Long distance relationships are not your thing? Maybe one of your considerations for working in Singapore is to bring your family members along with you? Perhaps you’ve heard that the education system is good here? Don’t worry, all you need to do is to apply for a Dependant Pass (or a Long Term Visit Pass) for your family members and they will be able to join you in Singapore.
A Singapore Dependant Pass (“DP”) is a type of relocation visa issued by the MOM made available to immediate family members of eligible (see DP eligibility criteria below) Work Visa (Employment pass/ONE Pass/Tech.Pass/PEP/S Pass) holders, enabling them to legally stay with the main pass holder in Singapore and easily re-enter the country.
The duration of the DP is tied to the validity of the main Singapore Work Pass. Thus, once the main pass holder’s pass has expired, is renewed, or is re-issued under a new employer, the DP holder will need to re-apply for a new DP linked to the main work pass visa.
A DP holder is allowed to live or study (higher education may require you to apply for a student visa) in Singapore. They may also be allowed to work if their spouse/parent is holding a ONE Pass. They will simply need to find a local employer to employ them and apply for a Letter of Consent (LOC). Unfortunately, if the DP holder’s spouse/parent is on a different Work Pass, the employer will need to apply for a regular Work Permit or S Pass/Employment Pass for them to work for their company.
You can apply a DP for your immediate family (Legally married spouse, unmarried children under 21 years old, including legally adopted children)* if you meet these requirements:
*if your family members are not eligible for a DP, you may want to help them apply for a Long Term Visit Pass (LTVP).
You can apply for LTVPs for your common-law spouse, unmarried step-children (under 21 years old), unmarried handicapped children (above 21 years old) or your parents. The eligibility criteria of an LTVP is the same as for a DP, however, if you wish to bring your parents over, you will need to earn a minimum fixed monthly salary of S$12,000.
If you and your family members have met the above criteria, you are ready to apply for a DPs or LTVPs. Generally, if you are coming to Singapore to set up your own business, you can apply the DPs or LTVPs alongside with your EP. All DPs applications must be applied by your employers themselves, or they will outsource your DP/LTVP application to a licensed Employment Agency service provider.
If you/your employer decide(s) to engage us to assist you with your DP application or LTVP application, we charge a flat fee of S$550. This fee covers:
Once the application is successful, you will be required to pay an additional fee of S$225 (issuance of DP/LTVP work pass) + S$30 for a multi-visit visa (for some nationalities only) to the Singapore government before obtaining your DP/LTVP.
When applying for a DP for your family member, you will need to provide us with the following copies of documents (with accompanying English translation certificate, if applicable):
Reminder: As mentioned above, for non-English documents, you must submit both the original document and the English-translated document.
The general processing time for a DP or LTVP application will take around 3 weeks.
If you are interested in applying for an EP, it is advisable for you to seek professional help or get a free preliminary consultation with our work pass specialist.