Singapore Expats

My maid's husband works in Malaysia. She is asking me to give her her passport so that she can go to Malaysia to meet with her husband on Sundays. (Her husband already comes to Singapore every month to see her).

My husband is concerned that the maid will run away with her passport. Can anyone out there give me some advice please?

Isn't it illegal to impound someone else's passport?

If your maid wants to go she will go one way or another

JR8 wrote:Isn't it illegal to impound someone else's passport?

+1

It is illegal to hold her passport.

My advice? Learn to trust. If you are an A-hole, she will run away. If you are a considerate boss, she will be back.

You need to give her back her passport in any case. Unless you don't mind being a lawbreaker. Maybe she will report you.

understood. thank you all for your advice.

I can believe that this conversation even happened. Slavery is wrong now matter what form it’s in.
If she wants to leave who are you to stop her?

yep bite my lip.... jus shake head ah!

tongamei wrote:understood. thank you all for your advice.

Good that you understood!!!! You should know that you do not have the right to keep someones passport, even if you are the boss or whatever you call yourself.

I cant believe im reading your post by the way..........

Wow. She has some nerve wanting to see her husband after she already sees him once a month! I hope she does run away with her passport since you seem like a total d-bag.

Jobo wrote:Wow. She has some nerve wanting to see her husband after she already sees him once a month! I hope she does run away with her passport since you seem like a total d-bag.

I had a maid, and I was advised by agency to hold the passport and give a copy to her .. and when she asks me whether I trust her or not, dumb me was wondering why I was being a 'slave master' and I forgot she was holding the original of the Work Pass, which is sufficient for any check in Singapore .. and gave her the passport ..

After 6 months of loyalty, when I was overseas, came back and when I went to renew her permit, though she insisted on doing it herself, I took the passport, and on the way, browsed the passport .. almost every time I was overseas, she had crossed the border to Malaysia .. while I was furious, I asked the agency what are my roles and responsibilities as a employer, and the agency cleared it for me: should she meet with an accident in Malaysia, or caught in a anti-vice raid (no-she was not into it) or anything, consider myself dead, and it is all on me -

later on, while telling her that the agency is working on the renewal, I casually asked her, and she admitted she had been going out with a malaysian guy, for the past 2 years, almost the same time she was under my employ.

Did I argue with her or strike some sense into her about going overseas ? NO - I decided that arguing with such people will only make you stupid - went back, told her I am not renewing the pass as I am migrating, and gave her 2 weeks to find an employer, and end of story ..

While there are those who do a lot of chest thumping and declare that is is slavery, well, try to be in somebody's shoes when the maid disappears .. and / or gets caught with wrong company .. there are employers who had to literally bleed their heart out when the maid is in the wrong place, and they don't go about telling others ..

Be careful

Above my 2 cents ..

Well I. Your situation it definitely made sense to get rid of her since you should never have someone in your home you don't trust, but I still think it's wrong to hold someone's passport. If you're holding it because you don't trust them, maybe they shouldn't be in your home.

Jobo wrote:Well I. Your situation it definitely made sense to get rid of her since you should never have someone in your home you don't trust, but I still think it's wrong to hold someone's passport. If you're holding it because you don't trust them, maybe they shouldn't be in your home.

Do I assume that you have a maid ?? And you are one of those who encourage maids to Boyfriends ?? No kidding - i heard that from a British lady, who said she told her maid to get BF, so the maid will not be lonely .. now, this lady doesn't care that the maid has a family back home and 9 out of 10 boyfriends are there to suck money out of the maids, and by following the rule of making life comfortable for a maid, you are indirectly or directly destroying her, and I did counselling and came across enough maids who ended up working in bars and doing other monkey work to cover the money they send back home, as their salary virtually is given to the BF.

Now - if you can make sense of that- tell me ..

As for passport, what is the exact reason a maid needs to keep her passport with herself ??

Yah, their life is tough, but by advocating rights and whatever (even though holding a passport is not a human rights violation) - well, for me -nice to talk ONLY !!

Unless you have put aside 50,000 $ or more for contingency expenses for a missing maid, or runaway maid, pregnant maid, or maid caught in an anti vice raid / illegal employment (seen that too .. no - I am not gonna say the details, but a minority of them are into it - not all, and also doesn't mean they are all bad ) .. and don't start - I have informally counselled maids who ran away for lesser pain - like "MA'AM GoT pregnant, and I dont' want to be burdened looking after a baby" - conveniently forgetting that she will be starving back home and her kids too ... and "Master got a dog, and i don't want to take care of the dog" totally erasing the past of her living in places back home with not even running water and also "Boss is moving to bungalow house, and I dont like gardening" and the solution is to find a kind hearted man, and take a flight back home .. No, ICA doesn't always check for exit permit, and also they can head to Malaysia, and fly back to where-ever from Malaysia ...

Yah- I may sound harsh, but life is tough .. if the world is about being nice and being fair ... it would be something else ..

Cheers

All respect to your experience of counseling maids, but is holding their passports and so say denying them the option to go to JB on their day off if they so wished legal?

I don't think what an agency says matters, what does the law say?

JR8 wrote:All respect to your experience of counseling maids, but is holding their passports and so say denying them the option to go to JB on their day off if they so wished legal?

I don't think what an agency says matters, what does the law say?

Not to get into a shooting match, but did you forget that JB IS A FOREIGN COUNTRY ?? ?AND FROM JB - and with an Asean Passport - (assuming she is from ASEAN) she can go anywhere, and get into any trouble .. and legally, you are as good as a legal guardian and anything that happens to the maid is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY got it ??

From what I remember law says nothing about anybody being entitled to passport or not, but Police law says everybody in Singapore must have identification, and those on WP/Pass must carry their pass, NOT THEIR PASSPORT as WP has photo + finger print ...

About 10 years ago, the agencies openly advocated the employers right to hold the passport, and though they don't say it, most remind the employer that it is not a good idea to let the maid to hold her passport ... primarily because she doesn't need it unless she 'travels' a lot .. or she is into buying SIM Cards every month or so ..

And 10 years ago, the police didn't ask for any identification, and a copy of the work permit was sufficient, but with more and more runway maids / illegally working / staying here, the police demand the original of the pass ...

And .. add to it, every maid who looses her passport only sets you back by 400$ or so, to get a new passport, and the paperwork .. not that every maid looses her passport, but the type that is experienced enough to go to JB also could easily and will easily loose their passport .. I know you can deduct from salary, but after all, who pays for your time to file a police report, go to the respective embassy and do the paperwork ??

Oh, I forgot: while the maid is with her BF, I presume she is reading the bible ?? If not, I also know few cases of employers who have been caught up in serious mess, when she is caught pregnant .. Of Course, MOM i not going to bother, as long as the maid is repatriated at the employer's cost, and good luck if she has just started work, and any subsequent maid applications are always seen with a tinted glass !!

Nah, I am not scaring anybody But .. shit happens ..

PS: You didn't answer my feeble question: do you have a maid ??

ecureilx wrote:

JR8 wrote:
PS: You didn't answer my feeble question: do you have a maid ??

You didn't ask me, you asked someone else.

In general though what you describe is most revealing. Thank heavens maids have you to act as their advocate, they are truly blessed.