Singapore Permanent Residence (PR) Benefits
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If you are a Singapore work pass holder and have been employed in the country for at least six months, you may be eligible to apply for permanent resident status. As of 2018, there were 522,347 Singapore PR holders residing in the country. Permanent residents enjoy many of the benefits and rights as full citizens do.
As a Singapore PR, you can:
- Brighten your future! Like other countries, Singapore offers a PR (Permanent Residence) scheme. Being granted a Singapore PR status will allow you to live, work and leave the country without having to apply for separate visas. You’ll receive a Blue Card – your identity document – as part of this process.
- Include your spouse and children under 18 years old in the PR application. If your children are school-aged, they are high on the priority list behind citizens to enter public schools of their own choosing.
- Apply for long-stay visas for your parents
- Keep your Singapore work permit as you change jobs with employers. If you want to change jobs, cancel your old work-related visa and apply for a new one – at the risk of delay or rejection..
- Singapore’s Central Provident Fund (CPF) scheme provides financial and tax benefits to contributors. CPF contributions are monthly minimum amounts, which can be used for purposes related to health care, home-ownership, family protection, and growing your assets.
- One of the benefits for Singapore Permanent Resident (PR) cardholders is priority borrowing rights in various loan programs, such as housing loans to purchase a property. In addition, PR cardholders are eligible to purchase second-hand units of government HDB flats (citizens can only buy new ones).
- Applicants are eligible to apply for full citizenship after a number of years of having permanent residence status, which will allow them to finally obtain their Singaporean passport and enjoy the same rights as other citizens.
One of the things to think about when considering becoming a Singapore PR is that it opens up career opportunities in certain sectors. For instance, if you have younger children who are Singapore PR holders, they may be required to serve in the military after turning 16.5 years old (commonly referred to as national service) and serve for 2 years on turning 18. After their admission, they’ll need to participate in 40 days of national service every year until they turn 50 (for officers) or 40 (for other ranks).
Nevertheless, becoming a Singapore PR–a process which usually takes around six to twelve months – opens up many opportunities for you to live, work and invest in the society and economy of Singapore.