I cook home dishes and mainly vege. Lunch would be 2 dishes rice, meat and vege. Dinner then 3 dishes rice, meat, vege, tofu or egg and simple soup. I get my stuff from wet markets, fresher and a lot cheaper. I go there weekly last time, 70 to 100 SGD can cook for one full week.

I cook mainly for health purposes, and the mums force us to. You don't save much cooking yourself in SG because of the cheap labour here compared to OZ or UK.

For single person meal recommend you get a personal rice cooker and do steam dishes. Very convenient. Google it for recipe.

I just got back from market, bringing back next week vege stuff 80 RM, 30 SGD only, can stuff full one whole hand carry already. If you buy premium beef then 30 SGD one meal also not enough.

Bro, I doubt anybody could give you a clear answer on the effect of the Fair Consideration Framework. There could be many factors at play during an application. One thing I can tell you tho is NUS and NTU chem engg grad will almost always have a higher chance of getting into high tier company. I think it is a good idea to apply for ALL the chem engg related position instead of a specific industry. Try sending out 50 to 80 resumes if you haven't already. Check out any upcoming career fairs and find people who might be able to give you internal referral. For the industry you mentioned, Abbott, Novartis, MSD, Alcon, GSK, Baxter are some companies I can think of right now (you are probably more knowledgeable on this than me). I would advise AGAINST starting as a technician regardless of how good the company is, as a degree holder. There could be as big as 1k in terms of the basic pay difference and that will seriously affect your subsequent leverage to nego for higher pay. Most HR don't care about how much OT allowance you have in your previous job.

Just my 2 cents. You are in a far better situation then I was last year as it is still March. I graduated from UK uni with the same degree and result like yours. However, I only started to find work in the later half of the year. It was hell. Most of the chem engg related jobs were gone. In the end I jumped industry and funny enough, i met quite a few fellow chem engg graduate who did the same thing.

As for the workpass, the salary is not the only criteria and 3.3k is only a guideline. Your qualification, position, industry and the company foreigner quota will also determine if you get E or S pass. From what i have seen, engineering position will generally get E Pass without problems.

Good luck and stay positive during the job hunting!

Hi guys, I'm planning to look for a job in Singapore, need some advice from sifus here.

I've been actively sending out CVs for 2 months in JobStreet but my application were rejected by almost all of the companies. I'm thinking it might be visa issues as my friend said it's rare that SG companies pay over 3.3k for fresh graduates who work in HR line? I'm thinking if this is the case?

Also I know I stand better chance in applying for jobs while I'm there in SG. So i'm thinking of going down to stay with my uncle while applying. This might sound a bit silly but I'm wondering do I write my uncle's address in my resume or my MY address in resume and give a note in the email stating that I'm currently in SG and available to attend interview anytime?

Thanks!

Click here for previous thread (v16)

Job Hunting

- Job hunting is more difficult now thanks to the Fair Consideration Framework but still possible.
- Popular Job Search Sites: Jobstreet, Monster, eFinancialCareers

Employment

- There are 4 types of Work Passes for foreigners in SG: WP, S-Pass, EP and PEP. Visit MOM website for more information on these passes.
- The company hiring you has to initiate all the formalities for you so no need to worry too much on what type of pass or how to apply for it.
- Note that different types of work pass have different rights, benefits & restrictions.

CPF and Income Tax

- If you work 183 days or more in a calendar year you are a tax resident and pay the same progressive tax rates as locals.
- If you work less than 183 days you are not a tax resident and pay flat 15% tax or progressive tax rates as locals (whichever is higher). However the following year if your employment spills over into exceeding 183 days you can request IRAS to re-assess you as a tax resident and refund you the difference in tax paid.
- Visit IRAS website for more information on taxes.
- CPF (equivalent of our EPF) is only mandatory for PR's and SC's (Singapore Citizens) at 16% Employee, 20% Employer, capped at first $5k per month.
- Some companies will encash the employer portion for foreigners.
- Visit CPF Website for more information on CPF.

Permanent Residence

- ICA does not have any official guidelines for PR approval (or any points system like Australia/NZ).
- Previously most agencies recommend applying for PR after 1 year if you are on P1 EP, 2 years or more if you are on P2/Q1 EP.
- Visit ICA website for more information on applying for PR.

Accomodation in Singapore

- Accomodation $600-$100 (room) $2000-$3000 (entire flat)
- Typical costs are 1st month rental + 1 month deposit (for each year of the lease) + 1/2 month agent fee (for each year of the lease).
- Foreigners can only own Private Condominiums and are subject to ~18% stamp duty. PR's can own Private Condominiums and Resale HDB's are and subject to ~8% stamp duty.
- Popular room/house search websites: PropertyGuru, FlatsDB, RoomsDB, EasyRoomMate.

Accomodation in Johor

- Foreigners on Work Pass living in Malaysia and commuting to SG can drive MY-registered cars and bikes. Cars incur $35 and bikes incur $4 VEP/daily.
- PR's and SC's living in Malaysia and commuting to SG can only drive SG-registered cars and bikes into the island.
- Visit LTA website for more information on operating a car in SG as a foreigner.

Driving in Singapore

- Foreigners on Work Pass are allowed to drive in Singapore for the first year only using Malaysian Drivers License. For second year onwards you are expected to convert to Singapore license.
- Visit eCitizen site for more information on converting your license.
- Note that foreigners on work pass are only allowed to drive Malaysia-registered cars if you stay outside Singapore. Visit LTA site for more information.

Expenses

This is very subjective depending on the spending power of different individuals. Basic monthly expenditure:
- Accomodation $600-$1000 (room) $2000-$3000 (entire flat)
- Food $500 and up
- Transport $60 and up
- Handphone, bills and utilities $100 and up
- Entertainment, shopping etc $xxxx

R.I.P Mr LKY

one question, do we need to renew our Malaysian driving license after getting Singapore License?

Any good courier service to recommend? Need to ship some documents from Singapore to Malaysia ASAP.

one question, do we need to renew our Malaysian driving license after getting Singapore License?

I'm about to extend my Malaysia license,
if we need to renew our MY license whenever it expire then I shall apply for 5 years,
if no, then I may just extend MY license minimal years as Singapore license doesn't need to be renewed.

Thanks dai gor and expats-expats

Strictly speaking you're not supposed to even have a (valid) Malaysian license after converting it to a Singapore one. Anyways Singapore license is valid for use in Malaysia as well so up to you whether you want to continue renewing Malaysia one or not.

any different renewing for 5 years at one go Vs renewing year by year for 5 years?