whao, didn't think i'd ever post in here, but here goes;
i am interested in partnering up with a non-singaporean woman to start a legitimate business. legally, she will be employed by me but we will be to splitting the overheads and profits.
she is the mother of 2 children who are studying in singapore and is currently here on a long term pass. come next march, it will be her second year. she plans to stay here for another 3-4 years and possibly enrol in a PhD program to fill her time.
she is NOT from a south east asian country/china, and has a bachelor and master's degree + relevant work experience.
i intend to bank on her know-how and we plan to continue working together even AFTER she heads back home when her kids are done with school here.
i understand from the MOM website that she is eligible to work after her second year in singapore as the mother of a foreign student.
Q1:
given the current immigration situation in singapore, would it be easier to apply for a work permit (i assume this is attached to her long term pass) OR should i be applying for some other type of pass for her?
her monthly pay is not high; about $1,000-$$1,250 basic salary (which means a WP would suffice - i think!), but her commissions alone would run $50-55k for a year, excluding her share of the profits which will be about another $50-65k.
now, i should probably be asking an accountant or lawyer... but what the heck - Q2:
as her employer, would i have any liabilities if she DOES NOT declare her income?
the problem stems from the fact that there is little to no paper/money trail in our business - strictly cash only or an occasional international TT. our non-singaporean clients also do not require an invoice/receipt.
as such, this allows for some rather creative accounting techniques... it would appear from our discussions that she would be declaring very little of what she earns to the singapore government.
i am unsure how she will use or what she will do with her money and i don't want to ask too much either so as to not rock the boat. BUT we both know she needs me as much as i need her for the business to work - so i CAN AND WILL apply the squeeze where/when necessary.
i just wanna make sure i'm in the clear.
as i'm new to being self-employed... all helpful suggestions are welcome!