3. Power to make advance medical directive
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A person who is not mentally disordered and has attained 21 years of age may make a directive refusing extraordinary life-sustaining treatment if terminally ill. The directive needs 2 witnesses present together, one being the patient's family doctor or another practitioner. Witnesses must not, to their knowledge, be beneficiaries under the patient's will or insurance policies.
Summary · Drafted with AI, checked against the official text on 30 Sep 2026.
Last amended by an amending law of 2008.
A person who is not mentally disordered, who has attained 21 years of age and who desires not to be subjected to extraordinary life‑sustaining treatment in the event of his or her suffering from a terminal illness, may at any time make an advance medical directive in the prescribed form.
extraordinary life‑sustaining treatment
“extraordinary life‑sustaining treatment” means any medical procedure or measure which, when administered to a terminally ill patient, will only prolong the process of dying when death is imminent, but excludes palliative care;
Subject to subsection (3), the directive must be witnessed by 2 witnesses present at the same time —
one of whom must be the patient’s family medical practitioner or any other practitioner of the patient’s choice; and
the other must be a person who has attained the age of 21 years.
A witness must be a person who to the best of his or her knowledge —
is not a beneficiary under the patient’s will or any policy of insurance;
has no interest under any instrument under which the patient is the donor, settlor or grantor;
would not be entitled to an interest in the estate of the patient on the patient’s death intestate;
would not be entitled to an interest in the moneys of the patient held in the Central Provident Fund or other provident fund on that patient’s death; and
has not registered an objection under section 10(1).