Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - Singapore released new rules for work visas on Monday in an effort to attract foreign talent as the Asian...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - Singapore released new rules for work visas on Monday in an effort to attract foreign talent as the Asian financial hub tries to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
People who make at least S$30,000 ($21,445.42) a month will be able to get a new five-year visa that lets them work for more than one company at the same time and lets their spouses work.
From January, people will be able to get the new visa.
Singapore is a popular place for foreign companies to set up their regional headquarters. During the pandemic, Singapore tightly controlled its borders, which caused many expatriates to leave and its population to drop for the first time in almost 20 years.
"We can't give investors any reason to doubt or wonder if Singapore is still open," Tan See Leng, the manpower minister of the city-state, said at a news conference.
"As a country with few or no resources, talent is our only asset, and getting talent is one of our offensive strategies," he said.
Among other changes, some tech professionals with skills that are in short supply will be able to get five-year visas starting in September 2023. Before that, they could only get visas for two to three years. The processing time for employment passes, which are usually given to professionals with high salaries, will also be cut to 10 days right away.
($1 = 1.3989 Singapore dollars)
