14 Aug Advantages of Being a PR Over Being an Expat in Singapore
Many foreigners who have spent some time working and living in the Lion City realize, at one point or another, that they want to become a Singapore permanent resident. One reason for this is because Singapore PRs get to enjoy more benefits than expatriates.
Apart from being granted the right to permanently live and work in this prosperous country, PRs in Singapore also get to enjoy many benefits and advantages, including the following:
- Holders of the Employment Pass or S Pass can stay in Singapore only for a specific number of years and need to worry about renewing their permit constantly. However, permanent residents can easily stay in the country for as long as 5 years and go in and out of the country without restrictions.
- Permanent residents can easily apply for a part-time job and change their jobs without having to worry about going through the strict documentation processes, where time is needed to have those documents approved and processed. In addition, permanent residents who own their own businesses do not have to worry about facing strict quotas for hiring foreign workers.
- Permanent residents have a relatively easier time putting up their own business than foreigners. While expats have to go through a more stringent approval process if they start their own venture.
- Permanent residents enjoy lower medical costs at public hospitals and clinics than expats. Similarly, the education cost is lower for children of PRs at government schools as well as for government-run childcare centers. Children of PRs are also prioritized when it comes to enrollment in state-run schools.
- Permanent residents can purchase resale HDB units and have a bigger chance of approval than expats when they apply to buy a landed property.
- Permanent residents also get a higher chance of PR approval when they apply for permanent residency for their kids and spouse.
- Permanent residents are able to enjoy the benefits given by the Central Provident Fund, which is deemed as the world’s most secure pension and management investment system. They can use those funds for medical coverage, insurance, investments, and so on.
- Permanent residents can apply for citizenship after a period of time. Being a PR is, perhaps, the only way that a foreigner can be granted citizenship in Singapore.
There are, of course, other things to consider if one is thinking about applying for Singapore PR. For instance, their take-home pay will be lowered due to the mandatory CPF contributions and MediShield Life premiums; their company benefits as expat employees like housing, pension, global medical insurance and so on might be terminated by the employer; and should their young sons become permanent residents, they are obliged to enlist for National Service. (https://www.immigrations.com.sg/what-is-national-service-for-second-generation-singapore-prs/)
For many individuals, the benefits and advantages of being a Singapore PR outweigh the perceived disadvantages. Many have already applied but out of the 100,000 applicants that have applied yearly, only 30,000 are approved by the Singapore Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
First Immigrations is a consultancy firm that specializes in Singapore permanent resident applications. For the past 8 years, we have advised and assisted more than 10,000 clients. If you want to increase your chances of becoming a PR in Singapore, call us at +65 6850 5087 or send us an email at [email protected] so we can discuss the process of your application.
