Singapore Expats

rohorn wrote: ↑

Thu, 17 Dec 2020 8:14 pm

Hello all. Thanks in advance for any help/guidance on the below!

My husband just got a job in Singapore starting in August 2021.
I have a company in London and can work anywhere remotely. I was wondering how many times can I visit on a 90-day visa? The job is for 2 years and he is a teacher so we would be doing a lot of traveling around S.E.A. during his long school holidays.

I've read some stories about not being granted access the second time? It doesn't make sense for me to apply for a visa as this would mean having to give up my business and look for a new job. It would mean my holidays would be much smaller and inflexible with the school holidays.

We are a same-sex couple and married in the UK, but I've read that they do not acknowledge that we are spouses so I would not be able to come on his visa.

Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Ronan

PNGMK wrote: ↑

Mon, 21 Dec 2020 9:46 pm

OP should pursue a DP. That is possible with a legal marriage even same sex now.

rohorn wrote: ↑

Mon, 21 Dec 2020 10:28 pm

We are going to try, but do you think we would have a better chance with DP or LTVP?

Thanks!

sundaymorningstaple wrote: ↑

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 7:49 pm

rohorn wrote: ↑

Mon, 21 Dec 2020 10:28 pm

We are going to try, but do you think we would have a better chance with DP or LTVP?

Thanks!

Only if your pairing has been legitimized in your own country. Even then, it is going to be iffy as there is nothing in black & white. Well, with the exception of 377A that is. So, you buys your ticket and takes your chances. You are going to need a pretty good dollop of luck, I'm guessing.

Myasis Dragon wrote: ↑

Wed, 06 Jan 2021 12:35 am

The issue is not entirely clear because the Singapore authorities don't divulge the criteria for allowing or denying additional visit visas.

Quite a few Southeast Asia countries (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and I think Vietnam) have a rule that you can spend a maximum of 90 days in the country every 180 days. I had an employee who was caught at the Bangkok airport with 93 days of visitation on her passport in a 180 day period. She was kept overnight and put on the first plane back to Singapore.

Singapore does not explicitly state this rule, but as SMS and others have noted, doing a visa run to Malaysia or Indonesia after staying for 90 days, only to return a day later hoping for another 90 days, is probably going to raise red flags.

OTOH, as a Brit, you're eligible for a frequent traveler visa.

(https://www.ica.gov.sg/enteringanddeparting/visitor/ftp).

This means you can use the automated facilities with your foreign passport. Nowhere on this page is there any specified limit to the number of times you can enter Singapore nor the duration of each visit. Thus, if you've got the travel budget, you might consider frequent visits of shorter duration.

With respect to your same sex marriage: Nowhere in the dependents pass policies and provisions is there any mention that the couple must be hetero. The only provision is that you be able to provide a valid marriage license, and since the UK allows same sex marriage with the same rights and responsibilities as hetero marriage (ie, not a "civil union"), I'd probably try to get a DP before worrying about visas and visa runs. I recall at least one same sex couple from the UK posting on this board that they had successfully applied.

https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permi ... /key-facts

In the end, all of these rules are to prevent foreign labor from entering Singapore under the radar and working illegally without a permit.

rohorn wrote: ↑

Sat, 09 Jan 2021 3:37 am

Myasis Dragon wrote: ↑

Wed, 06 Jan 2021 12:35 am

The issue is not entirely clear because the Singapore authorities don't divulge the criteria for allowing or denying additional visit visas.

Quite a few Southeast Asia countries (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and I think Vietnam) have a rule that you can spend a maximum of 90 days in the country every 180 days. I had an employee who was caught at the Bangkok airport with 93 days of visitation on her passport in a 180 day period. She was kept overnight and put on the first plane back to Singapore.

Singapore does not explicitly state this rule, but as SMS and others have noted, doing a visa run to Malaysia or Indonesia after staying for 90 days, only to return a day later hoping for another 90 days, is probably going to raise red flags.

OTOH, as a Brit, you're eligible for a frequent traveler visa.

(https://www.ica.gov.sg/enteringanddeparting/visitor/ftp).

This means you can use the automated facilities with your foreign passport. Nowhere on this page is there any specified limit to the number of times you can enter Singapore nor the duration of each visit. Thus, if you've got the travel budget, you might consider frequent visits of shorter duration.

With respect to your same sex marriage: Nowhere in the dependents pass policies and provisions is there any mention that the couple must be hetero. The only provision is that you be able to provide a valid marriage license, and since the UK allows same sex marriage with the same rights and responsibilities as hetero marriage (ie, not a "civil union"), I'd probably try to get a DP before worrying about visas and visa runs. I recall at least one same sex couple from the UK posting on this board that they had successfully applied.

https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permi ... /key-facts

In the end, all of these rules are to prevent foreign labor from entering Singapore under the radar and working illegally without a permit.

Thank you for your reply and information - it is all very helpful.

I have also read the 90/180 day rule a few places and Singapore identifies you as a tax resident after 183 days which would make sense.

I wouldn’t be going to the Malaysian border to renew a 90 day visa - the plan is to spend the time in between in Australia / Japan / back in UK.

I had read about the FTP but again the info is incredibly vague about how many times per year and lengths of stay. Frequent suggests quite a few but I thought this was more suited to business travellers who visit for a few days at a time?

You are the second person I have read who heard of a same-sex couple being granted a DP, but it seems to depend on the minister dealing with the case. Do you happen to remember the user / thread so I could message them directly? (Long shot I know).

Thanks again.