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Written Answer by Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister for Manpower, to Parliamentary Question on non-renewal of Employment Pass Holders

Work passes and permits

NOTICE PAPER NO. 1488 OF 2019 FOR THE SITTING ON 15 JANUARY 2019
QUESTION NO. 2504 FOR WRITTEN ANSWER

MP: Mr. Ang Wei Neng

To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) how many employment pass holders were not renewed in 2018 due to inability of employers to match the increased salary mandated by the Ministry; and (b) what are the criteria to establish the quantum of the increased salary when employment pass holders seek new renewal terms.

Answer

  1. Employers cancel or do not renew the Employment Passes of their staff for various reasons such as changes in employers’ manpower plans or their inability to meet the revised EP salary criteria. Employers are not required to disclose their reasons for not renewing an EP holder. Hence, we do not know how many EP holders were not renewed due to the employer not wishing to match the prevailing salary criteria.
  2. The same EP qualifying salary applies to both fresh applications and renewals. We regularly update the EP qualifying salary, taking into account local salary progression. This is to ensure that while businesses have access to skilled foreign manpower to stay competitive and grow, local jobseekers are not excluded from consideration by employers because they earn higher wages.