Transit at Changi

[studyloan123]

Hi,

I have been outside Singapore for the last 8 years ..during this period, i was unable to renew my PR as i was not employed in Singapore (even though i made voluntary CPF contributions from overseas).. i still have a big amount of CPF still in Singapore..

i have an outstanding study loan and i got a notice from the bank (few years ago) asking me to repay the loan amount in bigger installments..i immediately contacted the bank and paid the bigger installments for 2 months until i had some job issues...the address in the bank records is my friends apartment and now he has also left Singapore to the US..so i dont know if there are any further notices from the bank/lawyers..the phone number i got in the 1st notice (few years ago) does not work and i am having a really difficult time contacting the bank offices (with automated hold messages) to get a clear and current status of my outstanding loan..

i dont have plans to relocate to Singapore...but if i transit via Changi, will i be detained? i am doing my best to get in touch with the bank to clear my dues and take back my remaining CPF amount...but this might take sometime...in the meantime, will i be detained (or even arrested) while in transit? i believe my CPF amount is sufficient to cover my outstanding study loan amount..

thanks..

[sundaymorningstaple]

Couple of questions.

a) you mention study loans - were you a student in Singapore? Were you a PR at the time? When did you obtain PR? Before you turned 21 or after? Dependent PR or PTS scheme? Basically, did you acquire an NS obligation that you have not yet fulfilled? If so, you might be in a precarious position even in transit, but if your only fault is unpaid student loans I don't see a real problem, but in theory they could if the bank is chasing you for it, e.g., filed for bankruptcy, etc. But I think the odds are against it.