Guide to Seeing Your Local MP

[IronMac]

Ok, I don't know if this has been covered here or not but given how many threads seem to advise "see your MP" I am going to start a guide on how to go about it from my wife's experience.

First off, your local MP may be totally powerless to help you. They are not miracle workers. This could be for any number of reasons such as they are an opposition MP, they're new to the job, etc. It's politics, natch.

So, here we go:

1. Gather up ALL of your documentation and make copies of them to submit to the MP. They seem to love documentation. It does not matter if ICA or MOM already has your particulars, the MP and staff will go over the docs.

2. Make sure that your case or story is strong and will hold up under questioning. That's if you get past the screeners. The MP will not take on your case if the screener does not feel it is "compelling" enough or it's an outright fail. So, if you're a foreigner working in SG for six months and you want PR, forget it. If you're a Chinese Canadian married to a Singaporean with male triplets born in Singapore and taking care of her ailing parents with two jobs, then, you're good to go. (No, that's not my case, I am adlibbing here.)

3. You only have about 5-10 minutes to make your case to the MP. So, don't babble on because he's under the gun and he will be pretty tired by then.

4. Dress up well and arrive EARLY for the meet and greet. Dressing up well will make you stand out from the rest of the mob and help you get past the screeners.

5. Follow up with the MP in a couple of days or so. In my case, the MP was in contact with ICA within a couple of days.

If anyone else has advice, please feel free to chime in. Good luck!