filing and hearing fees, and electronic filing and other charges.

174. Certificate of Service

Where documents are served using the IELS, a Certificate of Service will automatically be generated and stored in the electronic case file.

175. Form of documents

(1) Unless otherwise provided for in these Practice Directions or directed by the Court, it is not necessary for documents that are electronically filed in Court to have a cover page or backing sheet.

(2) Parties are reminded that they must, at all times, ensure that the information stored in the frontend system is up-to-date and free from errors as the same information will be reproduced in electronic forms that are generated by the IELS. Documents generated by the IELS containing outdated or wrong information will be rejected by the Registry and the fee payable is stipulated in the Third Schedule to the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

(3) In the event that the IELS fails to automatically generate the document information page, parties may undertake the procedure outlined in paragraph 181(2) of these Practice Directions.

176. Pagination of documents

Every single page of a document must be paginated so that the pagination on the actual document corresponds with the pagination of the Portable Document Format (PDF) document in the electronic case file. The attention of solicitors is drawn to paragraphs 133(6) and 136(3) in this regard. This is to facilitate hearings involving reference to both hard and soft copies of the same document.

177. Filing documents through service bureau

(1) Solicitors and law firms are encouraged to file documents through the IELS. However, in the event that certain documents cannot be filed through the IELS, solicitors and law firms may file documents through the service bureau. A party who is not legally represented may also file documents through the service bureau.

(2) The operating hours of the service bureau may be found on the IELS website at https://www.elitigation.sg.

(3) Documents to be filed through the service bureau must comply with these Practice Directions and all applicable administrative instructions and procedures prescribed by the service bureau with the approval of the superintendent.

178. Filing of documents to the Family Justice Courts through another service bureau

Pursuant to Part 28, Rule 19(4) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar hereby prescribes that any service bureau established or authorised to be established by the Registrar of the Supreme Court or the Registrar of the State Courts may be used to assist in the filing, service, delivery or conveyance of documents pertaining to Family Justice Courts proceedings using the IELS in all cases and circumstances where the staff of that service bureau are able to provide such assistance.

179. Limits on the size and number of documents submitted using the IELS

(1) The following limits currently apply to the filing of documents using the IELS:

(a) The total number of documents in a single submission cannot exceed 99.
(b) The total number of pages in a single document cannot exceed 9,999.
(c) The size of a single transmission cannot exceed 500 mega-bytes.

(2) The limits described in sub-paragraph (1) will apply to filing online through both the IELS and the service bureau.

(3) The resolution for scanning of documents, unless otherwise directed by the Court, must be no more than 300 DPI.

(4) In the event that any solicitor wishes to file documents which exceed the limits specified in sub-paragraph (1), he or she should inform the Registrar at least 14 days before the intended filing date. The solicitor will then be asked to attend before the Registrar for directions on how the documents should be filed.

180. Documents which cannot be converted into an electronic format

(1) If a document cannot be converted in whole or in part into an electronic format for any reason, the hard copy of the document must be filed at the Registry.

(2) If the Court receives a document which the filing party says cannot be converted in whole or in part into an electronic format, and it can discern no good reason why the document cannot be converted into an electronic format, the document may be rejected.

181. Rejection of documents, back-dating and refund of penalty

(1) Care must be taken to enter correct, complete and accurate information into the electronic form. If the information entered into the electronic form and the actual document differ, the document is likely to be rejected by the Court. If a document is rejected by the Court for any reason, a penalty may nonetheless be payable in respect of the document, as specified in the Third Schedule of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024. In this regard, the attention of solicitors is also drawn to Part 28, Rule 12 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

(2) In the event that any document is rejected through no fault of the filing party, a solicitor may:

(a) re-file the document with a request that the date and time of filing or issuance, as the case may be, be back-dated to an earlier date and time, pursuant to Part 28, Rule 8(4) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024; and
(b) request a refund by submitting the requisite electronic form through the IELS.

(3) Where permission of Court has been obtained to expunge parts of a document or affidavit from the Court record, an applicant or his or her solicitor must re-file the document or affidavit with the expunged parts redacted.

(4) To avoid doubt, a filing fee will be payable in respect of the re-filed document or affidavit as specified in the Third Schedule to the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 and the filing fee paid on the earlier filing of that document or affidavit will not be refunded.

182. Hard copies of documents

(1) The Registrar may, in the Registrar’s discretion, request hard copies of any documents filed electronically.

(2) Upon such request, the filing party or that party’s solicitors must furnish hard copies of the relevant documents at the venue specified by the Registrar:

(a) within the specified time frame; or
(b) within 24 hours of the request, if no time frame is specified.

(3) The Registrar may also direct that any documents are to be filed in hard copy instead of using the IELS for such period or periods as the Registrar thinks fit.

183. Responsibility for accuracy and completeness of information submitted using the IELS

(1) The solicitor having the conduct of any cause or matter may delegate the task of filing originating processes and documents in Court to an assistant or a suitably experienced solicitor’s employee or secretary, provided always that the solicitor is to personally satisfy himself or herself as to the accuracy and completeness of the information submitted to the Court, and will personally bear responsibility for any errors or deficiencies.

(2) In particular, solicitors should ensure the following:

(a) that the title of the action generated using the IELS is accurate and correct;
(b) where an action is commenced by way of an originating application, that either the relevant legislation under which the action is brought is provided or at least 1 nature of claim is selected that adequately represents the subject matter of the action; and
(c) where a document submitted is a digitally verifiable document issued by the Registry of Births and Deaths, Singapore (e.g. a Digital Death Certificate or Digital Death Extract or a Digital Birth Certificate) or an electronic grant of probate or letters of administration issued by a foreign court, that its authenticity has been verified.

Consolidated or transferred cases in civil proceedings

(3) Where permission of Court has been obtained to consolidate cases or transfer a case from the Supreme Court to the Family Justice Courts, the applicant or his or her solicitor must inform the Registry of the order for consolidation or transfer by way of an “Other Hearing Related Request” through the IELS.

21C: Electronic Filing under the iFAMS

184. Proceedings for which the iFAMS is to be used

Pursuant to Part 28, Rules 3 and 6 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar hereby specifies that the iFAMS is to be used for an application under Part 5, Rule 8 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 and all Category 1 proceedings, Category 2 proceedings and Category 3 proceedings as defined in Part 3, Rule 2 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024 and all documents to be filed with, served on, delivered or otherwise conveyed to the Registrar in such proceedings must be so filed, served, delivered or otherwise conveyed using the iFAMS.

185. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and appointment of electronic filing service provider

(1) In exercise of the powers conferred by Part 28, Rules 3 and 4 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar, with the approval of the Chief Justice, has established an Electronic Filing Service known as the Integrated Family Application Management System.

(2) The iFAMS is accessible at:

(a) https://ifams.gov.sg for a party who acts in person or a solicitor appointed to act on a party’s behalf.
(b) https://ifams.gov.sg/FSA for individuals designated as authorised agents as defined in Part 28, Rule 2 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

186. Authorised user and authorised agent

(1) Under Part 28, Rule 20 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, any individual may access the iFAMS as an authorised user using his or her SingPass ID. The identification code of an authorised user who is an individual shall be the authorised user’s SingPass ID.

(2) Under Part 28, Rule 20 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the entities that may be granted access to the iFAMS as authorised users by the Registrar are as follows:

(a) Law firms and law corporations as defined in section 2 of the Legal Profession Act 1966;
(b) Designated Family Service Centres (“FSCs”);
(c) Designated appointed agencies of the Ministry of Social and Family Development (“MSF”);
(d) Designated Family Violence Specialist Centres (“FVSCs”); and
(e) Such other entity as the Registrar may authorise from time to time.

(3) In the case of law firms and law corporations, only solicitors can be designated as authorised agents to access the iFAMS.

(4) For the purposes of Part 28, Rule 20 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the identification code of an authorised user which is an entity or its authorised agent shall be the authorised user’s CorpPass ID or such other ID that may be issued by the Registrar to the authorised user.

(5) Authorised users shall be responsible for all transactions conducted and liable for all fees and charges incurred by any of their designated authorised agents in the iFAMS.

187. Electronic filing of written complaints

All complaints are to be electronically filed through the iFAMS. To avoid doubt, the written complaints shall be electronically filed in the following manner:

(a) Applicants acting in person who access the system as authorised users using their SingPass shall file a written complaint which complies with the requirements of Part 3, Rule 7(4) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.
(b) Solicitors acting for applicants shall file a written complaint which complies with the requirements of Part 3, Rule 7(6) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.
(c) Written complaints filed by an authorised user described under paragraphs 186(2)(b) to (e) of these Practice Directions on behalf of an applicant shall comply with the requirements of Part 3, Rule 7(5) of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

188. Documents

(1) All documents must be electronically filed using the Portable Document Format (PDF).

(2) The proper document type must be selected and a clear and appropriate document description must be entered. The document description should not be abbreviated.

(3) Unless otherwise provided for in these Practice Directions or directed by the Court, it is not necessary for documents that are electronically filed in Court to have a cover page or backing sheet.

(4) Every single page of a document must be paginated consecutively so that the pagination on the actual document corresponds with the pagination of the Portable Document Format (PDF) document in the electronic case file. Unless otherwise provided for in these Practice Directions, the page number must be inserted at the top right hand corner of the page.

189. Documents which cannot be converted into electronic format

(1) If a document cannot be converted in whole or in part into an electronic format for any reason, the hard copy of the document must be filed at the Registry.

190. Amendment of documents

Where a document is required to be amended, a fresh copy of the document must be produced and electronically filed, regardless of the number and / or length of the amendments sought to be made.

191. Limits on size and number of documents submitted using the iFAMS

(1) The following limits currently apply to the filing of documents using the iFAMS:

(a) The total number of pages in a single document cannot exceed 999.
(b) The size of a single transmission cannot exceed 4 mega-bytes.

(2) The resolution for scanning of documents, unless otherwise directed by the Court, must be no more than 200 DPI.

(3) In the event that any party wishes to file documents which exceed the limits specified in sub-paragraph (1), he or she may make multiple submissions.

21D: Electronic Filing under the ICMS

192. Establishment of Electronic Filing Service and proceedings for which the ICMS is to be used

(2) Pursuant to Part 28, Rules 3 and 6 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024, the Registrar hereby specifies that the ICMS is to be used for all Category 4 proceedings as defined in Part 3, Rule 2 of the Family Justice (General) Rules 2024.

(3) All applications under Category 4 are to be submitted to the Registry and uploaded into the ICMS by the Registry to serve as an electronic record of all documents filed for the purposes of the proceedings.

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