Long term PR, never going to become a SC

[offshoreoildude]

I did once consider it. I'm an old school PR from 1994. Today I would never consider it - one of the main reasons being the overcrowding and growing hatred of FTs.

[v4jr4]

I did once consider it. I'm an old school PR from 1994. Today I would never consider it - one of the main reasons being the overcrowding and growing hatred of FTs.

94? Wow. Did gahmen send any letters mention that they want you to become SC?

[sundaymorningstaple]

OSOD, you and I are in the exact same position and probably for exactly the same reasons. I've also been a PR around the same length of time, but just spent more years here on a tourist visa as I was working offshore prior to taking up PR.

[offshoreoildude]

I did once consider it. I'm an old school PR from 1994. Today I would never consider it - one of the main reasons being the overcrowding and growing hatred of FTs.

94? Wow. Did gahmen send any letters mention that they want you to become SC?

Nope. But I successfully renewed my PR in China in 1998 and without a job in Singapore (but I had one in Australia) in 2003 and I got a 10 year renewal in 2007/8 when I was back in Singapore.

[sundaymorningstaple]

The view of the Immigration officer's face was a "mastercard moment" Priceless! when I told him that I'd already been here for 11 years and had married a Singaporean woman, she gave birth to 2 Singaporean children and I'd owned three cars (last two at the same time - one was for play {66 Mini-Cooper Mk1 that I restored}), all on a tourist visa! The best part was when I told him that "sometimes the Government is silly. They are afraid that we will take Singaporean jobs - Why would we want them when working offshore pay 4 times as much. But the Gahmen are silly as we are all willing to pay CPF and even Taxes, but you don't want our inflated taxes, but that okay with me, as my Singaporean Wife and Singaporean Children enjoy all the subsidies of Citizenship while having to pay absolutely nothing. All the other citizens can pay my families' share of their subsidies." I also told him that I personally knew of around 100 oilfield workers here who were also in the same situation with local families but had been rejected because they "didn't actually work in Singapore". Within 6 weeks, most of them were sent letters asking them to reapply. I got my PR 2 weeks later. I guess money talks!

Which is why they also ask for three years tax assessments now. Back to Old School.

For our other readers, back in those days, you normally had a a pre-approval Interview with an Immigration officer (actually two of at the same time). However, if you got to the Interview you were already technically approved. But back then, it wasn't all that easy to get PR like it's been in the past 10 years or so. (It took me from 88 to 93 to get PR) Now it's getting back to the old school way regarding selectivity.

[offshoreoildude]

The view of the Immigration officer's face was a "mastercard moment" Priceless! when I told him that I'd already Why would we want them when working offshore pay 4 times as much. But the Gahmen are silly as we are all willing to pay CPF and even Taxes, but you don't want our inflated taxes, but that okay with me, as my Singaporean Wife and Singaporean Children enjoy all the subsidies of Citizenship while having to pay absolutely nothing. All the other citizens can pay my families' share of their subsidies." I also told him that I personally knew of around 100 oilfield workers here who were also in the same situation with local families but had been rejected because they "didn't actually work in Singapore". Within 6 weeks, most of them were sent letters asking them to reapply. I got my PR 2 weeks later. I guess money talks!
Now it's getting back to the old school way regarding selectivity.

I personally never understood why the Singapore government hasn't made more of an effort to foster oil and gas companies and workers (esp downstream) in Singapore. It's an industry and workforce that pretty much gets by with very little government input yet is responsible for a significant amount of employment. A 'petroleum visa' would be a start. I'm not talking about rig builders by the ways but service companies. WFT is the last major oil and gas service company here - all the others have been lured away by Batam/KL and Shekhou and Clarke Base.