Relocating from UK - Advice Needed

[Holdaboss]

Hi all,

I am looking to move to SG from the UK due to personal reasons (girlfriend is Singaporean and currently unable to live with me in UK) and professional reasons (I see this as a good way to progress my career).

To give a brief background, I graduated in 2018 with a First Class in Economics and have just over 3 years experience at a multi-national bank.

I have been applying for external roles, however with no such luck. I feel this is due to a number of reasons, having spoke to people I know in the country: a) Covid pressures on job market, b) Roles usually requiring a little more experience than I have (c.4-6 years) and c) Drive to support local citizens trying to get employment (and rightly so). An internal transfer is not possible at this time due to lack of roles at my current company.

I have recently been granted a 6 month WHP, so I am now considering temporary employment in the hope I can then stay permanently (whilst applying for perm jobs in the background). Long story short, I have some questions:

• What is the best way for WHP holders to get employment for 6 months? Currently I am just looking at contract roles on Linkedin, Indeed, etc.

• Could I be underselling myself i.e. in a normal environment would I potentially find getting a role easier, and therefore I should wait?

• Off topic, but where are the best places to find a decent Studio? (I am currently looking at a budget of circa 2000 SGD, although this can be flexed upwards and downwards

Any help is much appreciated as I continue on this journey of job-hunting and relocating - thanks all.

[malcontent]

Timing is bad, but Singapore is planning to open up the border for more tourism.

How long have you been with your GF… do you have any wedding plans? Getting married would certainly help your cause.

When you come here you’ll get a social visit pass, and that usually can’t extend beyond 3 months, in which time you will need to find an employer willing to sponsor an EP for you.

If it’s any consolation, you are not alone. I came here in 1996 on the exact same basis for the exact same reasons. It was very hard to pull off then, and would be even harder today.

You’ll probably be better off getting a cheap 6 month room rental to start with; in case you’re unable to stay, you won’t be out too much. My GF at the time set me up with an HDB room rental at $450/mo, which I signed the very day I arrived. These are harder to find these days because Malaysian workers who can no longer commute are occupying most of them.

[Holdaboss]

Thanks Malcontent - fortunately the WHP allows me to stay and work in SG for up to 6 months. Do you have any advice for one trying to seek temporary employment? Feels like my best bet is to get something for 6 months, then either hope this turns permanent or seek for other roles in the background.

[malcontent]

I know in Europe temporary assignments like that are common, but not so much in Singapore. One thing that is important is to have a local Singapore address on your resume. Use your GF’s address if needed. Employers can quickly discard otherwise - believe me, I have done this myself when screening applicants! If it’s a local position - you need to be local. You can still be overseas for the interview, but they need to be assured that you are going to live here. Other than that, try to get a position that has some special skills to that are not common locally. That will help justify getting you an EP as well.

[Wong_Jnr]

To give a brief background, I graduated in 2018 with a First Class in Economics and have just over 3 years experience at a multi-national bank.

To put things bluntly and realistically you have little to no chance with that background.
There is such a huge pool of locals with a similar background an employer will have a real challenge to prove a local can't be hired.
Only chance could be if you are in a very specialist role e.g. cyber security
Even in normal times the challenges faced would be the same.

Can you not be placed on a secondment or work remotely with your current job?
Having your foot on the ground here helps.