Moving to Singapore as a Brit: the pass routes that actually work
Singapore doesn't do visas for living there; it does passes, and almost every one of them hangs on a job.
The short version
- Brits can visit without a visa. Immigration officers set your stay, normally between 30 and 90 days, and you can't work on it [2].
- To live here you need a pass. The Ministry of Manpower runs the work passes, and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) runs permanent residence and citizenship [1][4][7].
- Most Brits come on an Employment Pass, which needs a salary of at least SGD 5,600 a month (about £3,250) and a pass under the COMPASS points test [4].
- There's no retirement visa, no golden visa for buying a flat and no digital nomad visa. If you're not working for a Singapore employer, your options shrink fast.
- Families come on a Dependant's Pass or a Long-Term Visit Pass, and only if the main earner is on at least SGD 6,000 a month (about £3,500) [5].
Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = SGD 1.7214).
Visiting first, and the arrival card
If you're popping over to look at flats or have a job interview, you don't need a visa for tourism or business. The FCDO says immigration officers decide how long you can stay, normally 30 to 90 days for British citizens, and that overstaying can mean fines, prison, caning or deportation [2]. Yes, caning. Singapore isn't joking.
Your passport needs at least six months left on it when you arrive, unless you're a Singapore resident [2]. Everyone fills in the electronic SG Arrival Card in the three days before landing, including a health declaration, and lying on it is an offence [2]. The FCDO also lists e-cigarettes and vapes among the things you can't bring in at all [2], so leave the vape in Blighty. Our guide to Singapore's rules and fines has the rest.
The routes, side by side
| Route | Who it suits | Money test (2026) | Can you work? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Pass (EP) | Professionals, managers and executives with a job offer | From SGD 5,600 a month at 23, rising to SGD 10,700 at 45+ (about £3,250 to £6,200), plus COMPASS [4] | Yes, for that employer |
| S Pass | Mid-skilled staff, technicians | From SGD 3,300 a month at 23 to SGD 4,800 at 45+ (about £1,900 to £2,800) [6] | Yes, for that employer |
| ONE Pass | Top earners and people with outstanding achievements | SGD 30,000 a month (about £17,400) for the last 12 months [8] | Yes, for several firms |
| EntrePass | Founders of venture-backed or tech-led firms | Hold at least 30% of an ACRA-registered company [9] | Yes, in your business |
| Dependant's Pass / LTVP | Spouses, children, some partners and parents | Main earner on SGD 6,000+ (parents: SGD 12,000+) [5] | Only with a work pass of their own |
| Work Holiday Pass | Students and recent graduates aged 18 to 25 | No salary test | Yes, for up to 6 months [10] |
| Student's Pass | Full-time students | Proof you can pay | Limited |
Employment Pass: the main road in
Nearly every Brit you'll meet in Raffles Place or Tanjong Pagar came in on an EP. Your employer (or an appointed employment agent) applies for you, and the job must first be advertised on MyCareersFuture so locals are considered fairly [3]. The salary bar climbs with age: SGD 5,600 at 23 or below, about SGD 7,223 at 30 (about £4,200), and SGD 10,700 at 45 and over, with higher figures in financial services [4].
The salary bar is going up. For new applications from 1 January 2027, the general figure starts at SGD 6,000 (about £3,500) and tops out at SGD 11,500 (about £6,700) [4]. If you're near the line, it's worth getting the paperwork in this year.
On top of salary, most candidates must score 40 points on COMPASS, which weighs your pay against local norms, your qualifications, the mix of nationalities at your firm and how much it hires locally [4]. You're exempt if you earn at least SGD 22,500 a month (about £13,050) or you're an intra-company transferee [4]. A first EP lasts up to two years and a renewal up to three [3]. Our Employment Pass and COMPASS guide goes through the points line by line.
ONE Pass: for the very well paid
The Overseas Networks & Expertise Pass is the Ministry of Manpower's top-talent pass. It needs a fixed salary of at least SGD 30,000 a month for 12 months in a row, from one employer, or outstanding achievements in sport, the arts or research [8]. It lasts five years at a time and lets you work for more than one company [8]. From 28 January 2027 an AI and tech track opens at SGD 22,500 a month [8].
Young Brits: the Work Holiday Pass
If you're 18 to 25 and a student or graduate of a recognised UK university, the Work Holiday Programme lets you live and work in Singapore for up to six months [10]. It's capped at 2,000 pass holders at any one time across all the eligible countries [10]. Think of it as Singapore's answer to the gap year in Australia, with better food and worse humidity.
What isn't on the menu
This is where Singapore surprises people who've read about Dubai or Portugal.
- Retirement. There's no retirement visa. Retired Brits without family ties usually can't settle here long term. Our guide to retirement visas abroad covers countries that do have one.
- Remote work for a UK firm. There's no digital nomad visa. A visit pass isn't for working, and the ONE Pass is the only route not tied to a single local employer, at a salary few remote workers have.
- Buying your way in. Buying property gives you no right to live here. The Global Investor Programme is a route to permanent residence for very large investors and is run by the Economic Development Board [7].
Family, study and permanent residence
Your spouse and unmarried children under 21 can join you on a Dependant's Pass if you hold an EP or S Pass and earn at least SGD 6,000 a month on your own salary, not household income [5]. Common-law partners, stepchildren and, on SGD 12,000 a month (about £6,950), parents can come on a Long-Term Visit Pass instead [5]. The FCDO warns that foreign residents may struggle to get a dependant's pass for a same-sex partner [2]. See Dependant's Pass and LTVP.
Once you've worked here a while, EP and S Pass holders can apply to ICA for permanent residence without a sponsor. The fee is SGD 100 (about £58) and decisions take up to six months or longer [7]. PR brings CPF contributions and, for sons, National Service [7]. Read permanent residence in Singapore for Brits before you apply.
Students apply for a Student's Pass through their place of study and ICA; our guide to universities in Singapore covers the main ones.
Your first month in Singapore
The order matters, because each step needs the one before.
- Get your in-principle approval. Your employer applies; most online EP applications get a decision or update within 10 business days [3].
- Find a home. Your pass is issued against a Singapore address that meets the housing rules [3]. Our guide to renting in Singapore covers leases and deposits.
- Collect your pass. Issuance costs SGD 225 a pass (about £131) on top of the SGD 105 application fee (about £61) [3]. You may need a medical exam first.
- Open a bank account. Your salary needs somewhere to land. See banking in Singapore as a Brit.
- Sort health cover. The FCDO says there's no reciprocal health agreement with the UK, so you need health insurance; check what your employer's policy actually covers [1].
Don't forget the UK end
Tell HMRC you've gone, usually on form P85, and check whether split-year treatment applies. The UK and Singapore have a double taxation agreement, so you shouldn't pay tax twice on the same income [1]. Your UK State Pension is frozen if you retire in Singapore, which is worth knowing before you pick where to grow old.
On citizenship, the FCDO is blunt: Singapore generally doesn't recognise dual citizenship, and becoming a citizen may mean renouncing your British one [1]. Permanent residence doesn't touch your British passport.
The FCDO travel advice for Singapore was still current at 6 November 2026 when we checked on 7 November 2026, and had last been updated on 19 March 2026 [2]. The British High Commission is in Tanglin, but it can't help with pass or residence applications [1].
Want to know how long the EP queue is really taking? Our community group for Brits in Singapore is full of people who've just been through it.
Sources
- GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Singapore (last updated 18 February 2026)
- GOV.UK (FCDO): Singapore travel advice (still current at 6 November 2026, updated 19 March 2026), including entry requirements and safety and security
- Ministry of Manpower: Employment Pass key facts (last updated 4 May 2026) and Apply for a pass
- Ministry of Manpower: Employment Pass eligibility (checked 7 November 2026)
- Ministry of Manpower: Dependant's Pass eligibility and Long-Term Visit Pass eligibility (last updated 14 March 2024)
- Ministry of Manpower: S Pass eligibility (checked 7 November 2026)
- ICA: Apply for PR (last updated 30 October 2026)
- Ministry of Manpower: ONE Pass eligibility (checked 7 November 2026)
- Ministry of Manpower: EntrePass eligibility (checked 7 November 2026)
- Ministry of Manpower: Work Holiday Programme eligibility (checked 7 November 2026)