Singapore · Weekly briefing · Nº 042
expat.sg

The Straits standard · Monocle-sharp

Singapore, decided — not debated.

Passes, rents, schools, and the exit sequence — verified against primary sources. Pick the job you have.

Landing / first 90 daysLeaving / between jobs

Cost of living sketch · Cash to land

The ledger

Numbers that decide moves.

Employment Pass, in full →

Editors' selection

All guides →

01 — Arriving

The EP question, answered in full

COMPASS points, salary lines, and what actually gets approved.

Move · EP & COMPASS

02 — Home

Choose a neighbourhood

Two postcodes, two lives. Rents, MRT, and the 10pm test.

Home · Neighbourhoods

03 — Family

Schools: fees without fear

Waitlists, buses, and where money goes furthest.

Family · Schools

Seven pillars, one map

Seven
I.Move — Passes, packing, and the first landing.Employment Pass, S Pass, EntrePass, dependants, COMPASS, shipping, pets, driving conversion, and the 7/30/90-day runway.Open →II.Home — Where you live shapes how Singapore feels.Renting process, condo vs HDB, neighbourhood deep-dives, utilities, domestic helpers, and the annual renewals nobody warns you about.Open →III.Money — Banking, tax, insurance, and what life actually costs.Opening accounts, remittances, IRAS residency, insurance, cost of living by household, SRS, and decoding your package.Open →IV.Family — Schools, healthcare, and raising kids here.International and local school landscape, preschool, waitlists, GP-to-hospital care, kids activities, and special-needs pathways.Open →V.Life — Everyday Singapore, without the tourist gloss.Transport, hawker literacy, shopping, nightlife, sports, arts, dating, essential apps, haze season, and what to do in an emergency.Open →VI.Belong — Find your people — clubs, hashes, faith, and nationality.Membership clubs, associations, chambers, hashes, religious communities, nationality groups, and LGBTQ+ resources — discovery without the awkward cold start.Open →VII.Next — Renewals, PR, pivots — and leaving well.EP renewals, PR strategy, citizenship and NS implications, career pivots, and the leaving Singapore playbook: tax clearance, deposits, shipping out.Open →

Year three should feel inevitable, not accidental.

Arriving, living, and leaving — every calculator and checklist in one place.

Begin arriving →Explore livingLeaving playbook