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Written Answer by Minister for Manpower Dr Tan See Leng to PQ on S Pass Holders Earning More Than $3000 in 2019, 2020 and 2021

Work passes and permits Foreign manpower

NOTICE PAPER NO. 1083 OF 2022 FOR THE SITTING ON 4 APRIL 2022
QUESTION NO. 1709 FOR WRITTEN ANSWER
MP: Mr Pritam Singh
To ask the Minister for Manpower how many S-Pass holders earned more than S$3,000 in 2019, 2020, and 2021 respectively

Answer:

The data requested by the Member is given in Table 1 below. From December 2019 to December 2021, the number of S Pass holders decreased from 200,000 to 161,800, in part due to COVID-related entry restrictions. Over the same period, the share of S Pass holders earning $3,000 or higher increased from 37% to 67%.

 Table 1: Number of S Pass holders from Dec 2019 to Dec 2021
 Year  Dec 2019 Dec 2020  Dec 2021 
All S Pass Holders  200,000  174,000 161,800 

S Pass holders earning $3,000 or higher

(% of all S Pass holders)

 75,000

(37%)

 86,000

(49%)

 108,600

(67%)

MOM regularly reviews the S Pass qualifying salary1 to keep pace with local APT2 wages. This ensures that S Pass holders are of good calibre, and are not hired simply because they are cheaper than locals. Correspondingly, the share of S Pass holders earning higher wages has increased over time.  


Note(s) to Question No(s) 51:

 

  • 1The S Pass minimum qualifying salary is currently $2,500. From September 2022, the S Pass minimum qualifying salary will be raised to $3,000. The qualifying salary increases progressively with age for older and more experienced candidates, up to $4,500 for a candidate in their mid-40s.
  • 2Refers to Associate Professionals and Technicians.