Singaporean officials reminded personalized employment pass holders to provide their latest salary figures to the Singapore Ministry of Manpower.

‌Key Points:

  • PEP holders with passes issued on or before Dec. 31, 2022, need to declare their annual salary figures to the Ministry of Manpower by Jan. 31.
  • In addition to the salary declaration, changes in employment must also be reported. If the individual no longer meets the requirements, the PEP must be canceled.
  • The PEP holder will be notified via email on the annual salary declaration. The declaration can then be submitted either by the PEP holder, employer or employment agent via the ministry’s online form.

Additional Information: The personalized employment pass applies to high-earning employment pass holders and overseas foreign professionals. It is not tied to an employer and offers greater flexibility. As such, there are additional requirements to hold the pass, including that individuals must earn a fixed monthly salary of at least $22,500. This is benchmarked to the top 10% of EP holders. For overseas foreign professionals, the proof of salary should be within the past six months when applying. For details on the PEP, please find additional information here.

BAL Analysis: Sponsoring companies and PEP holders are encouraged to submit the annual notification promptly, otherwise their status may be affected. PEP holders whose passes were issued after Jan. 1, 2023, do not have to submit their notification until 2025.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

Employers are reminded to provide their latest turnover figures for the 2023 fiscal year to the Singapore Ministry of Manpower.

‌Key Points:

  • Drafting or submitting new online applications may not be possible until employers submit their turnover figures, which may result in processing delays.
  • Users can answer “no” and update information once received if the turnover figure is not yet available.
  • If employers have indicated in previous years that the turnover figure was unavailable or zero ($0), it is recommended that these figures be updated as well. Additional scrutiny has been reported for sponsoring companies that do not have up-to-date financials, and work pass applications may be rejected.

Additional Information: The Ministry of Manpower launched the new EP eService earlier this year to replace EP Online. All EP and S pass transactions are available through the new EP eService. The launch of EP eService was intended to provide an improved digital experience and be more user-friendly and intuitive.

BAL Analysis: Employers are reminded to provide their latest turnover figures for fiscal year 2023 through EP eService on their MyMOMPortal. The update may also be completed by employees through CorpPass. The government requires employers to update their company’s last fiscal year of financial turnover data in the system before additional applications can be filed. Sponsoring companies are encouraged to complete the requirement early to prevent delays when submitting applications.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group.

 

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

Singaporean officials announced an agreement with China for a 30-day mutual visa exemption policy that will be implemented in early 2024.

‌Key Points:

  • China resumed a 15-day visa exemption policy for Singaporean nationals earlier this year, and the two countries have been working to reach an agreement on a reciprocal policy.
  • Chinese travelers are currently required to apply for visas to visit Singapore.

Additional Information: The Singaporean foreign ministry said the two countries are also discussing upgrading the trade pact between them. The China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement gives Singapore significant market access to China’s service sectors. According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Singapore’s central bank and the people’s bank of China are also discussing starting a pilot program to allow travelers from both countries to use China’s e-CNY digital currency for tourism spending. Three-quarters of Singapore’s four million citizens and permanent residents are of Chinese ethnicity, and many speak Mandarin. In 2019, 3.6 million Chinese nationals visited Singapore, which resulted in $3.09 billion in tourism revenue.

BAL Analysis: The mutual visa exemption policy is intended to further facilitate cross-border travel and economic development between Singapore and China. The new agreements should strengthen bilateral relations between the two nations and increase economic ties. BAL will continue following the implementation of these measures and will provide updates as information becomes available.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

Singapore has released the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) Employer Guide, which lists the criteria that applicants must meet under the Shortage Occupation List.

Key Points:

  • Applicants can earn bonus points for their assessment under Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) for new Employment Pass applications starting in September by meeting criteria on the list.
  • Bonus points can also be secured for extending five-year employment passes for certain tech professionals.
  • Applicants must meet the requirements of the jobs on the SOL. These include adherence to specified job duties and meeting experience requirements.

Background: The Ministry of Manpower launched COMPASS, a points-based evaluation framework for new EP applicants, last year. To achieve bonus points, candidates must show that they are performing roles that match the job descriptions on the SOL list. EP candidates are subject to further checks and conditions if they need the SOL bonus points to pass COMPASS or if they are an experienced tech professional applying for a five-year pass (regardless of whether they need the points to pass COMPASS).

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

Employers are reminded that the Singaporean government will increase its monthly minimum salary for S pass holders in September.

Key Points:

  • Beginning Sept. 1, 2023, the monthly minimum salary for new S pass applicants will increase to 3,150 SGD (about US$2,322). The monthly minimum salary for new S pass applicants in the financial sector will rise to 3,650 SGD.
  • The increase in monthly minimum salary will apply to S pass renewal cases beginning Sept. 1, 2024.

Additional Information: S pass levies for Tier 1 companies will increase to 550 SGD; Tier 2 levies will remain at 650 SGD.

BAL Analysis: Businesses may see a slight increase in labor costs because of the new minimum wage. Employers should take the new wage minimums into account when planning their budgets.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

The Ministry of Manpower announced that an enhanced Self-Assessment Tool (SAT) for evaluating Employment Pass or S Pass qualifications will be available to employers and employment agents beginning Aug. 1.

Key Points:

  • The SAT is an online tool to assess if a candidate qualifies for an Employment Pass or S Pass based on information provided, such as salary, education qualifications and work experience.
  • The tool does not guarantee an application’s actual outcome, which depends on additional factors, such as quotas and a candidate’s history.‌

Additional Information: An Employment Pass Service (formerly EP Online) account is required to use the enhanced SAT. The service is free and available to anyone.

This alert has been provided by BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

‌Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

The Singaporean government has replaced Employment Pass Online with EP eService.

Key Points: 

  • Employers can now use EP eService on the myMOM portal to apply, renew, appeal, issue, cancel or withdraw a pass (except work permits) and view the details of their transactions and organization’s profile.
  • Pass holders can use EP eService to update their passport details and contact information.
  • Individuals who submitted any application using EP Online will be able to continue these on the new EP eService platform.

Additional Information: Singaporean authorities encourage users to log in at least once every three months to ensure there are no irregular transactions; accounts without activity for 12 months will be terminated. More information regarding EP eService is available here.

BAL Analysis: The Singaporean government has replaced EP Online with EP eService to streamline immigration services provided to employers and foreign nationals.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

The Singaporean government has announced that Saudi nationals will be visa exempt starting in June.

Key Points: 

  • Beginning June 1, Saudi nationals who hold valid passports issued by the Saudi government will no longer need to apply for a visa to enter Singapore.
  • Saudi nationals will continue to need to obtain an entry visa until June 1.
  • Singaporean authorities will not refund visa processing fees for those who have already submitted an application or received an application decision.
  • Saudi nationals will not be able to conduct paid business activities in Singapore through the visa waiver program.

Additional Information: More information regarding the visa waiver program is available here.

BAL Analysis: The Singaporean government has announced that it will no longer require Saudi nationals to have a visa to enter Singapore to promote travel to the country and increase economic ties between the two countries.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

The Singaporean government has provided updates on its points-based system for Employment Pass applications under the Complementarity Assessment Framework.

Key Points: 

  • Beginning Sept. 1, 2023, COMPASS will evaluate EP applications on a points-based system using four main categories:
    • Salary. Applications earn points by meeting benchmarks for local PMET salaries specific to the company’s classified sector.
    • Qualifications. Applicants will earn points based on if their qualifications were received at a top-tier institution, have a degree-equivalent qualification or if there is no degree equivalent. A list of top-tier institutions is available here.
    • Diversity. COMPASS awards more points to applications when the candidate’s nationality is from a small share of the company’s PMET employees. No points are earned if the company is applying to bring in a candidate whose nationality is already a significant share of its PMET employees.
    • Support for local employment. Applications earn more points if the company has a relatively higher share of locals among PMET employees compared to other companies in the same sector.
  • Applicants can receive bonus points if the job is on the skills shortages list or if the company partners with the government on strategic economic priorities.
  • COMPASS rewards zero, 10 or 20 points for each category based on whether the application does not meet, meets or exceeds expectations. Applicants who receive at least 40 points will be approved.

Additional Information: Singaporean authorities encourage employers to use the Workforce Insights tool on the myMOM Portal for benchmarking insights to help plan hiring decisions and workforce changes. More information regarding COMPASS and details on how each application will be evaluated is available here.

BAL Analysis: The Singaporean government has planned the upcoming changes to its work pass framework to attract more highly skilled foreign nationals to live and work in the country. BAL will continue to monitor the implementation of the changes to the framework and will provide more information as it becomes available.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.

IMPACT — MEDIUM

The Singaporean government has announced that it will implement an education verification requirement for Employment Pass applicants.

Key Points: 

  • Beginning Sept. 1, 2023, employers must submit an education qualification verification on behalf of the foreign national when applying for a new EP.
  • The education qualification verification must be completed by a screening company recognized by the Singaporean government. A full list of recognized screening companies is available here.
  • Singaporean authorities will not accept educational certificates certified by a notary public or school letters as a form of verification.
  • Education certificate verifications will also apply to EP renewal applications beginning Sept. 1, 2024.

BAL Analysis: The Singaporean government announced the new education verification requirement to strengthen the review process for those applying for EPs. Once the education requirement takes effect, applicants should expect delays in processing EP applications because of the additional step.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice Group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

Copyright © 2023 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.