Am I covered by the Employment Act if I'm on an EP?

Almost certainly yes. Since 2019 the core leave and salary protections have covered nearly every private-sector employee on a contract of service, managers and executives included, with carve-outs for domestic workers, seafarers and public officers. The line that foreigners have no leave rights is folklore, and it's the expensive kind.

How much annual leave and sick leave do I actually get?

Paid annual leave starts after 3 months, with a year-one minimum of 7 days that rises with service years and is pro-rated if you leave mid-year. Paid outpatient sick leave runs up to 14 days a year after 3 months, pro-rated earlier in the first year, and paid hospitalisation leave up to 60 days a year inclusive of the outpatient days. Your contract can be more generous, but a clause that undercuts the floor doesn't become valid just because you signed it.

Can my employer extend my notice period because I was on MC?

No. If you're covered by the Employment Act, sick leave counts as part of the notice period whether it's paid or unpaid, so the employer can't extend notice for those MC days or claim short-notice damages over them. Contracts saying otherwise are arguing with published MOM guidance. Document the MC and keep MOM's termination-with-notice page handy.

Does my notice period count weekends and public holidays?

Yes. MOM's published counting rules include the day notice is given, and they include weekends and public holidays. That catches out anyone who assumed they were counting working days, so check your last day against the actual calendar before you commit to a start date elsewhere.

Can I use my annual leave to finish my notice early?

Not unilaterally. Taking annual leave during notice is allowed with approval, but offsetting notice with leave, meaning bringing your last day forward, is a mutual agreement rather than something you can take. Unused leave is generally encashed on termination, misconduct paths aside.

Why don't I get overtime pay on my EP salary?

The hours-of-work, overtime and rest-day rules sit in Part IV of the Act, which works off salary bands with separate ceilings for workmen and non-workmen, and a typical EP salary sits above those bands. So no OT can be entirely lawful while your annual leave and sick leave entitlements are untouched. S Pass roles sitting closer to the Part IV ceilings are a genuinely different story.

Employment Act leave and notice for EP / S Pass holders

The Employment Act covers most EP and S Pass holders. Leave after 3 months, why MC can't extend notice and why overtime rules skip many EP salaries.

Living5 min readReviewed 15 Sep 2026Updated 20 Sep 2026

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Holding an EP does not put you outside the Employment Act. Since 2019 the core leave and salary protections have covered almost every private-sector employee on a contract of service, managers and executives included, with a handful of classic carve-outs for domestic workers, seafarers and public officers. Reddit's "foreigners have no leave rights" line is folklore, and it's the expensive kind.

One thing worth flagging before anything else. MC that comes out of a work injury is also potentially a WICA claim, and that needs its own paper trail running alongside the leave one: WICA for EP holders.

What you get after 3 months

Entitlement	Employment Act floor (verify live)
Paid annual leave	Starts after 3 months. Year one minimum is 7 days, rising with service years, pro-rated if you leave mid-year
Paid outpatient sick leave	Up to 14 days a year after 3 months, pro-rated earlier in the first year
Paid hospitalisation leave	Up to 60 days a year, inclusive of the outpatient days
Public holidays	Paid PH under the Act's rules
Notice	Whatever the contract sets, which must be equal in both directions, or MOM's default table if the contract is silent

Your contract or handbook is free to be more generous than that. It cannot undercut the floor for covered employees, and a clause that tries doesn't become valid just because you signed it.

Approval of when you take annual leave is still the employer's call, and that's the bit people conflate. The disputes that escalate to TADM aren't usually about approval. They're about approved balances quietly vanishing, or a "no leave in year one" policy that drops you below the statutory floor.

Notice: resigning is not a special EP ritual

If the contract sets a notice period, you either serve it or you pay salary in lieu. Notice has to be in writing. MOM's published counting rules include the day notice is given, and they include weekends and public holidays, which catches out anyone who assumed they were counting working days.

Sick leave during notice is where employers most often overreach. If you're covered by the Employment Act, sick leave counts as part of the notice period whether it's paid or unpaid. The employer cannot extend your notice for those MC days and cannot claim short-notice damages over them. Contracts that say otherwise are arguing with published MOM guidance, so document the MC and keep the link somewhere you can find it.

Annual leave during notice is allowed with approval, and unused leave is generally encashed on termination, misconduct paths aside. Offsetting notice with annual leave, meaning bringing your last day forward, is a different animal: it's a mutual agreement rather than something you can take. Read MOM's distinction properly before you assume you can start the next job mid-notice. The exit maths is in AL encashment vs notice offset.

Unpaid leave during notice does let the employer extend notice, but only with your agreement.

Part IV overtime: why EP threads talk past each other

The hours-of-work, overtime and rest-day rules sit in Part IV of the Act, and Part IV still works off salary bands with separate ceilings for workmen and non-workmen. A typical EP salary sits above those bands. That's why "no OT for you" can be entirely lawful at the same time as your annual leave and sick leave entitlements are untouched. Two people can both be right about their own situation and still argue past each other for an entire thread.

S Pass kitchen and service roles sitting closer to the Part IV ceilings are a genuinely different story, and the disputes that follow run through salary disputes and TADM.

Pass cancellation runs on its own clock

Leave rights end when the employment ends. What happens after that is immigration law, not leave law. Your employer cancels the EP or S Pass and usually requests a Short-Term Visit Pass to cover your stay. The default is often 30 days, and you can ask for up to 90 during cancellation, but you have to ask, because the shorter one is what turns up by default. The mechanics are in between-jobs STVP and career pivots.

Adjacent rails people mix up

Working from home or hybrid isn't annual leave, and it isn't a favour your manager grants. Since 1 Dec 2024 it's a formal Flexible Work Arrangement request under TG-FWAR, with its own process: FWA guide.

Harassment that's pushing you to resign early is a TAFEP, PoHA and personal-safety problem first, and a notice calculation second. Deal with it in that order: workplace harassment.

Before you resign

Confirm you're covered by the Employment Act. On a private-sector EP or S Pass contract the answer is almost always yes.
Screenshot your leave balances and the clause that sets notice before you hand anything in.
If HR tells you MC extends your notice, reply with MOM's termination-with-notice page and keep it factual.
Line up IR21 and final pay against the notice end date: tax clearance.
Salary underpaid during notice is still a TADM matter, not a foreigner exception.

Company culture can be as stingy as it likes. The statute isn't optional theatre put on for locals only.

Questions, answered

Am I covered by the Employment Act if I'm on an EP?: Almost certainly yes. Since 2019 the core leave and salary protections have covered nearly every private-sector employee on a contract of service, managers and executives included, with carve-outs for domestic workers, seafarers and public officers. The line that foreigners have no leave rights is folklore, and it's the expensive kind.
How much annual leave and sick leave do I actually get?: Paid annual leave starts after 3 months, with a year-one minimum of 7 days that rises with service years and is pro-rated if you leave mid-year. Paid outpatient sick leave runs up to 14 days a year after 3 months, pro-rated earlier in the first year, and paid hospitalisation leave up to 60 days a year inclusive of the outpatient days. Your contract can be more generous, but a clause that undercuts the floor doesn't become valid just because you signed it.
Can my employer extend my notice period because I was on MC?: No. If you're covered by the Employment Act, sick leave counts as part of the notice period whether it's paid or unpaid, so the employer can't extend notice for those MC days or claim short-notice damages over them. Contracts saying otherwise are arguing with published MOM guidance. Document the MC and keep MOM's termination-with-notice page handy.
Does my notice period count weekends and public holidays?: Yes. MOM's published counting rules include the day notice is given, and they include weekends and public holidays. That catches out anyone who assumed they were counting working days, so check your last day against the actual calendar before you commit to a start date elsewhere.
Can I use my annual leave to finish my notice early?: Not unilaterally. Taking annual leave during notice is allowed with approval, but offsetting notice with leave, meaning bringing your last day forward, is a mutual agreement rather than something you can take. Unused leave is generally encashed on termination, misconduct paths aside.
Why don't I get overtime pay on my EP salary?: The hours-of-work, overtime and rest-day rules sit in Part IV of the Act, which works off salary bands with separate ceilings for workmen and non-workmen, and a typical EP salary sits above those bands. So no OT can be entirely lawful while your annual leave and sick leave entitlements are untouched. S Pass roles sitting closer to the Part IV ceilings are a genuinely different story.
How long can I stay after my pass is cancelled?: Your employer cancels the EP or S Pass and usually requests a Short-Term Visit Pass to cover your stay. The default is often 30 days and you can ask for up to 90 during cancellation, but you have to ask, because the shorter one is what turns up by default.

Sources & citations

Admin and policy details change. Prefer the official page when making decisions; we cite primary sources for Singapore government and statutory guidance.