Reasons for Rejection of Non-domestic Work Permit Applications

Mr Kok Heng Leun asked the Minister for Manpower over the last 12 months (a) what are the top five reasons for rejecting non-domestic Work Permit applications other than the reason of the employer not meeting the dependency ratio; and (b) what channels are open to the worker and employer to find out the reason for the rejection.

Applications for Work Permits are screened to minimise incidence where undesirable persons are inadvertently allowed to work in Singapore. Apart from this factor and the employer not meeting the dependency ratio, the top reasons for rejecting non-domestic Work Permit applications were:

(a) The employer or applicant had adverse record(s);

(b) The employer did not have sufficient Man-Year Entitlement9;

(c) The employer did not have enough higher skilled Work Permit holders to hire new basic skilled workers10;

(d) The worker had exceeded the maximum employment period; or

(e) The worker was not from an approved source country.

Employers or their employment agents can view the rejection reasons for their Work Permit applications through the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM's) Work Permit Online (WPOL) service on the MOM website. Applicants can also check with their employment agents or prospective employers. Where there are security concerns, the reasons for rejection may not always be specified. Instead, the employer is advised to look for another candidate.