MHA refutes reports of 3,500 high-net-worth individuals becoming Singapore citizens in 2023

THE Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has clarified that a statement on the number of high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) expected to be granted Singapore Citizenship (SC) in 2023, which was reported in the news recently, was “highly misleading (and) with no credible basis”.

The ministry was responding to media articles quoting what Andrew Amoils, the head of research at wealth intelligence firm New World Wealth, said in an interview with Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao last Thursday (Apr 20).

In that article, Amoils had said that up to 3,500 HNWIs, each with assets of US$6 million or more are expected to become Singapore citizens in 2023, with most of them from China. That article was translated into English and carried in The Business Times the next day.

A person is generally classified as an HNWI if that individual has at least US$1 million in investable wealth.

“The figures cited were from a person working in a private research firm based in Johannesburg, South Africa. We do not know how he or his company arrived at this figure,” said MHA on Tuesday.

It noted that “SC applications for the rest of 2023 have not even been decided yet”, adding that having high net worth “does not guarantee citizenship”.

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Up to 3,500 high-net-worth individuals to become Singapore citizens in 2023, most from China: report

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“A whole suite of factors are considered, including the benefits to Singapore, the business created in Singapore, the number of Singaporeans employed, as well as the an individual’s ability to integrate into society, and commitment to sink roots in Singapore.”