Dependant work permits for an expats' spouse?

[ChrisCH]

Hello everyone,

I signed up for this forum some months ago as we have seen it coming for a long time and it gets pretty concrete now: I am a German living in Switzerland and my wife got now an offer to move to Singapore as an expat. Her Swiss employer will surely take care of here papers in Singapore. While I do have a nice career here myself, I find this a "once in a lifetime" opportunity and would like to join her.
I found tons of very inportant and interesting info on the job market and salaries, but after reading a lot on the visas and permits, they got me a bit confused
Here in Switzerland it is the same and confuses newbies just as well... so: What type of permits do spouses typically get? Am I typically allowed to work or is the residence and work permit seperated and I would need to find an employer who is willing to walk the extra mile in order to employ me? Are there any pitfalls to avoid - Something I need to make my wife's companies' HR aware of?

Thanks for everyone who can guide me a bit in the right direction...

Chris

[sundaymorningstaple]

As a spouse you are entitled to a Dependent's Pass. This give you residency here but not the ability to work.

Once here, there are several methods to "work".

First is the "Letter of Consent" This is applied for by the prospective employer. You don't have to "qualify" but it is tied to your spouse's Employment Pass and expires and is renewed on the same date as the Employment Pass.

Second is the "Employment Pass" which can be one of several, depending on the qualifications/experience/income of the applicant. This can be an S, Q or P1 or P2 pass.

http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal ... _pass.html

These are based on you alone and are issued independently of your spouse's employment pass. This is better as if she loses her job you don't lose yours (biggest problem with the LoC).

The third is the PEP (which is not based on the prospective job at all but is income dependent (> 7K/SGD/Month) in your previous employment) and is applied for individually (not through the employer) and is a one time, good for 5 years type of pass. There are pros & cons to this one.

The link I posted will get you a good grounding.

[ChrisCH]

Thanks!

That was exactly what I was looking for... now I know what terms to search for in order to research further on my own.

Cheers,

Chris