How To Apply For A Singapore Work Visa

Singapore has a highly developed free-market economy, and in 2015, the Global Competitiveness Report ranked it as the world’s second most prosperous. Singapore attracts a large number of foreigners who seek for a Singapore work visa due to its high salary, plentiful job possibilities, and favorable tax system.

Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM) reported that there were over 1.3 million foreign workers in the country’s employment in 2018, accounting for more than 20% of the total population (5.6 million).

To work in Singapore as a foreign worker, you must first get a Singapore work visa. A Singapore work visa is referred to as a Pass. To work in Singapore, everyone, regardless of whether they have a Singapore visa or not, must get a Work Pass.You can apply for many types of Singapore visas based on the type of work you will be doing and your level of ability.

Types of Singapore Work Visas

The Singapore work visas are divided into:

• Singapore work visas for professionals.
• Singapore work visas for skilled and semi-skilled workers.
• Singapore work visas for trainees and students.
• Short-term work passes.

Singapore Work Visas for Professionals

If you are a professional worker, you can obtain the following types of Singapore work passes (work visas):

• Employment Pass available to foreign managers, executives, and professionals. You will have to make at least S$3,600 a month.
• Personalized Employment Pass  available if you are a high-earning foreigner or current Employment Pass holder. The PEP offers more flexibility than other work Passes.
• EntrePass  available to investors or entrepreneurs who want to start a business in Singapore.

No foreign worker quotas or levies apply to any of the aforementioned Passes.

Singapore work visas for skilled and semi-skilled workers

If you are a skilled or semi-skilled worker, you can apply for one of the following Singapore work visas:

• S Pass  available to mid-level skilled workers who will receive a monthly salary of at least S$2,300. Foreign worker quotas and levy apply.
• Work Permit for Foreign Workers  this is available only to foreign workers from certain countries and allows work only in certain sectors (construction, manufacturing, marine shipyard, process or services sector.) Foreign worker quotas and levy apply.
• Work Permit for Foreign Domestic Workers (FDW)  available only to workers between the ages of 23 and 50 from certain countries, such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia etc.
• Work Permit for confinement nanny  available to Malaysian nannies who can work in Singapore for 16 weeks, beginning from the time a baby is born. The employer has to pay a foreign worker Levy.
• Work Permit for performing artists available to performing artists who will be working in eligible public entertainment outlets, like bars, nightclubs, or hotels. Foreign worker quotas and levy apply.

Singapore work visas for trainees and students

Foreign students or trainees in Singapore can obtain the following employment visas:

• Training Employment Pass  available to foreign nationals who want to undergo training in Singapore that does not exceed three months. There’s no foreign worker levy or quota.
• Work Holiday Pass  available to foreign nationals who are under the Working Holiday Programme with Singapore (Australia, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom or the United States). It is available only to nationals aged 18-25 (18-30 for Australians) and valid for up to six months (1 year for Australians). It is non-renewable and the holder can only receive it once.
• Training Work Permit  available to unskilled or semi-skilled foreign students/trainees who will undergo a practical training in Singapore that only lasts up to six months.

Short-term work passes for Singapore

Foreign workers with a short-term Visit Pass to Singapore are normally unable to engage in any work-related activity. However, in some situations (such as for journalists or speakers at public events), the holder may apply for a Miscellaneous Work Pass. It permits the bearer to labor for a maximum of 60 days.

Foreign students studying in Singapore on a Study Visa can work if they meet certain criteria, such as being enrolled in an approved educational institution.

How to Apply for a Singapore Work Visa?

You must first obtain a job in Singapore before applying for a work visa. That is because your company (or an Employment Agency) is in charge of processing your Singapore work visa application.

Your employer or an Employment Agency can apply for a Singapore work visa through EP Online, the Ministry of Manpower’s online application facility, which can be found on their website.

The application process for a work visa for Singapore is as follows:

• Find a job in Singapore.
• While you are still in your home country, your employer or an Employment Agency (EA) will submit a work visa application via EP Online. They will have to pay a processing fee.
  If the application is accepted, your employer will receive an In-Principle Approval (IPA) letter, which you can use to enter Singapore.
  If the application is rejected, your employer will receive an In-Principle Rejection letter instead. You won’t receive a work visa.
• Using your IPA letter, you can travel to Singapore.
• Once you are there, your employer or an EA applies via EP Online to get your Singapore work visa issued. Again, they will have to pay another fee, this time for the work Pass itself.
• If your work Pass is issued, you will receive a notification letter. This letter holds information about whether you need to get your photo and fingerprints taken. It also allows you to start working and leave and enter Singapore until you get your Employment Card.
• Within two weeks after your Pass is issued, you must register at the Employment Pass Services Centre (EPSC).
• After registering, you will get your Pass Card – usually within 4 working days.

Can You Bring Your Family Members With You With a Singapore Work Visa?

Yes, certain professional and skilled workers can bring close family members (married spouses and children under 21) to Singapore with them using the Dependent’s Pass.

Family members who do not qualify for the Dependent’s Pass may use the Long Term Visit Pass (LTVP) to reside with family members who work in Singapore.