Hiring on an Employment Pass: an employer’s guide from offer to exit

Getting an Employment Pass (EP) approved is one step. The employer’s responsibilities start before the application and run until after the employee’s last day. This guide follows the full cycle, for founders hiring their first foreign employee and for groups relocating a senior hire to a Singapore subsidiary.

Before you apply

• Check the salary. The minimum is S$5,600 a month and rises with age to S$10,700 at 45 and above. Financial services roles start at S$6,200. From 1 January 2027, new applications need S$6,000 (S$6,600 in financial services), and the higher figures apply to renewals of passes expiring from 1 January 2028.
• Score the application under COMPASS. It needs 40 points across salary, qualifications, workforce diversity and support for local employment, with bonus points for shortage occupations and strategic priorities. Candidates on a fixed monthly salary of at least S$22,500, intra-corporate transferees and roles of one month or less are exempt.
• Advertise the job. Most roles must be advertised on MyCareersFuture for at least 14 days before you apply, and local candidates considered fairly. Companies with fewer than 10 employees and roles paying S$22,500 or more a month are among the exemptions.
• Look at the whole package. MOM assesses fixed monthly salary, so bonuses and equity do not count the way founders expect. See how to structure an equity-heavy offer.

The application

1. The employer applies online. MOM usually decides within about ten business days, longer if it asks for more information.
2. On approval, MOM issues an in-principle approval letter. A candidate already working in Singapore does not need to cancel their existing pass before you apply, and should resign only once the approval is in hand.
3. The employer has the pass issued once the candidate is in Singapore and ready to start. A notification letter lets them begin work while the card is produced.
4. If required, the employee registers fingerprints and a photo, and the card is delivered.

While they are on your payroll

• Pay what you declared. The salary in the application must actually be paid. Tell MOM before reducing it or materially changing the role.
• Itemised payslips and written key employment terms. The Employment Act covers all employees, including EP holders, whatever they earn.
• No CPF, but the Skills Development Levy applies. CPF is for citizens and permanent residents. The levy is payable for every employee, at 0.25% of monthly wages, between S$2 and S$11.25 per employee.
• Insurance. Medical insurance is not compulsory for EP holders, though most employers provide it. Work injury compensation insurance is compulsory for manual workers and for non-manual employees earning S$2,600 a month or less, and worth having for everyone because the employer is liable for claims either way.
• Annual income reporting. Report each employee’s income to IRAS by 1 March. Employers with five or more employees must do this electronically under the Auto-Inclusion Scheme.
• Directorships. An EP holder can be a director of the company that employs them. To be a director of another company, they first need a Letter of Consent from MOM.

Renewal

You can apply to renew up to six months before the pass expires. Renewals are assessed against the criteria in force at the time, including COMPASS, so check the salary against the age-based minimum well ahead. A salary that qualified three years ago may not qualify now.

When they leave

1. File tax clearance (Form IR21) with IRAS at least one month before the employee’s last day.
2. Withhold all money due to the employee from the day you know they are leaving, until IRAS tells you how much tax to pay over. Release the balance afterwards.
3. Include equity. Unexercised options and unvested share awards are taxed at this point under the deemed exercise rule. See our ESOP tax guide.
4. Cancel the pass within one week of the last day of employment. The employee normally receives a short-term visit pass to wind up their affairs.

Tax clearance is the step most often missed, usually because a resignation takes effect immediately and payroll releases the final salary as normal. The employer can be held responsible for the tax.

This article is general information, not immigration, legal or tax advice. Based on Ministry of Manpower and IRAS guidance as at November 2026. Pass criteria change regularly, so check the current rules before you act.