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Epica Guide Series

A Guide to Singapore Letter of Consent (LOC)

Refer to this guide if you have any questions about Singapore Letter of Consent (LOC). LOC enables DP and LTVP holders to work in Singapore. We have explained all relevant details here.

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A complete guide to letter of consent (LOC) in Singapore

Singapore has become a top destination and a thriving hub for businessmen, professionals and employment seekers from over the world. And with them come their families. As per the statistics given by Singapore Ministry of Manpower (Ministry of Manpower (MOM), there are as many as 1,87,000 professional work pass holders working in Singapore as of Jun 2019. At the same time 285,000 people reside in Singapore who are on either dependant pass or Long Term Social Visit Pass (LTVP).

These passes entitle their holders to various rights including living, getting an education, medical services and travel freely in / out of Singapore. However, these passes do not extend the right to work in Singapore to their holders.

Many of these dependant pass holders (primarily spouses) come from a decent work and education background. So in a way, this is a talent lying idle. So to enable them to work in Singapore the Letter of Consent (LOC) is introduced.

This help both the ways. The dependant pass holder, need to compromise their career, and at the same time Singapore businesses get additional qualified people to work in their companies.

What is a Letter of Consent (LOC)?

The Letter of Consent (LOC) is a document issued by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to the Dependant Pass (DP) and LTVP holders that entitles them to the right to work in Singapore under a Singapore registered company.

Who can apply for a Letter of Consent (LOC)?

You will need to first get a job offer in a Singapore based company. On acceptance of it, the company will file an application for a letter of Consent (LOC) to employ you. Following conditions must be satisfied for this application:

Letter of Consent
  • You have a Dependant Pass (DP) that is based on an EP, EntrePass or a PEP pass. And your Dependant Pass (DP) is valid for at least three months from the date of application.
Or
  • You have an LTVP / LTVP + and are married to a Singaporean Citizen or Permanent Resident (PR). And your LTVP / LTVP + is valid for at least three months from the date of application.
Or
  • You have an LTVP / LTVP + and you are child of Singaporean Citizen or Permanent Resident (PR) and are under 21 years of age. And your LTVP / LTVP + is valid for at least three months from the date of application.
And
  • You have a confirmed job offer from a Singapore employer.

In addition to the above, you must:

  • Not be holding a directorial role or be a shareholder in the company in which you work.
  • Be working in Singapore without minimum salary requirements and with additional qualifications (other than those required by the employer).

Note:

  • Dependants of S Pass holders are not eligible for Letter of Consent (LOC) and are required to apply for work permit, employment pass or S Pass instead.
  • You are not allowed to work in some controversial occupations like dance hostess.

Some Good News.

There is no restriction of quota on the number of Letter of Consent (LOC) holder employees that a Singapore Company can hire. This makes the Letter of Consent (LOC) holders an attractive employment prospect for the Singapore employers.

What is a Pre-approved letter of consent (PLOC)?

Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has introduced a new scheme by offering the facility to get a Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC). The Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC) is a document that is the same as that of Letter of Consent (LOC). It entitles its holder with the legal right to work in Singapore. But the difference between the two is that Letter of Consent (LOC) requires you to obtain a confirmed job offer before you can apply for it, but Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC) does not require you have a job offer before applying for it. It is a kind of personalized LOC.

If you get a pre approved Letter of Consent (LOC) then, it is quite attractive to the employer as they don’t need to apply for any work pass or LOC for you.


Letter of Consent

Who is eligible for Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC)?

Following are entitled to get a Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC):

  • Spouse of Singapore Citizen / Singapore Permanent Resident who is holding a LTVP
  • Unmarried children of Singapore Citizen / Singapore Permanent Resident Who is holding a LTVP

Note: During the application or renewal of your LTVP/LTVP+ with the ICA, you are given an option to apply for a Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC). The duration for which the Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC) remains valid is the same as the validity period of LTVP / LTVP +. This means that as soon as your LTVP / LTVP + expires or gets canceled, your Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC) also gets invalid.


Letter of Consent

What are the benefits of the Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC)?

  • More flexibility in terms of finding work.
  • You are not required to wait to get a confirmed job offer to apply for the Pre Approved Letter of Consent (PLOC).

Who can apply for a Letter of Consent (LOC) on behalf of the candidate?

The application for Letter of Consent (LOC) is submitted on behalf of Dependant Pass (DP) or LTVP holder by either the prospective employer who has offered him/her the job in Singapore Company or a licensed employment agent from a corporate services firm. You are required to give written consent to your employer or the employment agent to apply for Letter of Consent (LOC) on your behalf at EPOL.

What documents are required to be submitted with the application for Letter of Consent (LOC)?

Letter of Consent
  • To apply for Letter of Consent (LOC) following documents are required to be deposited with the Ministry of Manpower (MOM):
    • Application form for Letter of Consent (LOC) – duly filled and completed
    • Personal data of the applicant including the passport and dependant pass (DP) or LTVP details
  • In case of certain professionals, the applicant may have to submit additional documentation. These professions are mentioned below:
    • Healthcare professionals (dentists, doctors, nurses)
    • Regional representatives of overseas companies
    • Lawyers
    • Football players and coaches
    • Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners
    • Pharmacists and therapists (occupational, physio, radiation, speech)
  • Ministry of Manpower (MOM) considers the Letter of Consent (LOC) applications on case to case basis, keeping in view the individual applicant’s experience and qualifications in addition to the viability and necessity of Singapore employer to hire the Letter of Consent (LOC) applicant.
  • If your supporting documents are in any language other than English, you are required to get the documents translated into English from an authorized translation services provider and deposited the translated copy along with the original one.

What is the procedure involved in the filing Application for the Letter of Consent (LOC)?

Application Submission

It must be remembered that to get a Letter of Consent (LOC) for the Singapore Dependant Pass (DP) or LTVP holder, only a licensed employment agent or the future employer of the Dependant Pass (DP) / LTVP holder can apply on your behalf of the applicant online or manually.

Letter of Consent
  • The employer / employment agent performs the following actions:
    • Completes the Letter of Consent (LOC) application and deposit it on EPOL
    • Collects and uploads the supporting documents that are required with the application
    • After three weeks, for Dependant Pass (DP) holders and one week for LTVP and LTVP + holders, an update about the status of the Letter of Consent (LOC) application can be checked at EPOL.

Note: There is no application processing fee for the Letter of Consent (LOC) applications.


Approval of Application

Letter of Consent
  • Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will mail the in-principal approval (IPA) letter to your sponsor once the Letter of Consent (LOC) application is approved. However in case of electronic submission it is available online.
  • The letter gives you the information that your Letter of Consent (LOC) application has been approved and you are now officially allowed to collect your Letter of Consent (LOC) in person.
  • No further steps are necessary other than keeping the record of LOC.

How do authorities decide the approval of the Letter of Consent (LOC) / Factors impacting a successful application?

It should be noted that all Letter of Consent (LOC) applications are not approved by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on their first submission. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has a policy to evaluate every application on case to case basis. The outcome of the application is the sole prerogative of the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) as it can reject any application without mentioning a reason for it.

Factors affecting the outcome of an application

Letter of Consent

Following factors may play in a pivotal role in the outcome of Letter of Consent (LOC) application:

  • Applicant’s credentials including age, salary, citizenship, education, professional experience and skills of the applicant
  • Tasks, responsibilities, and roles of the applicant in a prospect job
  • Economic viability and other credentials of the Employer company

Appeal if the Letter of Consent (LOC) application is rejected

Letter of Consent

Usually, the letter of consent (LOC) applications are not rejected unless there is a gross disparity of education/background of the person and the job duties. In case an application is rejected, the appeal can be lodged with additional documents.

How a Letter of Consent (LOC) is renewed?

The Letter of Consent (LOC) remains valid as long as its linked visa pass, i.e., Dependant Pass (DP) or LTVP / LTVP+, remains valid. Following should be kept in mind while renewing Letter of Consent (LOC):

Letter of Consent
  • Dependant Pass Holders can ask the employer for the renewal of their Letter of Consent (LOC) when the Dependant Pass (DP) is renewed. They can apply for renewal up to six months before the expiry of the Letter of Consent (LOC).
  • LTVP /LTVP+ holders can also apply to renew the Letter of Consent (LOC) up to six months before the Letter of Consent (LOC) expires. Before applying for renewal, you must check that the LTVP / LTVP+ is valid for at least three months. If it is not valid, the pass holder first needs to renew the LTVP / LTVP+ before applying for a Letter of Consent (LOC).
  • In case a Letter of Consent (LOC) is renewed early, the Letter of Consent (LOC) holder does not lose the remaining days in his letter. Instead, the renewed consent time will start after the current pass expires.
  • The request for renewal of the Letter of Consent (LOC) can only be made by the employer of the pass-holder or a licensed employment agent.
  • The renewal request of Letter of Consent (LOC) must be submitted through Employment Pass (EP) online.
  • It should be kept in mind that foreign manpower policies change consistently. So even if you have obtained a Letter of Consent (LOC) in the past, it does not guarantee that you will get the approval for the renewal of the Letter of Consent (LOC) as well.
  • Once Letter of Consent (LOC) renewal is approved, you will receive an in-principle letter of approval.
  • Renewing process takes up to three weeks for Dependent Pass holders and one week for the LTVP / LTVP+ holders.

Note: There is no application processing fee for the Letter of Consent (LOC) applications.

What is the Processing time and validity of the Letter of Consent (LOC)?

Letter of Consent

The processing time is as under:

  • Letter of Consent (LOC) application applied online - 1 week
  • Letter of Consent (LOC) application submitted manually - 4 – 6 Weeks.

The validity of the Letter of Consent (LOC) is based on the following:

  • Time period that employer has indicated on the Letter of Consent (LOC) application
  • Date of expiration of the work pass i.e., Dependant Pass (DP), LTVP or LTVP+

Is the Letter of Consent (LOC) difficult to get?

Letter of Consent

If all the requirements and processes are followed correctly then Letter of Consent (LOC) is not difficult to get.

Of course Ministry of Manpower will look at each application carefully before approving it.

Why engage a professional Consultant to get the Dependant Pass (DP)?

Letter of Consent

Not long ago, it was much easier to get the Letter of Consent (LOC) in Singapore. All you had to do was to meet the basic criteria. But things have changed now. And this is no longer the case.

It is beeter to have the help of professionals to walk you through the intricacies of getting a Letter of Consent (LOC). Also, the document like Letter of Consent (LOC) requires several actions to be taken by the holder’s employer or a licensed consultant on the applicant’s behalf. But the sponsor company or employer may be new and may not have the experience to navigate through the whole system. Therefore, it is always better to hire professional consultants who specialize in immigration to Singapore along with allied requirements like Letter of Consent (LOC) and other work permits.

FAQs

Can a Letter of Consent (LOC) holder be appointed as a Company Director?

Yes. As per the Singaporean Law, a Letter of Consent (LOC) holder can be appointed as director and / or shareholder of the company provided he/she gets the approval from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).


Do I need to contribute to social security and government fund as a Letter of Consent (LOC) holder?

Dependant Pass (DP) holder with valid Letter of Consent (LOC) is not required to make any social security contribution to the Central Provident Fund (CPF), as CPF is applicable only to the Singaporean Citizens or Singaporean Permanent residents. But the employer company needs to submit a fee to the skills development fund (SDF). SDF contribution or the Skill development Levy (SDL) is required to be paid by the employers of all employees up to the first S$4,500 of the gross monthly salary of the individual at a rate of 0.25% or S$2 whichever is higher.


Since I am a Dependant Pass (DP) holder, why should I apply for a Letter of Consent (LOC)?

Dependant Pass (DP) doesn’t entitle its holder to work in Singapore. Therefore, if you wish to work in Singapore being a Dependant Pass (DP) holder, you are required to get a Letter of Consent (LOC) from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Singapore.


Should I go for online submission of application or manual submission?

When applying for a Letter of Consent (LOC) from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), it is important to remember that online submission of application is a faster and easier method. However, applicants can opt for manual submission of application. Application submitted manually are at par with those submitted online. The only problem is manual submission (Paper submission) has longer processing time.


What are the processing charges of the Letter of Consent (LOC)?

Letter of Consent (LOC) application is absolutely free. There are no charges for acquiring, renewal, replacement and cancelation of Letter of Consent (LOC).


How do I cancel the Letter of Consent (LOC)?

When to cancel the Letter of Consent (LOC)

Within 1 week after the Letter of Consent (LOC) holder's last day of notice

Who can cancel

Employer or appointed employment agent (EA)

How long it takes

Cancellation is immediate

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