Moving from Taiwan to work in Singapore: the official rules, made readable
From the day you get the offer, through your first year on the ground, to the day you eventually move back to Taiwan: official rules scattered across a dozen agencies in two places, organised into one readable map. Every item carries the original official link and a capture date. This site only organises; it does not advise and it does not act as an agent.
A guided reading layer over official Singapore and Taiwan rules. Free, no account, no personal data collected.
Taiwanese professionals holding (or evaluating) a Singapore job offer, and the family coming along.
Pick your current situation with the buttons below, or expand the whole roadmap at once.
Covers: EP, S Pass, DP/LTVP (salaried professionals and their families). Not sure which pass you fall under? Rough guide: a fixed monthly salary of S$5,600 or above usually means EP, S$3,300 or above means S Pass (financial-sector thresholds are higher; see Station 01). Not covered: WP (the rank-and-file route, see the official MOM page), student passes, entrepreneur passes; nor job hunting and CVs. This guide starts the moment you have an offer.
The journey map
STATION 01Before you take the offer
What pass this salary can get you, and whether your family can come along
EP minimum fixed monthly salary (current)
From S$5,600 for most sectors, rising with age (S$10,700 at 45 and above); financial services from S$6,200 (S$11,800 at 45 and above). The threshold counts fixed monthly salary only; variable bonuses do not count.
Note: from 2027-01-01, new applications need S$6,000 (general) / S$6,600 (financial services). If you are negotiating an offer now but filing next year, the new thresholds apply to you.
Meeting the salary bar ≠ approval: COMPASS needs 40 points
Four foundational criteria (salary, qualifications, nationality diversity, local employment) plus two bonus criteria; you pass at 40 points. Three exemptions: fixed monthly salary of S$22,500 or more, intra-corporate transferees, and short-term roles of one month or less.
Score COMPASS yourself: the six criteria
| Criterion | How points are earned | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| C1 Salary | Beats local peers at the 90th / 65th percentile / below | 20/10/0 |
| C2 Qualifications | Top-tier institution / a degree / none | 20/10/0 |
| C3 Diversity | Your nationality is under 5% of the firm's PMETs / 25% or more | 20/0 |
| C4 Local employment | Firm's local hiring record (relative to peers) | up to 20 |
| C5 Shortage occupation | Role on the shortage list (bonus) | ＋20 |
| C6 Strategic programme | Firm on a designated economic programme (bonus) | ＋10 |
C3 and C4 are attributes of the firm, not of you: the same person can get a completely different outcome applying through a different employer. The official pre-check, the Self-Assessment Tool (SAT), is run on the employer side (HR) via the EP eService, so at the interview you can simply ask: have you run the SAT?
S Pass: your threshold, and your employer's cost
Minimum fixed monthly salary for new applications: S$3,300 (financial services S$3,800); from 2027-01-01 this rises to S$3,600/S$4,000.
The employer also faces a quota (10% of the whole firm in services) and a monthly levy (a flat S$650 from 2025-09-01; the old tier system is abolished). That is the real cost structure behind an employer hesitating to hire you on an S Pass, and it is useful to know when negotiating the offer.
Can your family come along: two salary bars
Spouse and unmarried children under 21 (Dependant's Pass, DP): the main applicant needs a fixed monthly salary of S$6,000. Parents (Long-Term Visit Pass, LTVP): S$12,000. Both look at your individual fixed monthly salary; year-end and variable bonuses do not count, and household income is not combined.
A DP carries no automatic right to work: for your spouse to work in Singapore, an employer must separately apply for an EP/S Pass or a Work Permit for DP holders; the Letter of Consent (LOC) is only for DP holders running their own business. If your financial plan assumes two incomes, clear this hurdle before you count on it.
Aiming for sustainability work? Singapore is officially pushing this track
The Singapore Green Plan 2030 is a whole-of-government national agenda, and the Green Economy is one of its five pillars, with net zero by 2050 as the long-term goal. Sustainability roles therefore span finance, energy and corporate sustainability teams, making this a track worth evaluating for Taiwanese professionals heading to Singapore.
Want to gauge your distance from a green-collar role? This site's free diagnostic tool sits right below the roadmap.
STATION 02From application to IPA
After the employer files: what you are waiting for, and for how long
Applications go through the EP eService; timing depends on where the company sits
Singapore-registered companies: processed or updated within 10 working days; overseas employers with no local entity: most within 6 weeks.
The IPA letter is your entry approval, valid for 6 months
On approval you first receive an In-Principle Approval (IPA) letter; enter Singapore and complete card collection within 6 months. The IPA is not the pass card yet: registration and card collection come after arrival (see the next station).
Medical exam: whatever the IPA letter says is the rule
The official EP/S Pass eligibility pages carry no blanket medical-exam requirement (that rule belongs to the Work Permit); whether you need one, and what it covers, is stated in your IPA letter. Clinic marketing pages are not an official basis.
STATION 03First 30 days on the ground
Order matters: arrival card → pass card → Singpass → bank account, SIM
SG Arrival Card: within 3 days before arrival, free
Submit online within 3 days of arrival, counting arrival day itself. It is free, and the only official portal is eservices.ica.gov.sg; the many paid "agent" sites crowding search results are imitations.
Card collection: register within 2 weeks; the card arrives in 5 working days
Within 2 weeks of pass issuance, visit the Employment Pass Services Centre (EPSC) for fingerprinting and photo; the card is then delivered within 5 working days. Once registered for Singpass you can use the digital pass in the SGWorkPass app in the meantime.
Bank accounts: three banks, three rulebooks; do not assume they match
DBS opens accounts on the IPA letter (no need to wait for the physical card); OCBC's remote onboarding does not cover Taiwan passports (Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia and mainland China only), and its in-branch route means passport + valid pass + one proof of address, with an initial deposit of S$1,000; UOB is in-branch only and accepts original documents only.
Mobile SIM: passport registration lasts only 30 days
From 2024-07-15, prepaid SIMs registered on a foreign passport stay valid for 30 days and must be re-registered with a Singapore document (your work pass) before the deadline, or they are cut off with no refund of remaining value; the cap is 3 prepaid cards per person. Get a short-term card on landing, then return to a store to re-register once you hold your pass.
The original IMDA announcement page is not machine-readable; the figures are cross-verified against the supervising ministry's (MDDI) page and the telco's official terms.
The exact window for first-time Singpass registration
FIN holders can register in the app with face verification; but the official wording on when after issuance you may register (whether you must wait for the physical card) has not been obtained, so this is being verified and no answer is listed. Tax filing and most online services sit behind Singpass, so set it up as soon as you land.
STATION 04The first year
Tax on both sides, Taiwan NHI and household registry, renting, driving licence, remittance
Singapore tax: 183 days decides who you are
≥183 days in Singapore in the preceding calendar year = tax resident, on progressive rates with the first S$20,000 tax-free and a top rate of 24%; non-residents pay 15% on employment income or the resident rates, whichever is higher. Holders of a work pass valid ≥1 year are treated as residents from the start, re-assessed at tax clearance when you leave: if you are under 183 days by then, the whole period is re-settled as a non-resident.
So quitting before the half-year mark is a money question, not just a career one; and once the pass is cancelled you only get a short legal stay. Run the tax numbers before you pick a leaving date.
Taiwan NHI (健保): the overseas suspension option is abolished; stop following old guides
From 2024-12-23 the NHI Administration no longer accepts coverage suspension; while working abroad, premiums keep being paid without interruption. Nearly every online tutorial about suspending NHI before leaving to save premiums describes the pre-abolition regime.
Coverage only ends if your household registration is moved out; the rules for rejoining on return are on the Return Line. This section cites only current NHIA documents.
Taiwan household registration (戶籍): 2 years abroad and it is moved out, not revoked
Household Registration Act, Article 16: after 2 years abroad, move-out registration applies (the household registration office may process it directly after notice). Move-out does not affect nationality or the validity of your ID card, and you can re-register the very day you re-enter Taiwan; but it does trigger NHI disenrolment and loss of voting eligibility.
Taiwan tax: the NT$1,000,000 overseas-income threshold, plus the treaty timing gap
Once your filing household's combined overseas income reaches NT$1,000,000 (NT$100 萬) in a year, the full amount counts toward basic income (AMT), with an exemption of NT$7,500,000 (NT$750 萬, applicable for ROC tax years 113–115) and a 20% rate. The new Taiwan–Singapore tax agreement only applies from 2027-01-01; until then the 1981 treaty still governs. News that a new treaty is signed does not mean it is in force.
Renting (HDB): 6-month minimum, plus three checks you run yourself
Whole flat or a room: minimum 6 months; your pass must still have ≥6 months validity on the landlord's application date; occupancy caps are 6 for 3-room flats and 8 for 4-room or larger (reverting to 6 after end-2028). The official advice for tenants protecting themselves:
- Ask for proof of the owner's identity and ownership
- Ask for the HDB rental approval, with the lease stating it is void without approval
- After approval, use the official e-Service to confirm you are listed as an authorised occupant
Condos (private housing) follow URA rules instead: each occupant must stay at least 3 consecutive months, and homes under 90 sqm are capped at 6 occupants (90 sqm and above temporarily relaxed to 8 until end-2028); tenants do not register with URA.
Rental scams: never pay just to view or to reserve a flat
January–October 2024: police received 430+ reports with losses over S$2.7 million (S$270 萬). The standard play: fake listings + a real agent's licence number + WhatsApp pressure for a deposit. Protect yourself: look up the phone number shown on the ad in the CEA public register, view the flat in person and verify the agent's identity, and remember that arranging viewings and securing a tenancy must not be charged to you.
Market rent: use official median transacted rents, not an agent's word
HDB publishes median rents by town and flat type, and officially says they can serve as a reference benchmark before you sign. Check the numbers before viewing; skip anything priced absurdly above them.
Remitting money back to Taiwan: the quota is huge, the reporting bar is low
Taiwan individuals get an annual cumulative FX conversion quota of US$10,000,000 (1,000 萬美元, effective 2024-11-01; the old US$5 million cap no longer applies); any single transaction reaching the equivalent of NT$500,000 (NT$50 萬) must be declared. Declared, not taxed; do not drift into underground remittance just to skip paperwork.
Driving licence: convert within 12 months; non-English licences need a translation
Staying beyond 12 months means converting to a Singapore licence: a S$50 conversion fee and passing the Basic Theory Test (BTT); per the official document checklist, non-English licences (including Taiwan's) need a translation issued by a Singapore-registered translation company.
Two details have no official wording and are being verified: when the 12 months starts counting, and whether any theory-test exemption exists. Call the Traffic Police to confirm before you go.
STATION 05Putting down roots
Whether and when to apply for PR; your pay structure changes once you have it
PR application: official timeline within 6 months; sync it against your EP expiry
PR is handled by ICA (apply online via e-PR): with complete documents, processing takes within 6 months, longer for some cases. Fees: S$100 to apply; on approval, Entry Permit S$20 + 5-year Re-Entry Permit (REP) S$50 + identity card S$50. Doing it yourself costs about S$220 end to end; agents often charge ten times that, with benefits you cannot verify.
A pitfall that has actually happened: the EP expiry and the PR decision land days apart, the EP lapses first, and the PR application dies with it. EP renewal and PR are two independent timelines; never bet the PR outcome against your EP expiry date.
EP/S Pass holders pay no CPF; contributions start the day you become a PR
CPF contributions apply only to citizens and PRs. The first two years as a PR run on graduated rates (year 1: employer 4% + employee 5%; year 2: 9%＋15%), then the full 17%＋20% from year 3 (below age 55, on wages up to S$8,000 a month). Model your take-home pay before taking PR.
Before using SRS to save tax, learn its exit rules
Foreigners can contribute up to S$35,700 a year, tax-deductible; but withdrawing before retirement age means full taxation plus a 5% penalty. If the plan is to quit, cash out and leave, this is the landmine. Foreigners who have held the account for 10 years may withdraw in full without penalty (this detail is under review). Accounts: DBS/OCBC/UOB.
This site gives no investment advice: whether to open an SRS account is your call; this card only makes sure you know the exit rules before you do.
RETURN LINELeaving Singapore, returning to Taiwan
Most people walk this line after 2 to 5 years: exit tax clearance, NHI re-enrolment, household registration
IR21 tax clearance: your last month's pay gets withheld, by design, not by a difficult employer
When a foreign employee resigns, is posted overseas, or leaves Singapore for more than 3 months: the employer must file Form IR21 at least 1 month in advance and withhold all monies due (salary, bonus, leave encashment) from the day it knows, until IRAS clears you; failing to file without reasonable excuse carries a fine of up to S$5,000. e-Filed cases are processed within 7 working days. Budget this into your resignation talks and your cash flow.
Rejoining NHI on return: the new rule keys on your disenrolment date, not the old idea of 4 years abroad
Restore household registration within 2 years of the disenrolment date: coverage resumes the same day. Beyond 2 years: coverage resumes only after 6 full months of restored registration (for those employed on return, from the employment start date). The 4-years-abroad framing you see online is the 2021 regime.
Restoring household registration: doable the day you arrive
After entering on your ROC passport, bring your ID card and household certificate (戶口名簿) to the household registration office of the place you are moving into, and the move-in registration is completed the same day. Restored registration is the prerequisite for NHI re-enrolment and most other rights.
Is sustainability exactly the path you want?
This site's flagship is the Green-Collar MRI: a free green-career diagnostic that ends with a personal report showing where you stand and your next step.
Take the free Green-Collar MRIThis guide and the diagnostic are free, permanently; only one-on-one work that takes the maintainer's personal time is paid. Pricing at services and pricing.
The four high-risk zones
Four areas where a wrong answer costs money, breaks rules or threatens your status. Here every line links back to an official source; where none can be found we mark it "being verified" and never fill the gap with second-hand content:
What this site does not do
- No case-by-case advice, and no answering "will my application pass": judge by the official text or consult a qualified professional.
- No agency services, no recommending agents or intermediaries, no referral fees.
- This guide collects no email and needs no account; how the wider site handles data is at privacy and data.
- No promised update cadence. Every card carries its capture date; any card unverified for over 90 days is flagged individually and automatically, with no manual upkeep needed.
- No reposting of official text in full, only organising and linking back; the final answer always lives on the official page.
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