Work Passes Issued to Dependants of Permanent Residents, Employment Pass Holders and S Pass Holders under "Other Work Passes" Category

Mr Leong Mun Wai asked the Minister for Manpower (a) as at June 2021, how many work passes have been issued under the “Other Work Passes” category of the foreign workforce numbers published on the Ministry's website; and (b) how many of these are attributable to dependants of permanent residents, Employment Pass holders and S Pass holders respectively.

The foreign workforce numbers published on MOM’s website are correct as of December 2020. The 32,200 “Other Work Passes”1 make up a small fraction of all work pass holders (2.6%). About 1% points are dependants of Employment Pass (EP) holders on a Dependant’s Pass (DP) who are holding a Letter of Consent (LOC). The remainder are largely dependants of Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents who are holding an LOC or pre-approved LOC (PLOC), who in fact make up the majority of “Other Work Passes”. Dependants of S Pass holders are not eligible to apply for LOCs.

The proportion of “Other Work Passes” contributed by dependants of EP holders is expected to drop significantly over the next few years, as with effect from 1 May 2021, DP holders who wish to work in Singapore will have to obtain a relevant work pass. Therefore, it would not be meaningful to track the number of dependants of EP and S Pass holders issued with work passes under the “Other Work Passes” category going forward.

The foreign workforce numbers as at June 2021 will be published on MOM’s website in September 2021.