Who is eligible for criminal legal aid (CLAS) in Singapore?
Answered from official Singapore sources and the reported court record, as of — recomputed live.
The Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, run by Pro Bono SG, provides representation to accused persons who cannot afford a lawyer and who pass a means and merits test, for many non-capital offences. Capital cases are handled separately under the Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offences.
What the question is really asking
Assistance for a person facing criminal charges is provided not through the Legal Aid Bureau but through the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, known as CLAS, which is administered by Pro Bono SG. The scheme exists so that an accused person of limited means is not left to face non-capital charges without a lawyer, matching eligible applicants with volunteer and assigned counsel.
Eligibility, as with civil legal aid, rests on a means test and a merits assessment. The means test considers the applicant's financial circumstances against published ceilings, and the scheme applies to charges under the statutes it covers, which are non-capital offences. An accused person who qualifies is assigned counsel to conduct the defence; the scheme's own materials set out the offences within scope and the financial limits that apply.
Capital offences — those that carry the death penalty — fall outside CLAS and are covered instead by the Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offences, administered by the Registrar of the Supreme Court, under which counsel is assigned without a means test. A feature of criminal proceedings that distinguishes them from civil litigation is that the State prosecutes, so there is no order for one party to pay another's costs in the way the civil courts make; the evidence layer for criminal work is the reported judgments themselves.
Official sources & how it works
The instruments and public records that govern the answer, each with its source and the year it describes.
The scheme administered by Pro Bono SG that provides criminal defence representation for non-capital offences to eligible accused persons; the page sets out the means-test ceilings and the statutes and offences covered.
Source: Criminal Legal Aid Scheme (CLAS), Pro Bono SG · as of 2026
The Judiciary's public guidance on assistance for accused persons, including the Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offences (LASCO), administered by the Registrar of the Supreme Court for capital cases without a means test.
Source: Legal help for a criminal case, Singapore Courts · as of 2026
Who runs criminal legal aid in Singapore?
The Criminal Legal Aid Scheme is administered by Pro Bono SG, an independent organisation, rather than by the Legal Aid Bureau. The Bureau handles civil legal aid, while criminal representation for those who cannot afford a lawyer is arranged through CLAS, which assigns volunteer and appointed counsel to eligible accused persons.
What is CLAS and who qualifies?
CLAS provides criminal defence representation to accused persons who cannot afford a lawyer and who pass a means and merits assessment, for offences within the statutes the scheme covers, which are non-capital offences. The scheme's published materials set out the qualifying financial ceilings and the categories of charge that fall within its scope.
What is LASCO?
The Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offences, or LASCO, provides assigned counsel to persons charged with capital offences — those carrying the death penalty — regardless of means. It is administered by the Registrar of the Supreme Court and is separate from CLAS, which covers non-capital charges. Together the two schemes cover the range of serious criminal matters.
Explore the court record
This is one part of what the reported record shows about how lawyers and litigation work in Singapore.
- For who appears in the reported criminal cases and what the courts recorded, see Criminal Law Lawyers in Singapore: The Court Record.
- For how the courts approach costs in reported civil litigation, distinct from criminal proceedings, see What Singapore Courts Actually Awarded in Costs.
Methodology & disclaimer
This page explains the question factually from cited Singapore legislation, official public records and the reported Supreme Court court record. It describes how a process or requirement works in general; it does not tell any particular person what to do, is not a recommendation of any lawyer or firm, and is not legal advice. How a specific matter should be handled depends on its facts and is a question for a qualified lawyer.