PR Approved 2023

[NYY1]

Opinions are like buttholes, all have them and almost always they stink.

It was common knowledge that along with CECA, Indian Nationals created virtual enclaves in quite a few of the condos out in the Changi area (Near to the Changi business park where so many of the Banks have their IT backends located). Some complexes were virtually 100% Indian nationals. This created a huge backlash at the 2011 General Election and again in the 2015 elections (along with the virtual closed shop for all other nationalities in certain segments due to certain ethnic foreign nationals gaining Sr. positions in HR management). It cost the PAP several percentage points in votes but they still had more than enough to win, but it did signal that the local population was pretty much fed up.

Yes, but this isn't really the question? What you describe is what got some people in the penalty box or what can hurt an application (possibly so today). Does the opposite help? I'm not so sure. Clearly, there are people staying in condos that get approved and people in HDBs that unfortunately haven't been given the green light (we have one here).

[sundaymorningstaple]

I tend to disagree with most in this thread as most think with an expatriate mindset. (If you are an EP holder I would think that would be normal, to be honest). However, if you are an Expat here on an expat contract (getting harder and harder to find and usually only on senior levels nowadays), the living in a high end or nice condo makes sense. They're here on inflated salaries and often have allowances for housing, schools, etc. However, where the leap of faith comes into play is how many of those Expatriates come over here on an Expat contract and have the intent to permanently settle here? Very few, I reckon. Most are hunting for PR solely to avoid retrenchment relocation costs back to their country until "they" are ready to go, but usually, go they will.

So, here is the conundrum that ICA faces (from my POV). Is that EP holder who is living here in a nice condo on an inflated salary going to stay here after he's been taken off the inflated Expat package or go where he can continue to milk the system elsewhere. Most that are here for the money are not here to make lifelong Singaporean Friends. Make sense? So why try to assimilate? However, if they decided somewhere along the line that they actually like this place, then they need to assimilate. How better to be in a heartland HDB estate where your friends won't be leaving in 24 months when their EP isn't renewed due to revised criteria. Follow my drift?

[sundaymorningstaple]

Yes, but this isn't really the question? What you describe is what got some people in the penalty box or what can hurt an application (possibly so today). Does the opposite help? I'm not so sure. Clearly, there are people staying in condos that get approved and people in HDBs that unfortunately haven't been given the green light (we have one here).

Agreed, almost all is on a bell curve of some sort or another and will produce outliers on both ends. But if your mind is set on one thing, then the more ducks you have lined up on your side.......

[NYY1]

Yes, but this isn't really the question? What you describe is what got some people in the penalty box or what can hurt an application (possibly so today). Does the opposite help? I'm not so sure. Clearly, there are people staying in condos that get approved and people in HDBs that unfortunately haven't been given the green light (we have one here).

Agreed, almost all is on a bell curve of some sort or another and will produce outliers on both ends. But if your mind is set on one thing, then the more ducks you have lined up on your side.......

Fair enough. I think the fattest part of the curve naturally has people with certain characteristics that make them a good candidate anyways. I feel what the question here was alluding to was whether this a tick the box item people can try to do. On those lines and one of your other replies, there is integration and there is where you live (as in physically sleep at night).

At the end of the day, for some applicants I can't imagine housing really matters. On the other end of the spectrum, no matter what you do, the odds still aren't really on your side. But I get what you are saying.

[Lisafuller]

Opinions are like buttholes, all have them and almost always they stink.

It was common knowledge that along with CECA, Indian Nationals created virtual enclaves in quite a few of the condos out in the Changi area (Near to the Changi business park where so many of the Banks have their IT backends located). Some complexes were virtually 100% Indian nationals. This created a huge backlash at the 2011 General Election and again in the 2015 elections (along with the virtual closed shop for all other nationalities in certain segments due to certain ethnic foreign nationals gaining Sr. positions in HR management). It cost the PAP several percentage points in votes but they still had more than enough to win, but it did signal that the local population was pretty much fed up.

Haven't heard the first line in a while. Never gets old.

[Lisafuller]

Opinions are like buttholes, all have them and almost always they stink.

It was common knowledge that along with CECA, Indian Nationals created virtual enclaves in quite a few of the condos out in the Changi area (Near to the Changi business park where so many of the Banks have their IT backends located). Some complexes were virtually 100% Indian nationals. This created a huge backlash at the 2011 General Election and again in the 2015 elections (along with the virtual closed shop for all other nationalities in certain segments due to certain ethnic foreign nationals gaining Sr. positions in HR management). It cost the PAP several percentage points in votes but they still had more than enough to win, but it did signal that the local population was pretty much fed up.

Yes, but this isn't really the question? What you describe is what got some people in the penalty box or what can hurt an application (possibly so today). Does the opposite help? I'm not so sure. Clearly, there are people staying in condos that get approved and people in HDBs that unfortunately haven't been given the green light (we have one here).

I ultimately think housing means very little. There are plenty of locals living in landed properties, just as there are in condos. Staying in one doesn't necessarily mean mingling only with your own kind.

[Lisafuller]

I tend to disagree with most in this thread as most think with an expatriate mindset. (If you are an EP holder I would think that would be normal, to be honest). However, if you are an Expat here on an expat contract (getting harder and harder to find and usually only on senior levels nowadays), the living in a high end or nice condo makes sense. They're here on inflated salaries and often have allowances for housing, schools, etc. However, where the leap of faith comes into play is how many of those Expatriates come over here on an Expat contract and have the intent to permanently settle here? Very few, I reckon. Most are hunting for PR solely to avoid retrenchment relocation costs back to their country until "they" are ready to go, but usually, go they will.

So, here is the conundrum that ICA faces (from my POV). Is that EP holder who is living here in a nice condo on an inflated salary going to stay here after he's been taken off the inflated Expat package or go where he can continue to milk the system elsewhere. Most that are here for the money are not here to make lifelong Singaporean Friends. Make sense? So why try to assimilate? However, if they decided somewhere along the line that they actually like this place, then they need to assimilate. How better to be in a heartland HDB estate where your friends won't be leaving in 24 months when their EP isn't renewed due to revised criteria. Follow my drift?

Isn't that kind of what PR is for? You get to stay here 5 years at a time.

[Lisafuller]

Yes, but this isn't really the question? What you describe is what got some people in the penalty box or what can hurt an application (possibly so today). Does the opposite help? I'm not so sure. Clearly, there are people staying in condos that get approved and people in HDBs that unfortunately haven't been given the green light (we have one here).

Agreed, almost all is on a bell curve of some sort or another and will produce outliers on both ends. But if your mind is set on one thing, then the more ducks you have lined up on your side.......

Fair enough. I think the fattest part of the curve naturally has people with certain characteristics that make them a good candidate anyways. I feel what the question here was alluding to was whether this a tick the box item people can try to do. On those lines and one of your other replies, there is integration and there is where you live (as in physically sleep at night).

At the end of the day, for some applicants I can't imagine housing really matters. On the other end of the spectrum, no matter what you do, the odds still aren't really on your side. But I get what you are saying.

Exactly. It's about the overall profile, focusing on the nitty-gritty leads us down a path of infinite regress.

[hopeislife]

Opinions are like buttholes, all have them and almost always they stink.

It was common knowledge that along with CECA, Indian Nationals created virtual enclaves in quite a few of the condos out in the Changi area (Near to the Changi business park where so many of the Banks have their IT backends located). Some complexes were virtually 100% Indian nationals. This created a huge backlash at the 2011 General Election and again in the 2015 elections (along with the virtual closed shop for all other nationalities in certain segments due to certain ethnic foreign nationals gaining Sr. positions in HR management). It cost the PAP several percentage points in votes but they still had more than enough to win, but it did signal that the local population was pretty much fed up.

ofcourse, buttholes are important too. Nobody can imagine living without one. Most parts of our body are important and there is no point to use one part of a body to be considered awful or unpleasant.

[Lisafuller]

You're joking, aren't you? he was being facetious.

[Như]

Hi everyone!
Our PR application recently has been approved, and we've completed all the formalities. We want to express our thanks to this incredible platform and its community. You guys have been a wellspring of invaluable advice, based on real-life experiences, which guided us through this journey. So, as a pay-forward, I’m here to share our story and hopefully inspire you not to lose hope.

A little background: We were Vietnamese S-Pass holders, tied the knot in September 2022, no kid yet. We submitted our PR application as a family unit in February 2023. This was my first attempt, but for my husband, it was the fourth go-around. Below is our profiles:

My husband:
* Age: 33
* Working industry: Chemical Engineering
* Annual Income: 45K basic salary, with around 40K in bonuses and allowances
* Education in Singapore: High school, Polytechnic, and a proud NUS graduate, ranking second in his course. Small story, he pursued the degree while working.
* Time Spent in Singapore: 17 years
* Job History: 10 years of dedication to his first company, followed by a switch to a new gig just one month before the PR approval. The new job paid 40% less, but we lucked out, it didn't hinder our formality completion.

Now, onto his PR attempts:
* 2008: He opted out of National Service which was part of the PR offer at the time, a decision we think contributed to several rejections.
* 2015: First attempt, rejected after only two months.
* 2018: Second try, rejected after a six-month wait with no explanation.
* 2021: Tried again, rejected after another six-month wait, but this time, ICA kindly suggested via email that he should come back only when having some significant updates.
* 2023: Right after his graduation from NUS, we applied together, and both received approval after seven months.

Now, a bit about me:
* Age: 31
* Working industry: Advertising
* Annual Income: fixed 60K, no bonus.
* Education: Vietnam National University HCMC
* Time Spent in Singapore: Nearly 5 years
* Job History: I've been loyal to one company throughout 5 years here.

When I first set foot in Singapore, PR status was the furthest thing from my mind. I was all about working hard at my job while falling in love with this beautiful, safe, and healthy environment. Therefore, one year in, I decided to become a bone marrow and organ donor, along with regularly donating blood twice a year (before we started our journey toward parenthood). (This fact wasn't mentioned in my application btw)

We registered marriage in Singapore, which also made the paperwork a breeze.

My husband and I did all the paperwork ourselves. We filled out the forms diligently, taking tips from this forum along the way. While we don’t know exactly how ICA evaluated our application, we believe in the importance of honesty, as ICA is definitely beyond smart.

So, what I’d like to say is: never lose hope, always tell the truth, and you know what, you can skip the PR agents. Above all, love this island no matter if your PR application succeeds or not, merely because it's where we're living. The rest we leave it to God’s hand. That was precisely our mindset when it came to PR application.

That's our story.

Hope you all a nice weekend and smooth PR journey ahead.

[singaporeflyer]

Hi everyone!
Our PR application recently has been approved, and we've completed all the formalities. We want to express our thanks to this incredible platform and its community. You guys have been a wellspring of invaluable advice, based on real-life experiences, which guided us through this journey. So, as a pay-forward, I’m here to share our story and hopefully inspire you not to lose hope.

A little background: We were Vietnamese S-Pass holders, tied the knot in September 2022, no kid yet. We submitted our PR application as a family unit in February 2023. This was my first attempt, but for my husband, it was the fourth go-around. Below is our profiles:

My husband:
* Age: 33
* Working industry: Chemical Engineering
* Annual Income: 45K basic salary, with around 40K in bonuses and allowances
* Education in Singapore: High school, Polytechnic, and a proud NUS graduate, ranking second in his course. Small story, he pursued the degree while working.
* Time Spent in Singapore: 17 years
* Job History: 10 years of dedication to his first company, followed by a switch to a new gig just one month before the PR approval. The new job paid 40% less, but we lucked out, it didn't hinder our formality completion.

Now, onto his PR attempts:
* 2008: He opted out of National Service which was part of the PR offer at the time, a decision we think contributed to several rejections.
* 2015: First attempt, rejected after only two months.
* 2018: Second try, rejected after a six-month wait with no explanation.
* 2021: Tried again, rejected after another six-month wait, but this time, ICA kindly suggested via email that he should come back only when having some significant updates.
* 2023: Right after his graduation from NUS, we applied together, and both received approval after seven months.

Now, a bit about me:
* Age: 31
* Working industry: Advertising
* Annual Income: fixed 60K, no bonus.
* Education: Vietnam National University HCMC
* Time Spent in Singapore: Nearly 5 years
* Job History: I've been loyal to one company throughout 5 years here.

When I first set foot in Singapore, PR status was the furthest thing from my mind. I was all about working hard at my job while falling in love with this beautiful, safe, and healthy environment. Therefore, one year in, I decided to become a bone marrow and organ donor, along with regularly donating blood twice a year (before we started our journey toward parenthood). (This fact wasn't mentioned in my application btw)

We registered marriage in Singapore, which also made the paperwork a breeze.

My husband and I did all the paperwork ourselves. We filled out the forms diligently, taking tips from this forum along the way. While we don’t know exactly how ICA evaluated our application, we believe in the importance of honesty, as ICA is definitely beyond smart.

So, what I’d like to say is: never lose hope, always tell the truth, and you know what, you can skip the PR agents. Above all, love this island no matter if your PR application succeeds or not, merely because it's where we're living. The rest we leave it to God’s hand. That was precisely our mindset when it came to PR application.

That's our story.

Hope you all a nice weekend and smooth PR journey ahead.

Congrats.

Main reason for the approval was his stay, education in Singapore since his early schooling in Sg. Else for someone from VN on S-Pass to get approved for PR is close to impossible.

I would also say he is a little lucky in this case, based on the first fact that you had quoted in the PR attempts section.

[sundaymorningstaple]

I tend to disagree with most in this thread as most think with an expatriate mindset. (If you are an EP holder I would think that would be normal, to be honest). However, if you are an Expat here on an expat contract (getting harder and harder to find and usually only on senior levels nowadays), the living in a high end or nice condo makes sense. They're here on inflated salaries and often have allowances for housing, schools, etc. However, where the leap of faith comes into play is how many of those Expatriates come over here on an Expat contract and have the intent to permanently settle here? Very few, I reckon. Most are hunting for PR solely to avoid retrenchment relocation costs back to their country until "they" are ready to go, but usually, go they will.

So, here is the conundrum that ICA faces (from my POV). Is that EP holder who is living here in a nice condo on an inflated salary going to stay here after he's been taken off the inflated Expat package or go where he can continue to milk the system elsewhere. Most that are here for the money are not here to make lifelong Singaporean Friends. Make sense? So why try to assimilate? However, if they decided somewhere along the line that they actually like this place, then they need to assimilate. How better to be in a heartland HDB estate where your friends won't be leaving in 24 months when their EP isn't renewed due to revised criteria. Follow my drift?

Isn't that kind of what PR is for? You get to stay here 5 years at a time.

Not quite. It's pretty common knowledge you can stay in Sg without an REP so long as you never exit Singapore. In fact I did it once for 15 months after my 10 year REP expired. Yeah, the kicker is you cannot leave Singapore even to go to JB or Batam without one, but it can done easy enough, been there, done that.

[Lisafuller]

I tend to disagree with most in this thread as most think with an expatriate mindset. (If you are an EP holder I would think that would be normal, to be honest). However, if you are an Expat here on an expat contract (getting harder and harder to find and usually only on senior levels nowadays), the living in a high end or nice condo makes sense. They're here on inflated salaries and often have allowances for housing, schools, etc. However, where the leap of faith comes into play is how many of those Expatriates come over here on an Expat contract and have the intent to permanently settle here? Very few, I reckon. Most are hunting for PR solely to avoid retrenchment relocation costs back to their country until "they" are ready to go, but usually, go they will.

So, here is the conundrum that ICA faces (from my POV). Is that EP holder who is living here in a nice condo on an inflated salary going to stay here after he's been taken off the inflated Expat package or go where he can continue to milk the system elsewhere. Most that are here for the money are not here to make lifelong Singaporean Friends. Make sense? So why try to assimilate? However, if they decided somewhere along the line that they actually like this place, then they need to assimilate. How better to be in a heartland HDB estate where your friends won't be leaving in 24 months when their EP isn't renewed due to revised criteria. Follow my drift?

Isn't that kind of what PR is for? You get to stay here 5 years at a time.

Not quite. It's pretty common knowledge you can stay in Sg without an REP so long as you never exit Singapore. In fact I did it once for 15 months after my 10 year REP expired. Yeah, the kicker is you cannot leave Singapore even to go to JB or Batam without one, but it can done easy enough, been there, done that.

Right, but realistically, who's going to do that? It's like being trapped.

[Lisafuller]

Hi everyone!
Our PR application recently has been approved, and we've completed all the formalities. We want to express our thanks to this incredible platform and its community. You guys have been a wellspring of invaluable advice, based on real-life experiences, which guided us through this journey. So, as a pay-forward, I’m here to share our story and hopefully inspire you not to lose hope.

A little background: We were Vietnamese S-Pass holders, tied the knot in September 2022, no kid yet. We submitted our PR application as a family unit in February 2023. This was my first attempt, but for my husband, it was the fourth go-around. Below is our profiles:

My husband:
* Age: 33
* Working industry: Chemical Engineering
* Annual Income: 45K basic salary, with around 40K in bonuses and allowances
* Education in Singapore: High school, Polytechnic, and a proud NUS graduate, ranking second in his course. Small story, he pursued the degree while working.
* Time Spent in Singapore: 17 years
* Job History: 10 years of dedication to his first company, followed by a switch to a new gig just one month before the PR approval. The new job paid 40% less, but we lucked out, it didn't hinder our formality completion.

Now, onto his PR attempts:
* 2008: He opted out of National Service which was part of the PR offer at the time, a decision we think contributed to several rejections.
* 2015: First attempt, rejected after only two months.
* 2018: Second try, rejected after a six-month wait with no explanation.
* 2021: Tried again, rejected after another six-month wait, but this time, ICA kindly suggested via email that he should come back only when having some significant updates.
* 2023: Right after his graduation from NUS, we applied together, and both received approval after seven months.

Now, a bit about me:
* Age: 31
* Working industry: Advertising
* Annual Income: fixed 60K, no bonus.
* Education: Vietnam National University HCMC
* Time Spent in Singapore: Nearly 5 years
* Job History: I've been loyal to one company throughout 5 years here.

When I first set foot in Singapore, PR status was the furthest thing from my mind. I was all about working hard at my job while falling in love with this beautiful, safe, and healthy environment. Therefore, one year in, I decided to become a bone marrow and organ donor, along with regularly donating blood twice a year (before we started our journey toward parenthood). (This fact wasn't mentioned in my application btw)

We registered marriage in Singapore, which also made the paperwork a breeze.

My husband and I did all the paperwork ourselves. We filled out the forms diligently, taking tips from this forum along the way. While we don’t know exactly how ICA evaluated our application, we believe in the importance of honesty, as ICA is definitely beyond smart.

So, what I’d like to say is: never lose hope, always tell the truth, and you know what, you can skip the PR agents. Above all, love this island no matter if your PR application succeeds or not, merely because it's where we're living. The rest we leave it to God’s hand. That was precisely our mindset when it came to PR application.

That's our story.

Hope you all a nice weekend and smooth PR journey ahead.

Congrats!