Further Information on Housing Requirements for Work Pass Applications

The situation

Following the Ministry of Manpower (MOM)’s announcement that starting September 14, 2018, it will only issue work passes to applicants whose residential address in Singapore meets its housing requirements for foreign workers, in addition to the housing requirements, the below are further clarifications for the new policy:

• There are strict requirements for employers to notify MOM of any change of residential address within the required time frame (within 14 days for Employment and S Pass holders; within five days for Work Permit holders);
• There are strict requirements for the employer to ensure that their employees' housing meets MOM’s housing requirements;
• The public housing flats managed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) in Singapore are subject to restrictions especially in relation to the nationality of Work Permit holders;
• Employers must ensure that the HDB flat owner registers their relevant employees with HDB as tenants before they move in and obtain a copy of the letter of approval provided by HDB to the flat owner; and
• Other types of housing are subject to other strict requirements.

Impact

Foreign nationals and their employers should take note of the deadline and work with their immigration professionals to ensure compliance with this new requirement to avoid delays in work pass issuance and to make sure that strict notification requirements to MOM in respect of change of residential address are also complied with.

Failure to comply with this requirement can mean a violation of work pass conditions under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act and can result in a fine of up to SGD 10,000 and/or imprisonment of representatives of the employer of up to 12 months for each offence.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].