Outstanding Debts & Immigration

[laubo09]

Hi,

I was previously a Singapore PR and last year I lost my job in Singapore and had to move out of the country for other opportunities. I have an outstanding debt on my credit-cards and personal loan borrowed from Singapore local banks. I am likely to join a firm in Singapore again in coming months, my doubt is that in order to get EP and re-enter into Singapore, Do I need to clear all my debts?

Will there be any problem in immigration at Changi with outstanding creditcard and personal loan debts?

[boffenl]

Shouldn't have a problem coming into the country. Only trouble will be when you try to open another credit card account or get any kind of credit extended to you. There is now a pseudo-Singapore credit agency. All the banks talk to each other and it could be difficult to get an SG credit card again.

Also important to find out if they took you to court to claim the money. Best to contact them directly. One bank might even tell you they wrote the amount off last year.

[laubo09]

@ above

Thanks for your reply.

What are the issues to be taken care of if they took the matter to court to claim the money?

[boffenl]

You'll have a summary judgement against you. ie pay $1000 per month for XX months. Not sure how to find this out except to call the bank or the Courts, sorry. They don't seem to use your NRIC to "track" so no idea if they'll even be able to find the docs.

But better to be proactive and call them than have a nasty surprise.

[laubo09]

okay, will check it with the bank.

but, If there is any court order to pay $xxx, would it be MUST to pay all that amount to re-enter to Singapore?

[ScoobyDoes]

I don't think the problem will be getting in...... at the very least they'll arrest you and pull you in

IF (very big IF) immigration even mentions it to you, you can always claim a guilty conscience is bringing you back to make amends.

[Strong Eagle]

Hi,

I was previously a Singapore PR and last year I lost my job in Singapore and had to move out of the country for other opportunities. I have an outstanding debt on my credit-cards and personal loan borrowed from Singapore local banks. I am likely to join a firm in Singapore again in coming months, my doubt is that in order to get EP and re-enter into Singapore, Do I need to clear all my debts?

Will there be any problem in immigration at Changi with outstanding creditcard and personal loan debts?

Have you been paying on the debts or did you just blow them off when you left the country?

[laubo09]

I have not been paying any installments since then. Though, I informed the bank about the job loss and leaving the country thing. I tried to negotiate with them about it but they said they want it all and as I was not in position to pay the amount I did not do anything then.

[sundaymorningstaple]

[boffenl]

You may already have a court ordered settlement then. Just check with the banks first since they may have given up--OR taken you to court.

Good luck!

[laubo09]

You mean, there will be problem in immigration in case of court ordered settlement?

[chandra19998]

I know some friends did just that! One was a PR, lost all his money from football gambling and owe some loan shark, he then borrowed each bank 10K to pay back the loan shark and left Singapore. I think there should not be problems, many people did just that and the bank did not sue or did anything to them as i did not hear anything bad happen to those people, they visit Sg sometime too

[Mi Amigo]

I'll say up front that my post is going to be judgmental and will not help the OP in their current position. But maybe someone in a similar situation in the future will read this thread and learn something from it.

The problem as I see it is the assumption that it's perfectly OK to leave a country owing money to banks etc. and not pay off the debt. AND then the assumption that if you do come back later, everything will be OK as long as you offer to pay back the money owed if necessary. Well in my opinion, it's not OK to behave in this way. I can't believe that the bank in question would have refused regular payments to the account, so I don't buy the story that they took an 'all or nothing' approach. My impression is that the OP thought they would 'get away' with it.

Perhaps the OP is the previous tenant of my current home. Since moving in some months ago there have continued to be many letters for the previous occupant from banks; more recently there was a hand-posted letter from a firm of solicitors. I called them (their address and phone number was on the outside of the envelope) and explained that this person had moved out months ago. Whilst they did not give me any specific details (I didn't ask for any and why should they?) it seemed clear that the person has disappeared without paying their debts. So if I were the OP I wouldn't assume that this has all been brushed under the carpet. And nor should it have been IMO.

BTW, does the new employer know about the debt that has remained unpaid when the OP left the country?

My point is - if you owe money you should do everything in your power to pay it back. And if you don't, you should expect serious consequences. The OP's behaviour (which sadly seems not to be uncommon) has an impact on the wider expat community, including those of us who take pains to ensure that we pay what we owe. For example, now we know why it is that we're asked to pay very high deposits when opening utility accounts, etc. And this kind of thing only helps to reinforce 'anti-foreigner' feeling.

Oh, and before someone makes a comment along the lines of "you don't know what it's like in that situation," well I do actually. A long time ago in a decade and continent far away, I was left high and dry on an overseas posting when my employer back home went out of business, owing me back pay and expenses. It was by no means easy, but I found a way to sort everything out before leaving the country so that I didn't owe anything to anyone there. I'm not trying to be sanctimonious here, but I did this because (a) I believed it was the right way to behave, and (b) because I thought that maybe in the future I might want to go back there.

So fair enough to those who are offering advice to the OP, but (to quote the person being asked for road directions in a dodgy area) I wouldn't start from here.

[sundaymorningstaple]

+10

Excellent post and I concur 100%. Thanks for taking the time.

[Mi Amigo]

Thanks SMS, coming from you that means a lot.

I note that the OP seems to have gone quiet; perhaps the 'home truths' in my post made uncomfortable reading. I despair about what some people consider to be 'acceptable' behaviour. Will anything change? Unlikely, but I do think it's right that people are made to face up to their responsibilities and the consequences of their previous actions when the opportunity arises.