Singapore Expats

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

Moving to Singapore? Ask our regular expats in Singapore questions on relocation and their experience here. Ask about banking, employment pass, insurance, visa, work permit, citizenship or immigration issues.
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ecureilx
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Post by ecureilx » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 6:39 pm

BillyB wrote:
JR8 wrote: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! :o
It's all on the barcode!! And all substances ever taken and all pornography ever looked at.......... :P
Ah, that's something new ..

Note to self: stay away from kelantan lane :D :D

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Post by nburge » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 6:48 pm

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..........

:o :o :o :o :shock:

I'd better hope I come up clean then, otherwise the wife might start asking questions I don't want to answer! :lol:

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Post by nburge » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 7:49 pm

Just as an aside - are there any other essential things I need to do when I first arrive that I've completely forgotten about? I moved overseas about 6 years ago, but that time the company was much bigger and managed the whole lot for me... it seems much harder when I'm doing it myself!

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Post by BillyB » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 9:14 pm

ecureilx wrote:
BillyB wrote:
JR8 wrote: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! :o
It's all on the barcode!! And all substances ever taken and all pornography ever looked at.......... :P
Ah, that's something new ..

Note to self: stay away from kelantan lane :D :D
Does that also have a fast-track checkpoint?

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Post by BillyB » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 9:34 pm

nburge wrote:Just as an aside - are there any other essential things I need to do when I first arrive that I've completely forgotten about? I moved overseas about 6 years ago, but that time the company was much bigger and managed the whole lot for me... it seems much harder when I'm doing it myself!
My number 1 priority would be accommodation. I'd be on the property sites looking at price ranges, looking at location close or far from your office, MRT stations, trying to understand the different areas and what each has to offer, condo facilities, shops in the area etc. That way, you have an idea of what you don't want and can arrange 6-8 appointments in a day if you feel like it.

Once your settled in somewhere that feels right, then you can start to think a little wider. But obviously getting a bank and your EP is also pretty important to facilitate the above!!

Where are you moving from?

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ecureilx
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Post by ecureilx » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 9:39 pm

nburge wrote:Just as an aside - are there any other essential things I need to do when I first arrive that I've completely forgotten about? I moved overseas about 6 years ago, but that time the company was much bigger and managed the whole lot for me... it seems much harder when I'm doing it myself!
Yah, but the good news is, despite a lot of whining by a lot of Foreign Talent in Singapore, paperwork and bureaucracy is not that bad, compared to the neighbours :D

And except in one company, at all the 5 different places I worked while under pass, I did everything from EP submission, collection and the whole works, and did for scores of colleagues .. and that is before the days of Online EP ONLINE- all manual submission ... :)

Oh how the new FT here whine, if only they knew how manual things were, before ..

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Post by nburge » Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:58 pm

Thanks. I've got a reasonable idea about the type of area I want to live in, I think my priority will be to wander around those areas at night and see what they're like in the fun hours. But from photo's online I've whittled it down to ~3 areas, and about 2 condo's in each area. (I'm pretty fussy on certain things).

Moving from the UK, and am just jettisoning excess baggage, selling stuff and packing things in boxes. It's not too hard, and I've got a good idea of the process thanks to this site and others, it's more the timing that I need to get a handle on so I can work out if my plans are realistic.

Unfortunately my company is so small that I've done all the application myself - filled it in, sent it off and got the IPA back. They're also paying for none of it, which makes things a little more difficult without the bank account!

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Post by ecureilx » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 10:22 am

nburge wrote:Unfortunately my company is so small that I've done all the application myself - filled it in, sent it off and got the IPA back. They're also paying for none of it, which makes things a little more difficult without the bank account!
Errrr .. until I switched to a 'Blue Card', all my employers - for, small or big, paid for the the Pass Cost. for the Visa, I didn't have to pay, as my country is in the "FREE" list !

And, yes, all my employers paid for the medical.

maybe SMS or somebody could advice, but that is the practice - if you are their first foreign staff, you should file int he claim to them.

Cheers

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Post by nburge » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 3:30 pm

Is the medical quite commonplace then? What sort of cost will that be?

I 'forced' this company into posting me to Singapore, as I really wanted to move to Asia and I wanted to get out of the UK. Because they 'did me a favour' by letting me work out of Singapore, I am covering the costs of the move.

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Post by BillyB » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 3:52 pm

nburge wrote:Is the medical quite commonplace then? What sort of cost will that be?

I 'forced' this company into posting me to Singapore, as I really wanted to move to Asia and I wanted to get out of the UK. Because they 'did me a favour' by letting me work out of Singapore, I am covering the costs of the move.
You don't always need one for an EP. But if you do, it will be pretty standard i'd imagine - blood test and general health check etc. Turnaround is quite fast too - a few days and you'll get the results.

Cost is anything from $75 to a few hundred depending on if you want a general screening for things too.

I didn't need a health check when I got my EP and then my PEP. By that I mean the MOM didn't ask me to see a doctor, they just gave me a medical questionnaire / declaration. But I had the old yearly health screening check at the start of the year and I think it cost about $300 including chest x-ray because I smoke and they checked for everything imaginable and results took about 2-3 days.

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Post by JR8 » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 3:55 pm

Assuming this medical is similar/the same as the one for the LTVP, I last had one done in 2008.

My local doctor did the physical check and took blood for the blood test (c. S$50 max), and then he sent me to a local walk-in private imaging clinic a few blocks away for the chest X-ray which including their written analysis thereof cost something ridiculous like S$8!

p.s. Note both places are 'local' in the semi-Heartlands, and not ex-patty kind of places. I imagine the latter might charge significantly more.

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Post by Strong Eagle » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 3:57 pm

nburge wrote:Is the medical quite commonplace then? What sort of cost will that be?

I 'forced' this company into posting me to Singapore, as I really wanted to move to Asia and I wanted to get out of the UK. Because they 'did me a favour' by letting me work out of Singapore, I am covering the costs of the move.
Whoops! You meant medical exam. Sorry. You probably won't need one from the UK, and if you do, the TB and HIV exam, plus the other exam will cost $75 to $100... what I paid when I became PR.

It depends. You can buy local medical insurance which is quite inexpensive, and like all med insurance, costs vary for such things as private room, outpatient care, etc.

This med insurance will not cover you outside of Singapore. You can cover this through a good travel policy (I had used AIG for my employees). This covered emergency care and evacuation.

This type of insurance normally won't cover you in your home country. You may want to take a look at an expat policy which covers you in home country, resident country, as well as travel and evacuation. For UK as a home country, this policy is quite reasonable, much more expensive for someone who has a home country in the US.

Not affiliated, etc, but you could look at GlobalHealth or just key in 'expat medical insurance' into Goggle.
Last edited by Strong Eagle on Fri, 15 Apr 2011 4:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Post by BillyB » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 4:00 pm

JR8 wrote:Assuming this medical is similar/the same as the one for the LTVP, I last had one done in 2008.

My local doctor did the physical check and took blood for the blood test (c. S$50 max), and then he sent me to a local walk-in private imaging clinic a few blocks away for the chest X-ray which including their written analysis thereof cost something ridiculous like S$8!

p.s. Note both places are 'local' in the semi-Heartlands, and not ex-patty kind of places. I imagine the latter might charge significantly more.
Bargain!!

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Post by nburge » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 4:45 pm

Cool, thanks. I'm 31, and look pretty healthy, so hopefully they won't think I'm going to drop down dead any time soon. Insurance is another thing I need to fix once I get there too, but I might leave that for my second week :wink:

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Post by Strong Eagle » Fri, 15 Apr 2011 4:51 pm

nburge wrote:Is the medical quite commonplace then? What sort of cost will that be?

I 'forced' this company into posting me to Singapore, as I really wanted to move to Asia and I wanted to get out of the UK. Because they 'did me a favour' by letting me work out of Singapore, I am covering the costs of the move.
You should have received a medical form with your IPA. It should specifically tell you if you need a medical or not.

Generally, citizens of developed/first world countries only have to fill out an affidavit, others must do the medical.

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