Student Pass Holders Granted Permanent Residency and Guardians Granted Long-Term Visit Pass

Ms Hazel Poa asked the Minister for Home Affairs for each year since 2020 (a) what is the number, average age and median age of Student Pass holders who have applied for and been granted Permanent Resident status respectively; and (b) what is the number of guardians who applied for and received a Long-Term Visit Pass to accompany and look after a foreign student holding a Student Pass respectively.

Between 2020 and 2023, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) processed an average of about 4,500 Permanent Residence (PR) applications from Student Pass (STP) holders each year, including those who applied for PR together with their family. An average of around 1,100 applications were approved per year. The average and median ages of STP holders whose PR applications were processed, as well as those who had their PR applications approved, ranged between 12 and 14.

In the same period, ICA processed an average of 4,300 Long-Term Visit Pass applications each year from parents and grandparents who wished to accompany the STP holders. An average of around 4,100 applications were approved per year.