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New Work Pass requirements from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM)
The MOM announced changes to Singapore work pass requirements on 3 March 2020. Businesses employing foreigners in Singapore should be aware of the following changes:
- From 1 May 2020, the monthly minimum salary to qualify for a new Employment Pass (EP) will increase from SGD 3,600 to SGD 3,900. For renewals of EPs, this new rule will apply from 1 May 2021. This is to ease the impact on businesses.
- From July 2020, the Local Qualifying Salary (LQS) will be raised from SGD 1,300 to SGD 1,400. The LQS was introduced by MOM to ensure businesses do not hire local employees on a token pay just to improve their Pass and Work Permit dependency ratio ceilings i.e. in order to hire more foreign employees.
- From 1 May 2020, the job bank advertising requirement will be changed to include all job positions paying a fixed monthly salary of less than SGD 20,000. Prior to the change, only job positions paying less than SGD15,000 required advertising and those with salaries above that level were exempted from the advertising requirement. There are no changes to the exemption relating to the minimum number of employees (i.e. less than 10 employees).
The Ministry Of Manpower is constantly reviewing requirements to ensure fair employment for local workers while managing the need for foreign talent in Singapore. Mazars can assist you with your application for the relevant work passes in Singapore and navigate through the important changes in MOM rules from time to time.
While MOM will publicise these requirements/measures widely, it may not be possible to inform every employer or employee directly about each new set of requirements. Employers and employees are strongly advised to check the MOM’s website (http://www.mom.gov.sg) for all the latest information.
The information in this article was accurate as of 05/03/2020.
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