Apply for admission as a lawyer (non-practitioner) or an advocate and solicitor

Admission as a lawyer (non-practitioner)

If you meet the criteria for a qualified person defined under Section 2 of the Legal Profession Act 1966, you may apply to be admitted as a lawyer (non-practitioner) or lawyer (NP). There are also requirements for admission which you will need to satisfy.

Find out more about:

• The information on admission and guidelines provided by the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.
• The Ministry of Law's Admission Requirements webpage.

If you have previously fulfilled requirements for admission under the relevant provisions of the Legal Profession Act 1966 in force immediately before 17 July 2024 (old law), refer to Section 48 of the Legal Profession (Amendment) Act 2023) on whether you may rely on the same for the purpose of any application for admission as a lawyer (NP).

Admission as an advocate and solicitor (new law)

This section applies to applications for admission as an advocate and solicitor under the relevant provisions of the Legal Profession Act 1966 in force on 17 July 2024 (new law).

If you meet the criteria for a eligible person defined under Section 2 of the Legal Profession Act 1966, you may apply to be admitted as an advocate and solicitor. There are also requirements for admission which you will need to satisfy. 

Find out more about:

• The information on admission and guidelines provided by the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.
• The Ministry of Law's Admission Requirements webpage.

If you have previously fulfilled requirements for admission under the old law, please refer to Section 48 of the Legal Profession (Amendment) Act 2023 to check if you are eligible to apply for admission under the new law.

Admission as an advocate and solicitor (old law)

This section applies to applications for admission as an advocate and solicitor under the relevant provisions of the Legal Profession Act 1966 in force immediately before 17 July 2024 (old law). 

You must first ensure that the old law applies to you, including obtaining all necessary exemptions or extensions of time. Refer to Section 48 of the Legal Profession (Amendment) Act 2023 for clarification. 

If the old law applies to you and you meet the criteria for a qualified person defined under Section 2 of the Legal Profession Act 1966 of the old law, you may apply to be admitted as an advocate and solicitor. There are also requirements for admission which you will need to satisfy. 

Find out more about:

• The information on admission and guidelines provided by the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.
• The Ministry of Law's Admission Requirements webpage.

How to apply

All applications to be admitted as lawyer (NP) or an advocate and solicitor are heard in the General Division of the High Court.

You may apply to the General Division of the High Court as follows:

• For lawyer (NP), you may apply by way of an Originating Application (Admission as Lawyer (Non-Practitioner)) after you have registered with the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.
• For advocate and solicitor (new law), you may apply by way of an Originating Application (Admission of Advocate and Solicitor) after qualifying as an eligible person.
• For advocate and solicitor (old law), you may apply by way of an Originating Application (Admission of Advocate and Solicitor) after you have registered with the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.

File your application online via eLitigation, or visit the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau to file in person. Refer to the filing guide on how to file your admission documents on eLitigation. 

In order to streamline the admission process for lawyer (NP) and advocates and solicitors (new law), two separate workflows will apply for applicants who file their admission originating applications on or after 15 December 2025. 

Applications will be dealt with based on whether the applicant has, at the time of the filing of the admission application: (i) a practice training contract (“PTC”); or (ii) has been appointed to the Singapore Legal Service or Singapore Judicial Service and is serving the Practice Training Period (“PTP”) (the “Criteria”): 

• The LNP Workflow will apply to applicants who do not meet the Criteria and they will attend an in-person admission hearing before a Judge in open court (but not a Mass Admission Ceremony) to be admitted as a lawyer (NP).
• The ANS Workflow will apply to applicants who meet the Criteria and they will be admitted as a lawyer (NP) by way of paper hearing before a Judge and will have only one in-person admission hearing before a Judge in open court to be admitted as an advocate and solicitor. 

ANS Workflow

• All applications that fall under the ANS Workflow and for which there are no objections from the stakeholders will be fixed for a paper hearing before a Judge on a monthly LNP admission date (the “LNP hearing date”).
• On the LNP hearing date, applicants are to attend in-person in the Supreme Court before an Assistant Registrar (or a Senior Assistant Registrar) (the “Designated AR”).
• The Designated AR will convey the Judge’s order to the present applicants. Thereafter, the applicants will proceed to make their declarations under rule 28 of the Legal Profession (Admission) Rules 2024 before the Designated AR.
• Once the applicant completes his/her PTC or PTP, the applicant may proceed to file an application for admission as ANS, which will be conducted in person before a Judge at a mass call or monthly calls (as applicable).
  

LNP Workflow

• These applications will be fixed for an in-person hearing before a Judge on the designated monthly admission hearing date.  

Your application must be in accordance with legal requirements, including the following:

• Legal Profession Act 1966, 
• Legal Profession (Qualified Persons) Rules,
• Legal Profession (Admission) Rules (LPAR).
  • LPAR 2024 for lawyer (NP) or an advocate and solicitor (new law)
  • LPAR 2011 for an advocate and solicitor (old law)
• Supreme Court Practice Directions.

The Supreme Court Registry will notify you of the date and time of any admission hearing, after your application is filed and accepted.

When to file

There are fixed dates for admission hearings in the General Division of the High Court, so applicants need to plan ahead to ensure their documents are submitted in time. Scheduling of any hearing is subject to the court’s discretion and availability. The procedures before filing an application as well as the timelines for the filing of the application documents are stated in the 

• LPAR 2024 for lawyer (NP) or an advocate and solicitor (new law)
• LPAR 2011  for an advocate and solicitor (old law)

For lawyer (NP), your application must also be filed within 5 years of the date on which you passed Part B of the Singapore Bar Examinations.

Admission hearing dates 2026

*These admission hearings are for both advocates and solicitors and lawyers (NP).