Can I realistically do this in a week...?

[nburge]

OK, I intend to move to Singapore on or about the 8th of May. I need (for work) to be in Thailand from the 13th of May. I already have my In Principal Approval letter.

What I want to do in that first week is stay in a hotel, and arrange the following:
- Get my EP in my passport
- Set up a bank account
- Arrange for a mobile phone contract
- Find a property that I want to live in

After one week in Thailand I should be back in Singapore, with my wife, and the intention is that we view a few of the properties I have already picked out, and move into one in early June.

I need the bank account because my firm is paying me in Sing $ but won't pay until I have a Singaporean account to pay into. My current understanding is that I need the EP before a bank will open an account for me. Is it realistic to think that I can get the EP and a bank account set up within a week?

[revhappy]

OK, I intend to move to Singapore on or about the 8th of May. I need (for work) to be in Thailand from the 13th of May. I already have my In Principal Approval letter.

What I want to do in that first week is stay in a hotel, and arrange the following:
- Get my EP in my passport
- Set up a bank account
- Arrange for a mobile phone contract
- Find a property that I want to live in

After one week in Thailand I should be back in Singapore, with my wife, and the intention is that we view a few of the properties I have already picked out, and move into one in early June.

I need the bank account because my firm is paying me in Sing $ but won't pay until I have a Singaporean account to pay into. My current understanding is that I need the EP before a bank will open an account for me. Is it realistic to think that I can get the EP and a bank account set up within a week?

1st thing EP doesn't come in the passport. It comes in a card. IIRC, your employer needs to set up an appointment with MOM and then you need to go there for finger printing and later collect the card. I think you can get the appointment within the 1st week but you need to wait for another week for the card.

Items 2 and 3 can happen in a jiffy, on the same day you land into SG. You dont need EP for the bank account, the IPA letter along with your passport should do the job.

Item 4 will be a nightmare. You need a monthly, realistically to find a decent accomodation for a reasonable price.

[JR8]

Agreed with RevHappy, although I understand that you don't need EP, IPA or even to be resident to open a Singapore bank account with HSBC, Citi, ANZ and perhaps others.

[Saint]

What I want to do in that first week is stay in a hotel, and arrange the following:
- Get my EP in my passport - See Revhappy reply, once you've done the formalities it takes a week to get your EP, no sooner I'm afraid
- Set up a bank account - Very easy and some banks will even issue an card the same day

- Arrange for a mobile phone contract - Waiting in the queue will take longer than actually setting up the contract. You can get a Pay-as-Go sim card straight away as well which I did and used solely for contacting agents to view properties. The advantage being you can just chuck it away once you've found a place and won't get hassled from agents!

- Find a property that I want to live in - If you know the area and kind of property you want you can quite easily find a property within a week. But if you are still not sure it could take some time. When we came last time, we got off the plane at 8am and by lunch time had viewed 4 properties, 2 days later we had the TA signed.

[Asdracles]

Point 1 - Only can take a few days if you need to do the medical check up. If not, it's immediate.

Points 2,3 - Agree, very fast

Point 4 - Agree, quite impossible in 5 days

Just to add that if things have not changed, EP comes ALSO stamped in your passport. I guess that reason is that EP card doesn't come with a picture, so still you need your passport as identification, so a chop there stating the length of your stay is a must. With the S pass there is a picture in the card, so no chop in the passport is needed

[BillyB]

You need your EP card to get a mobile contract though. I'd double check the docs required for opening an account too. I doubt too many local and foreign banks will have such relaxed policies.

[BillyB]

Point 1 - Only can take a few days if you need to do the medical check up. If not, it's immediate.

Points 2,3 - Agree, very fast

Point 4 - Agree, quite impossible in 5 days

Just to add that if things have not changed, EP comes ALSO stamped in your passport. I guess that reason is that EP card doesn't come with a picture, so still you need your passport as identification, so a chop there stating the length of your stay is a must. With the S pass there is a picture in the card, so no chop in the passport is needed

Things have definitely changed!! It's now no pp stamp and is a nice, glossy photo card that zips you straight through the fast lanes at immigration!!

[carlsum1986]

Point 1 - Only can take a few days if you need to do the medical check up. If not, it's immediate.

Points 2,3 - Agree, very fast

Point 4 - Agree, quite impossible in 5 days

Just to add that if things have not changed, EP comes ALSO stamped in your passport. I guess that reason is that EP card doesn't come with a picture, so still you need your passport as identification, so a chop there stating the length of your stay is a must. With the S pass there is a picture in the card, so no chop in the passport is needed

Things have definitely changed!! It's now no pp stamp and is a nice, glossy photo card that zips you straight through the fast lanes at immigration!!

the fast lanes only exist at the airports and not at the land crossing or woodlands or tuas

[nburge]

Hmm, I tried to open a Singaporean Bank account (via my UK HSBC bank account) earlier this year, and they told me I had to have the EP before they could open my account. I have since tried contacting HSBC in Singapore directly to ask if they can do it before I arrive with just the IPA letter, but they haven't gotten back to me yet

I'll have to look into arranging the appointment for the EP, but my worry is that I have to go to Thailand the following week, so I don't want to have to hand my passport over to them for an unspecified (beaurocratic) amount of time.

For the phone - I like the idea of getting the local PAYG sim, makes a lot of sense.

For accomodation, I have a few properties in mind (thanks to answers on this site) and it will be a mixture of seeing them in the flesh, and also going out for beers/dinners in the areas around the accomodation each evening. I don't intend to have the lease signed (I need the bank account and some sing $$$ before that) but just want to have narrowed down the options before my wife joins me (and makes the decision...)

[Strong Eagle]

Point 1 - Only can take a few days if you need to do the medical check up. If not, it's immediate.

Points 2,3 - Agree, very fast

Point 4 - Agree, quite impossible in 5 days

Just to add that if things have not changed, EP comes ALSO stamped in your passport. I guess that reason is that EP card doesn't come with a picture, so still you need your passport as identification, so a chop there stating the length of your stay is a must. With the S pass there is a picture in the card, so no chop in the passport is needed

Things have definitely changed!! It's now no pp stamp and is a nice, glossy photo card that zips you straight through the fast lanes at immigration!!

the fast lanes only exist at the airports and not at the land crossing or woodlands or tuas

Also exists at the ferry terminals at Tanah Merah and Harborfront.

[JR8]

Hmm, I tried to open a Singaporean Bank account (via my UK HSBC bank account) earlier this year, and they told me I had to have the EP before they could open my account. I have since tried contacting HSBC in Singapore directly to ask if they can do it before I arrive with just the IPA letter, but they haven't gotten back to me yet

I'll have to look into arranging the appointment for the EP, but my worry is that I have to go to Thailand the following week, so I don't want to have to hand my passport over to them for an unspecified (beaurocratic) amount of time.

For the phone - I like the idea of getting the local PAYG sim, makes a lot of sense.

For accomodation, I have a few properties in mind (thanks to answers on this site) and it will be a mixture of seeing them in the flesh, and also going out for beers/dinners in the areas around the accomodation each evening. I don't intend to have the lease signed (I need the bank account and some sing $$$ before that) but just want to have narrowed down the options before my wife joins me (and makes the decision...)

Might be of interest/use re: opening a/c as non-resident.
http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/sutra514738.html

You get a PAYG Sim card instantly by walking into any 7-11 with your passport for c. S$20. Since it comes with 'free calls' on it to start with the cost of the Sim card itself is maybe only S$3 or so....

[ecureilx]

Does EP also get finger printed now ??

In my days, only S Pass was finger printed, which S Pass was introduced ..

[BillyB]

Does EP also get finger printed now ??

In my days, only S Pass was finger printed, which S Pass was introduced ..

Yes, mandatory for EP and PEP. They also include on the card if you've had any STD's in the past 10 years and what they were.

[JR8]

You also get fingerprinted for the LTVP card, so you can go through the unmanned turnstiles at immigration.

p.s. Don't think anything about STDs is on the above card!

[BillyB]

You also get fingerprinted for the LTVP card, so you can go through the unmanned turnstiles at immigration.

p.s. Don't think anything about STDs is on the above card!

It's all on the barcode!! And all substances ever taken and all pornography ever looked at..........