Singapore Employment Pass: minimum benchmark salary for foreign employees to be increased from 2025 – Investing Abroad News

Foreign employees will have to meet a higher salary threshold before starting work in Singapore from next year. The eligible salary for the Singapore Employment Pass (EP) for applications will be increased from January 1, 2025, for new ones, renewals and those expiring from January 2026.

Foreign professionals, managers and executives must obtain a Singapore Employment Pass before working in Singapore. To apply for a Singapore Employment Pass (EP), an employer in Singapore or a designated employment agent must apply on behalf of the foreign employee.

To be able to apply for the EP, foreign workers must pass a two-step eligibility stage:

• Meet the Employment Pass salary benchmark
• Passing the Complementarity Points-Based Assessment Framework (COMPASS)

The two-step eligibility framework applies to new EP applications from September 1, 2023 and to expired EP renewals from September 1, 2024.

Pass Emploi salary reference

Foreign workers must meet predefined income criteria before obtaining the Singapore Employment Pass. To be eligible for the Employment Pass, foreign employees must earn at least $5,000 per month in Singapore.

The fixed monthly salary of the foreign worker to be employed by the employer in Singapore must be comparable to the upper third of the salaries of local professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs).

The Employment Pass benchmark salary starts at $5,000 from age 23 and increases gradually with age, up to $10,500 for those aged 45 and over.

To be eligible, workers in the financial services sector must earn more money.

From January 1, 2025, the PE eligible salary for new applications will be revised to at least $5,600 and to at least $6,200 for the financial services sector. This revised EP qualification salary will also apply to the renewal of EPs that expire on or after January 1, 2026.

Skip COMPASS

The second criterion for PE requires foreign workers to pass the points-based Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS). Your application must earn 40 points to pass COMPASS.

Those who do not meet the salary criteria are not eligible for an EP, regardless of the points they would have obtained under COMPASS.

Pass duration for new applicants can be up to 2 years, renewals up to 3 years, and experienced technology professionals with skills in shortage can receive a longer 5-year pass.

Singapore may also issue an employment pass, called an employment-training pass, to a foreigner who is receiving or about to receive training related to his or her employer’s profession, trade or business.

In addition, a cap applies to the Personalized Employment Pass, intended for high-income Employment Pass holders and foreign professionals abroad. It is not linked to an employer and offers greater flexibility than an Employment Pass.