Unmarried Australian spouse following partner to Singapore

[angieh]

Hello everyone,
I hope you can help me. My boyfriend has been offered great role in Singapore and moves end March. He wants me to follow in approx 2 months. We are both in our late 40's with grown children from previous marriages and we are keen for a new adventure.

We are not married and not a de facto couple because we live in different cities in Australia. We each have our own home in Australia. We are thinking of marrying in another year or two but I don't want to rush it just to satisfy entry requirements.

I am a senior manager in Community Services sector but do not have a university degree. From what I read, I don't think I will qualify for employment pass. And because we are not married, it seems I couldn't get the Dependant pass either.
Can anyone advise what my options would be for living in Singapore with my boyfriend? Is there any way I could expect to be able to work? (He will support me financially if necessary but I would prefer to be contributing financially even if low pay).
Any advice would be most appreciated. Thank you.
Angie

[PNGMK]

Hello everyone,
I hope you can help me. My boyfriend has been offered great role in Singapore and moves end March. He wants me to follow in approx 2 months. We are both in our late 40's with grown children from previous marriages and we are keen for a new adventure.

We are not married and not a de facto couple because we live in different cities in Australia. We each have our own home in Australia. We are thinking of marrying in another year or two but I don't want to rush it just to satisfy entry requirements.

I am a senior manager in Community Services sector but do not have a university degree. From what I read, I don't think I will qualify for employment pass. And because we are not married, it seems I couldn't get the Dependant pass either.
Can anyone advise what my options would be for living in Singapore with my boyfriend? Is there any way I could expect to be able to work? (He will support me financially if necessary but I would prefer to be contributing financially even if low pay).
Any advice would be most appreciated. Thank you.
Angie

Tell a few white lies and get a letter from the Aust High Comm in Singapore stating you are considered to be a defacto (common law married) in Australia.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Yep. Otherwise, you can just about forget it.

[angieh]

If I forget about working in Singapore, can I still live there with him full time? Or would I only be allowed to visit for short periods of time?

[PNGMK]

If I forget about working in Singapore, can I still live there with him full time? Or would I only be allowed to visit for short periods of time?

The latter. 30 days at a time until the ICA work out what you're doing.

[angieh]

Ok, what if we do just get married? Will I then be allowed to live with him in Singapore?
Thank you

[Strong Eagle]

Ok, what if we do just get married? Will I then be allowed to live with him in Singapore?
Thank you

If you are formally married with a marriage certificate then you will be able to get a dependent's pass (DP) based upon his employment pass. With a DP, you can apply for a letter of consent (LOC) to be able to work locally. It used to be fairly easy to get a LOC... I don't know if things have tightened up recently.

If, OTOH, you provide documentation that you are in a common law marriage, then the most you can get is a long term visit pass (LTVP) which is issued once you can demonstrate that your sponsor has sufficient funds to be able to support you. You cannot work under a LTVP... nor get a LOC... you would have to get a work pass on your own merits.

[angieh]

Right then. It seems the best I can do is visit him in Singapore after the first month (he will be very busy in new job), find accomodation that suits our needs long term (Holland Village I think), start shopping for an engagement ring, organise a simple wedding in Singapore and move over permanently.

After that I guess I will have to embrace my inner domestic goddess (she hasn't been seen for many years) and become a housewife. I will need a library, a running track, drinkable wine and some friends and then I reckon I will be set.

I didn't see this turn of events in my career path but as the quote goes, "life without risk is no life at all".
Thanks everyone.
Angie

[PNGMK]

Right then. It seems the best I can do is visit him in Singapore after the first month (he will be very busy in new job), find accomodation that suits our needs long term (Holland Village I think), start shopping for an engagement ring, organise a simple wedding in Singapore and move over permanently.

After that I guess I will have to embrace my inner domestic goddess (she hasn't been seen for many years) and become a housewife. I will need a library, a running track, drinkable wine and some friends and then I reckon I will be set.

I didn't see this turn of events in my career path but as the quote goes, "life without risk is no life at all".
Thanks everyone.
Angie

Angie,

It's possibly quicker and simpler to get married in Australia IMHO.

You can find a library and running track but wine is a bit expensive here.

Good luck with the move.

[bgd]

The latter. 30 days at a time until the ICA work out what you're doing.

Austrialians get 90 days - if that is no longer the case then you can extend online. Gives you more time to find that perfect ring.

[JR8]

Right then. It seems the best I can do is visit him in Singapore after the first month (he will be very busy in new job), find accomodation that suits our needs long term (Holland Village I think), start shopping for an engagement ring, organise a simple wedding in Singapore and move over permanently.

Re: home location, this might help guide you.
GUIDE: Where should I/we consider living?
http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/viewtopic.php?t=101985" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Re: an engagement ring. IME prices are very high here, compared to abroad. When I bought my wife's one, I did a lot of consideration/research into; what she might like, what that might cost, and then where to get best value. The latter was not because I was being cheap, but rather that I know my way around diamonds quite well (I nearly went into it as a career), and I am very conscious of the largely bullshit 'premium branding' that one seems to encounter these days; plus the huge premium that seems to be charged on anything with any quality here.

There are some websites that one can look at. BlueNile is one, where it's a front-end for many independent retailers. It's a big site and takes time to get your head around. Also from the Google search on their name I just did, some of the hits returned contain results which suggest poor ratings. So, caution, as with any significant jewellery purchase! But it still has a huge amount of information on there which might give you some ideas.

I got my wife's ring from http://www.whiteflash.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, ['WF'] in Texas. That might sound foolish or a leap of faith but it was done having researched them, and with full comfort. Their site is primarily their own inventory, though I understand they list (or can source to order) some stones on something akin to an 'agency basis' for other gem dealers - but still very much under their name and reputation.

Either way, the site is useful and very easy to navigate. You can choose a stone and then choose in what materials/design you want it mounted (etc). They don't just do rings, nor just diamonds. I ordered what I needed from them and had it shipped here. Yes I paid local taxes on it, but none at source in the US. I'd estimate that it probably cost about 35-50% less than it would have getting the equivalent here. That's how expensive such a thing is here! Hence she got that much more bling for the buck => very happy wife!

I'm not advocating buying from them, or indeed buying online if it not something you've researched and are entirely comfortable with. I'd recommend WF as a user friendly resource to at least inform yourself of the variables of diamonds that go towards making the whole of any particular stone. Once you have your outline criteria (the '4Cs', being a convenient way to express the key elements) in mind, see what WF have on their inventory. That will give you a good benchmark on price, that you can then go and compare versus other vendors.

There are several levels that can matter beyond the '4Cs', but I'll leave it there for now

If you were able to figure out what you want, and can source it competitively back home then that might just be the best thing to do. Good luck!


- For the sake of clarity: I'm not connected with the jewellery trade, nor either retailer mentioned above, beyond simply now having made a few purchases from WF.

[nakatago]

I got my wife's ring from http://www.whiteflash.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, ['WF'] in Texas. That might sound foolish or a leap of faith but it was done having researched them, and with full comfort. Their site is primarily their own inventory, though I understand they list (or can source to order) some stones on something akin to an 'agency basis' for other gem dealers - but still very much under their name and reputation.

Have it delivered to SE's place; buy other things as well and he can send all of them in a nice, consolidated box

[sundaymorningstaple]

Or he will hand deliver them at the cost of a plane ticket here for an Eagles Gathering!

[JR8]

Have it delivered to SE's place; buy other things as well and he can send all of them in a nice, consolidated box

Mmmm .... some of 'em big 'ol TX steaks. Maybe some creole spices too. It might help keep the sniffer dogs off the scent too

[angieh]

You are all quite hilarious.
Thanks for the advice and tips.
Cheers
Angie