Visa-Free Travel Deal in the Works Between China and Singapore China and Singapore are in talks about a visa-free travel deal arrangement to boost arrivals from the city-state. Singapore had 3.6 million Chinese visitors in 2019. This is far more than any country, and the total spent combined by these visitors was S$4.1 billion. With…
What is the New Point-Based Work Pass in Singapore and How Does it Work? Singapore has taken a significant step in revolutionizing its approach to immigration and employment by introducing a point-based work pass system. The new system called the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS), aims to attract highly skilled professionals and prioritize individuals who can…
Singapore Retains its Position as World’s Best Business Environment for 15th Consecutive Year Singapore remains the world’s best business environment for the 15th consecutive year, based on EIU’s recent business environment rankings. Canada and Denmark were a close second. Strong political and economic stability contributed to these rankings. Singapore is one of the most business-friendly…
Paid Paternity Leave Doubles in Singapore, Reaches 4 Weeks Fathers of children born on or after 1 January 2024 can enjoy more time at home with their newborn as paid paternity leave doubles, reaching 4 weeks in Singapore. The additional two weeks will be on a voluntary basis to begin with. Employers will be reimbursed…
Higher CPF Monthly Salary Ceiling Announced in Singapore Singapore announces a higher CPF monthly salary ceiling in its Budget 2023. The current salary ceiling sits at S$6,000 and will be raised in stages to S$8,000 by 2026. The first increase will commence 1 September this year to the sum of S$6,300. The next increase will…
Singapore to Sign a Digital Trade Agreement Following Talks with Europe Singapore to sign a digital trade agreement to drive its digital economy The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is pursuing a stronger and more collaborative digital future in Asia. The EFTA is in talks with Singapore to hammer out a digital trade deal to…
Funding Boost for Singapore Global Enterprises Initiative to Enhance Competitiveness Bridging gaps with a funding boost for Singapore Global Enterprises initiative Singapore has excellent news for both small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large local enterprises (LLEs). The Government’s Budget 2023 aims to benefit these enterprises by increasing available capital for businesses. Under the budget,…
Enterprise SG and IFC Partnership to Guide Institutions and Businesses Emphasis on supply chain finance for Enterprise SG and IFC Partnership Enterprise Singapore (Enterprise SG) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have penned a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). It creates an Enterprise SG and IFC partnership that aims to bring change to the Singapore…
Singapore GDP Growth Rate Exceeds 2022 Forecasts, Records 3.8% Growth The services sector helped to boost the Singapore GDP growth rate to 3.8% in 2022, beating forecasts. However, growth in the fourth quarter was slower than expected. Growth in the manufacturing sector was not as optimistic as analysts expected. Manufacturing experienced a growth of only…
Singapore’s Lower & Middle-Income Residents to Get GST and S&CC Rebates Early 2023 Lower and middle-income household residents in Singapore are set to receive their GST vouchers and S&CC in early January this year. This will apply to about 950,000 residents living in HDB flats. The GST vouchers and U-Save and Service and Conservancy Charges…