Firms in Manufacturing and Services sectors can hire Work Permit holders from NTS for a restricted set of occupations in the NTS Occupation List.
What is the NTS Occupation List
Firms in the Manufacturing and Services sectors can hire Work Permit holders from the following countries or regions:
- Malaysia
- People’s Republic of China (PRC)
- North Asian sources (NAS):
- Hong Kong (HKSAR passport)
- Macau
- South Korea
- Taiwan
Under the NTS Occupation List, firms will be allowed to hire Work Permit holders from the following countries or regions for a restricted set of occupations:
- Bangladesh
- Bhutan
- Cambodia
- India
- Laos
- Myanmar
- Philippines
- Sri Lanka
- Thailand
Requirements
Firms must meet all of the following requirements:
NTS Occupation List
The NTS Occupation List contains the following occupations:
| Occupation |
You need to ensure that |
| Cooks (this will replace ‘Cooks in Indian restaurants’) |
- The company is in the Services sector and has a valid Singapore Food Agency (SFA) Food Shop licence.
- The licence must be under the company’s name.
|
|
Food processing workers, but excluding:
- Food processing supervisors and general foremen.
- Other food and beverage jobs like tasters, graders, bakers, pastry-cooks and confectionery makers.
|
- The company has a valid SFA Food Processing Establishment or Slaughterhouse licence.
- The licence must be under the company’s name.
|
|
Heavy vehicle drivers, such as:
- Trailer truck drivers
- Lorry drivers
|
- Workers have a class 4 or 5 licence as of 1 September 2025.
- Workers should not be driving cars or light good vehicles which are considered as Class 3.
|
| Housekeeping workers and porters |
Workers are working in licensed hotels. |
|
Manufacturing workers, such as:
- Assemblers
- Machine operators
- Metal moulders and coremakers
- Quality checkers & testers
- Riggers and cable splicers
- Sheet metal workers
- Structural metal preparers and erectors
- Welders and flame cutters
|
The company has a work pass account under the Manufacturing sector. |
Levy requirements
You must pay a monthly levy for Work Permit holders. For your worker to qualify for higher-skilled worker levy, they must meet the requirements for their respective sector: