My Chinese gf's company is tranfering her to Singapore?

[Strong Eagle]

You could consider Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) or Bangkok. Both have excellent health care facilities, and you'd probably have an easier time of it getting into Malaysia.

I just don't see you residing in Singapore with your GF under your current circumstances.

[PNGMK]

You could consider Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) or Bangkok. Both have excellent health care facilities, and you'd probably have an easier time of it getting into Malaysia.

I just don't see you residing in Singapore with your GF under your current circumstances.

Bangkok for sure. KL is getting harder. Also Jakarta and even Taiwan.

[AngMoG]

whiteboy,

Singapore is first world in many aspects, but not in all. Treatment of children with mental problems by the general populace is not one of them, I should think. Search for a thread where an autistic (I think) child was kicked out of a private school here.

Apart from that, all kinds of quality healthcare beyond the most basic ones tend to be very expensive in Singapore.

[whiteboy]

Ok, so I talked with my gf about Singapore and she mentioned that aside from her main reason for leaving China (being due to the bad autism training) she chose Singapore due to it being rated highest for admin job skill development. This would be from within her company's view though, not in general. I guess her company's most skilled admins were all trained in Singapore. She doesn't plan to go for citizenship in Singapore. She just wants to live there to gain more job skills and make more money than she is making in Beijing.

I was thinking I would possibly be able to just visit and live with her for a while as a tourist, but not too long. I do online work for my dad and I'm a comic/script writer who is partnered up with someone who has already directed his first movie just last year. So I have a good chance at making myself a good career here in the US. Even if I go live in Asia for a little while with my gf, it wouldn't ruin my chances here since we do all of our work together on story writing/comic art online.

My questions are if I was able to make enough money from my online work while I was in Singapore, would I be able to stay there without trouble? I would probably be able to earn enough money to live and pay for renewing/extending tourist visas, but I worry that one day they will just tell me to leave because I'm not contributing to their society really. I would just be there making money from people I work with in the US. I don't want to try and live in Singapore for the 2 or 3 years that my gf will be there. I already know that is impossible. Would it be possible for a US citizen to get a long term tourist visa that could be renewed many times (without raising suspicion with visa runs)?

Would my story writing skills and connections into the comic/cartoon/film world help me at all? Would they look at this as a valuable skill for their society with regard to the entertainment/art industry? Or will they just think that I'm not a real artist just because I lack a 4 year degree?

[AngMoG]

whiteboy,

while she may earn better here, the cost of living is also a lot higher than in Beijing. And medical treatment, as mentioned, also mostly not cheap. Afaik, admin positions do not pay well in Singapore (not sure if they pay well anywhere in SEA), so I would strongly advise to check out the cost of living in Singapore, what she can earn, and do your calculations.

I cannot say much about the art industry here (other than that in general, the local movies and TV shows are awful, and the general environment is not conducive to artistic development), but you can work online and live here.... provided you have a right to stay here. Which goes back to the tourist thing... On tourist visa, your status is definitely not secure. If you get married AND your (then) wife earns more than $4,000 per month, you can at least get LTVP to stay. The other option is to find a job, which without a degree you will probably find tricky, though not necessarily impossible.

Maybe, if you can finance it, consider taking at least a BSc in some area.

Ok, so I talked with my gf about Singapore and she mentioned that aside from her main reason for leaving China (being due to the bad autism training) she chose Singapore due to it being rated highest for admin job skill development. This would be from within her company's view though, not in general. I guess her company's most skilled admins were all trained in Singapore. She doesn't plan to go for citizenship in Singapore. She just wants to live there to gain more job skills and make more money than she is making in Beijing.

I was thinking I would possibly be able to just visit and live with her for a while as a tourist, but not too long. I do online work for my dad and I'm a comic/script writer who is partnered up with someone who has already directed his first movie just last year. So I have a good chance at making myself a good career here in the US. Even if I go live in Asia for a little while with my gf, it wouldn't ruin my chances here since we do all of our work together on story writing/comic art online.

My questions are if I was able to make enough money from my online work while I was in Singapore, would I be able to stay there without trouble? I would probably be able to earn enough money to live and pay for renewing/extending tourist visas, but I worry that one day they will just tell me to leave because I'm not contributing to their society really. I would just be there making money from people I work with in the US. I don't want to try and live in Singapore for the 2 or 3 years that my gf will be there. I already know that is impossible. Would it be possible for a US citizen to get a long term tourist visa that could be renewed many times (without raising suspicion with visa runs)?

Would my story writing skills and connections into the comic/cartoon/film world help me at all? Would they look at this as a valuable skill for their society with regard to the entertainment/art industry? Or will they just think that I'm not a real artist just because I lack a 4 year degree?

[beppi]

Your plan of working online while here on a tourist visa is, while probably possible for some time under the radar, technically illegal.
A tourist visa will allow you to stay here for 89 days. After a prolonged absence (preferably longer than you were in the country) you can get another one, but after two/three times this, too, will raise eyebrows.

[JR8]

Your destination is discretionary; i.e. a balance of where you’d like to go, tempered by where will let you in. I think you’re perhaps trying to approach this from the wrong end, by saying ‘Ok, it’s Singapore, now, how do I/we do it?’. You might spend a great deal of time trying to fit the square peg into the round hole but... Wouldn’t it be simpler and wiser to prioritise your desires, set a broad range of potential destinations, and then narrow down which will take you, and work out?

Ok, so I talked with my gf about Singapore and she mentioned that aside from her main reason for leaving China (being due to the bad autism training) she chose Singapore due to it being rated highest for admin job skill development. This would be from within her company's view though, not in general. I guess her company's most skilled admins were all trained in Singapore. She doesn't plan to go for citizenship in Singapore. She just wants to live there to gain more job skills and make more money than she is making in Beijing.

You mentioned that your GF is being transferred by her company, but what position does she have? You mention admin and her potential to develop her career. Hopefully she has a higher level job, as to get a visa here she needs to establish that she has skills that locals haven’t. Still, as her company have done it before I expect they know the ropes.

Why not do an income/expense analysis on Beijing vs Singapore? You’ll see plenty of other people have gone through a ‘projected cost of living analysis’ on this forum. Have a look at them and see what you think. Essentially, you set out your current and/or planned lifestyle and then we’ll collectively try and cost it for you, and throw out ideas/alt-ideas.

I was thinking I would possibly be able to just visit and live with her for a while as a tourist, but not too long. I do online work for my dad and I'm a comic/script writer who is partnered up with someone who has already directed his first movie just last year. So I have a good chance at making myself a good career here in the US. Even if I go live in Asia for a little while with my gf, it wouldn't ruin my chances here since we do all of our work together on story writing/comic art online.

Visit, or live? There is a distinct delineation between the two. Visitors come here on SVPs (refer to www.ica.gov.sg). You cannot live here on an SVP, same way you can’t ‘live’ in the USA on a tourist visa.

My questions are if I was able to make enough money from my online work while I was in Singapore, would I be able to stay there without trouble?

No, I can’t see on what basis that would be permitted.

I would probably be able to earn enough money to live and pay for renewing/extending tourist visas, but I worry that one day they will just tell me to leave because I'm not contributing to their society really.

You cannot live here on a tourist visa. Full stop.
You wouldn’t be contributing to the island; you’d be doing the opposite, net-net draining it’s resources (this is how it is regarded).

I would just be there making money from people I work with in the US. I don't want to try and live in Singapore for the 2 or 3 years that my gf will be there. I already know that is impossible. Would it be possible for a US citizen to get a long term tourist visa that could be renewed many times (without raising suspicion with visa runs)?

There is no long term ‘tourist’ visa. You should do your own basic research before coming here to try and fine-tune your findings/situation. There is a short-term tourist visa, but even it cannot be ‘renewed many times’. This is really clutching at straws [sigh]... The average visitor here stays 2.5 days.

Would my story writing skills and connections into the comic/cartoon/film world help me at all? Would they look at this as a valuable skill for their society with regard to the entertainment/art industry? Or will they just think that I'm not a real artist just because I lack a 4 year degree?

This is not my field, so there’s not much I can say. But they are looking at growing the presence of the Ents/film sector here. There is some kind of ‘media-opolis’ or similar in SG. Lucas Arts have a presence here IIRC. Google them. Look at the job-ads on the likes on Monster etc, or SGn job portals, and see what kind of roles you might get hired into.