Minimum S$30,000 monthly salary for applicants of new One Pass

WITH the competition for global talent heating up, Singapore will soon introduce a new pass for top talent to better attract such high achieving individuals to its shores.

The Overseas Networks and Expertise (One) Pass will be open to top talent across all sectors, and allows them to start, operate and work for multiple companies at any one time. Pass holders will also be able to sponsor their dependants, and have their spouses work in Singapore on a Letter of Consent.

“As the name suggests, we are looking for global talent who possess valuable networks, as well as deep skills and expertise, that can help Singapore grow,” Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said at a press conference on Monday (Aug 29).

Pass holders will be exempted from the Fair Consideration Framework job advertising requirements, as well as the upcoming Complementarity Assessment Framework (Compass).

To qualify, applicants must earn a monthly salary of at least S$30,000, either within the past year or with a future employer in Singapore. This is comparable to the top 5 per cent of EP holders in Singapore, said Dr Tan.

Overseas applicants must also show that they are playing a lead role in an established company – defined as one with a market capitalisation of at least US$500 million or having an annual revenue of at least US$200 million.

“However, salary is just one proxy,” said Dr Tan. Applicants who do not meet the salary criteria, but have outstanding achievements in the arts, sports, sciences and academia – such as having international awards or medals – can also qualify for the One Pass.

There will not be a cap on the number of One Passes approved, said the minister in response to questions. “In terms of top talent, I don’t think any jurisdiction, any country will want to put a cap.... It’s not a commodity – you’re talking about intellectual capabilities and competencies and so on.”

Industry watchers generally welcomed the move, calling it a firm step forward in strengthening Singapore’s ability to attract top talent. “The announcements also send a clear signal that Singapore means business in the battle for talent,” said Singapore International Chamber of Commerce (SICC) chief executive Victor Mills.

Lee Junxian, co-founder of Moovaz, said the pass will be good for knowledge transfer to local workers, which will help to boost Singapore’s overall productivity levels. “(This will also) help to create and spur high-value-added industries and technologies.”

But while any added flexibility to the foreign talent schemes is always welcome, the salary band which the One Pass targets points to it being more beneficial to large companies, rather than smaller enterprises, noted Kurt Wee, president of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises.

“As a result, the SMEs (small and medium enterprises) may not find most of the announcements will trigger any excitement or any relief from the current pressures which they feel – (such as) the availability of suitable manpower at the mid and blue-collar level, and the fast-accelerating wage inflation,” he added.

SICC in particular applauded the move to allow spouses to work in Singapore under the One Pass. Said Mills: “The days of a trailing spouse are over. Talented people have talented partners and spouses who want to be sure they can lead fulfilling lives in a new location.”

However, Walter Theseira, associate professor of economics at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, noted that this may still not be enough to attract some global top talent, who are looking for similar employment and residency rights as the locals – especially for their families – in the event of job or economic disruption.

“I’d say the major area in which Singapore stands out is that Singapore offers no clear and transparent path to permanent residency, together with residency rights for family members, for work pass holders,” said Theseira. “While Singaporeans obviously want to have more control over the migration of foreigners and their family members, these decisions are not without costs in terms of our international attractiveness to global talent.”

Dr Tan stressed that the pass is not meant to be “abused as a visit or travel document”, but rather for pass holders to “contribute meaningfully to Singapore”. Pass holders will therefore be asked to notify MOM annually of their professional activities “to ensure that they utilise the flexibilities accorded to contribute meaningfully,” said the ministry in its statement.

Asked whether there are other work pass policies that Singapore will need to tweak to catch up with rivals, Dr Tan said the moves announced on Monday were not done to play catch-up but to make a “new paradigm shift in terms of where we think our economy will be 5, 10, 15 years from now”.

“Where all the growth sectors are, we also want to attract as wide as possible the diaspora of different types of talent,” he said. “It’s not an apples to apples comparison... We have our own aspirational targets, we also have got our own goals, as well as our own constraints.”

Applications for the One Pass will open from Jan 1, 2023. The pass will be valid for 5 years and is renewable, subject to the eligibility criteria for renewal.