Ireland to Singapore - 2year+ Stay - Partner Visa Advice

[kortizol]

Personally I like KL, but only visited, never worked. A few years back I knew of some big IT projects that moved from Sg to KL due to the uncertainty around manpower levels at the time. Typically these sorts of things never come back. I think it was Citi so that could be worth a punt.

Manila would be baptism by fire if you haven't lived in Asia, but a lot of institutions have outsourced there so likely some openings, at the lower end of her salary expectations.

Standard Chartered (in Sg) always seem to be hiring, high staff turnover though. I know people on both the business and IT sides and none are happy. But that's not limited to just StandChart.

is there an expat forum anywhere that discusses specific employers and experiences various folks have had with them ?

[kortizol]

The other location options potentially on the table for us in Asia right now are Manila and KL, but Singapore seemed the best choice of the 3 for standard of living, opportunities, earnings potential, tax, and as a base hub to travel in South East Asia while we're there for the few years.

Manila you say ?

There's a vibrant expat community in Manila, living the Expat life.

Not so much, if you wanna go native.

Things are changing, but not yet, not so soon.

Plus I didn't see taxation as that attractive in PH ..

That's the thing - taxation is very attractive in Singapore and was a key driver in our choice of Sing over the others - also the culture, the city itself (we visited last year on a recon mission), the airport as a hub - we see Sing as the best of the 3. Phillipines/KL appear to be less "western" than Singapore aswell but maybe that's ill informed.

[bgd]

is there an expat forum anywhere that discusses specific employers and experiences various folks have had with them ?

This is the only one I frequent, other info is anecdotal, usually from the bar. Sg is a small place, especially the finance community.

[ecureilx]

That's the thing - taxation is very attractive in Singapore and was a key driver in our choice of Sing over the others - also the culture, the city itself (we visited last year on a recon mission), the airport as a hub - we see Sing as the best of the 3. Phillipines/KL appear to be less "western" than Singapore aswell but maybe that's ill informed.

KL.. Say, it's 75%

I won't give more than 25% for Philippines. When you meant western!! No offence..

Did you visit Philippines?

Consider Bangkok?

[Strong Eagle]

I lived in KL for 18 months over two stretches. It is only OK. Standards are poor, shoddy even, when it comes to infrastructure. Let me give you an example of the local attitude. A large, tall, internally lit sign in front of KL Sentral (the regional bus and train transportation center in KL) that provided driving instructions, was struck by a bus backing up, and it came crashing to the ground on the sidewalk. This was in August.

It lay there on the sidewalk all the way through December when I few home for the Christmas holidays. When I returned it January it was gone... I thought, "Wow, they are going to fix it!" Not so... they just dragged it under the parking garage ramp where is was barely visible. The sign was never replaced, even when I left for good the following July.

There is much to be seen and much beauty in the northern highlands of Malaysia and on the west coast. The city is beautiful in its own right with nightlife available in Bangsar and other areas. But, you will tire of the shitty taxis, and their gouging of expats at rush hours. You will tire of an airport immigration system that could care less if there are 50 or 5000 people waiting in line.

You will tire of broken sidewalks, aircon that doesn't work, and trains that always break down. You will wonder why class A office space can't air condition their elevator plazas. You will be dismayed at the slums at the foot of huge buildings. We used to joke that we couldn't imagine Malaysia running a nuclear reactor... nobody pays attention to maintenance or to upkeep of so many things.

It will be an experience at first, and in the end, you will be glad to leave.

Edited to add: The "technology corridor" is far from city center. If you work out there for an IT company be prepared for long drives as public transportation is mostly non-existent. Many companies that moved their operations to the corridor lost a lot of local employees... especially in the call centers... too far away, too costly, too remote. The smart ones retained their call centers in the city center... KL Sentral or KLCC area.

[Strong Eagle]

I've also spent some time in Bangkok... six months. The thing about Bangkok is that it is huge... officially around 8 million, unofficially, closer to 12 million. I've only lived in a small part of it, seen a bit more, and there is much that I haven't seen. So... where you actually live in Bangkok could make substantial difference in how you perceive day to day life.

Bangkok is crowded and the traffic is terrible. For example, I'd fly from Bangkok to Singapore on a Sunday afternoon, and it took me 20 minutes to get from where I lived to the airport. Coming back in on a Friday evening, it would take 2.5 hours to make the same trip.

Bangkok has many wonderful sites, and throngs of tourists to see them... it will be necessary to get used to the idea of living in a tourist town. If you are white, the tuk-tuk drivers will always be after you, as will every other tout in the city. Infrastructure is variable. You could really call the place "exotic". Language barriers, if you don't speak Thai, are more of a problem. All in all, it was a great experience, and I cannot imagine long term living in Bangkok.

[Strong Eagle]

Finally, I have not lived in Manila but have traveled there multiple times and I cannot imagine living in Manila proper. Consider the overall layout, for example. Pockets of new high rise development, surrounded by shops and restaurants, a self contained mini-paradise. in between these developments, which are all over Manila, a huge city in its own right, are never ending seas of shanty towns, with sporadically interspersed gated residential communities.

Freeways are non-existent. It is impossible to get from the airport to any major area in Manila without resorting to crowded street traffic. If it rains you need to allow hours to get to the airport. Crime and terrorism continue to be an issue... every bank and most retail establishments have guards armed with shotguns, most hotels have the same guards plus dogs to sniff your bags and attache cases.While you are probably safe in the major development areas, not so if you wander off the beaten track into one of the shanty towns at night... you look ripe for the picking.

I think I could live in Manila for a year or so just to take in all that it is... and after that, the difficulties of daily living and commuting would have me moving on.

[kortizol]

Finally, I have not lived in Manila but have traveled there multiple times and I cannot imagine living in Manila proper.

I lived in KL for 18 months over two stretches. It is only OK. Standards are poor, shoddy even, when it comes to infrastructure.

Your comments about KL and Manila are exactly what I have found from research - KL better than Manila, but neither in the same league as Singapore on multiple levels with the obvious exception of cost of living. So considering either of them seriously as an alternative is not on the table for us - it's Singapore or nothing.

[x9200]

One remark, as you emphasized some few times on the low Singapore income taxes. They should not be considered alone but confronted with the cost of living and Singapore is on the top of the list.
Anyway, the other arguments for choosing Singapore still holds.

[kortizol]

One remark, as you emphasized some few times on the low Singapore income taxes. They should not be considered alone but confronted with the cost of living and Singapore is on the top of the list.
Anyway, the other arguments for choosing Singapore still holds.

Oh I know - and over here is very similar in terms of cost of living all things netting out - so it's not a dramatic transfer thankfully coming from here.