The minimum salary requirement will be raised by May this year, says minister
The Ministry of Manpower has raised the minimum salary requirement for new Employment Pass (EP) holders in Singapore to $3,900 per month. This is up from the current $3,600.
For EP renewals however, the policy will be effective from May 2021 to “moderate the impact on businesses”, said Manpower Minister Josephine Teo.
The salary criteria for older and more experienced EP candidates will be “raised in tandem”.
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Announced on Tuesday (3 March) as part of MOM’s response to Budget 2020, Teo said the changes aim to “keep the competition fair” for all professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs).
The increase is said to be in line with improving wages of fresh graduates of local autonomous universities.
“At the Special Pass and EP levels, MOM regularly updates the salary criteria applicants must meet to work in Singapore,” Teo said.
“These criteria take reference from salaries of locals with similar experience and seniority, to ensure that S Pass and EP holders are of good calibre and do not undercut wages of our local PMETs.
“This is why older and more experienced candidates need to command higher salaries in order to qualify for an S Pass or an EP.”
She explained that for experienced EP candidates, applicants in their early 40s will need to earn around $7,800, or double the new qualifying salary.
“This is only fair, considering the skillsets he or she is expected to have,” she said. “It helps to ensure a level playing field for experienced local mid-career PMETs.”
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The minister warned against employers who choose to circumvent the guidelines for fair employment practices.
“Anecdotally, we have heard of firms that only raise salaries of the EP holders to meet new salary criteria, while freezing salaries of the local workers, even if the local workers are better performers,” she said. “This is wrong and not in the employer’s best interest.
“Apart from the risk of having their work pass privileges cut back by MOM, such practices will undermine their efforts to retain their local employees.”
The minimum qualifying salary for EP holders was last raised in 2017.
