MOM to remove maximum employment period for work permit holders from 1 July
Significant changes will be made to enhance Singapore’s Work Permit framework, Minister for Manpower (MOM) Dr Tan See Leng announced during the Committee of Supply 2025 debate in Parliament on Thursday (6 March).
Source: CNA
From 1 July, work permit holders will no longer be subjected to a maximum employment period, which is currently capped at 14 to 26 years based on country of origin, sector, and skill level.
MOM will also raise the maximum employment age of work permit holders from 60 to 63, aligning with the national retirement age.
Additionally, the age limit for new work permit applicants will increase from 50 to 61 for non-Malaysians and from 50 to 58 for Malaysians.
The Ministry stated that the age cap on foreign workers had caused firms to “let go of experienced workers who could still be working at prime working age”.
These changes aim to help local firms retain experienced workers, boosting productivity and promoting best practices.
Number of work permit holders at all-time high
Dr Tan highlighted that the number of work permit holders is now at an all-time high — 17% above pre-Covid levels.
Sectors such as construction, food services, and accommodation are increasingly reliant on work permit holders, but have experienced low productivity growth over the last decade.
Source: Singapore Ministry of Manpower on Facebook
In response, Singapore will expand the list of Non-Traditional Sources (NTS) to include Laos, Cambodia, and Bhutan from 1 June, based on industry demand.
Additionally, the Non-Traditional Sources Occupation List (NTS-OL) will expand from 1 Sep.
This will allow businesses in services and manufacturing to hire skilled workers from NTS for more non-PMET (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) occupations.
The updated NTS-OL will include heavy vehicle drivers, cooks, and nearly all manufacturing operator roles recommended by the Alliances for Action (AfA).
“As NTS-OL workers must be paid at least S$2,000, this will not undermine efforts to uplift locals in these occupations,” Dr Tan said.
These revisions will “allow firms to build a more skilled and resilient workforce”.
Work permit holders as manpower support
Recognising that companies need manpower support for transformation, Dr Tan announced revisions to the Strategic Economic Priorities (M-SEP) scheme.
Launched in December 2022, the scheme provides firms with the flexibility to temporarily hire S Pass and Work Permit holders beyond their prevailing quotas, depending on industry needs.
From 1 May, the support period will be extended to three years at a time upon approval, up from the previous two years.
Firms will also have the option to send local employees on overseas exposure or leadership programmes to qualify for the additional foreign worker quota.
These changes will help advance Singapore’s high-quality Work Permit workforce while recognising the essential roles that are difficult to automate or fill with local talent, Dr Tan said.
“We are actively reviewing our work permit framework to drive transformation, while nuancing it to support different needs as our workforce changes, and updates will be shared in due course,” he added.
Also read: S’pore will focus on developing local workers but also has to stay open: Lawrence Wong
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Featured image by MS News.
