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EntrePass → EP founder exit: when the company hires you
Companion to EntrePass — when to leave the founder pass for an employer-sponsored EP, how shareholding / TBS renewals collide with COMPASS, and why ACRA incorporation is not a stealth conversion.
Parent map: EntrePass · renewal ladder. This companion is the founder → employee EP exit — where founders treat a raise or self-hire as an automatic pass morph.
Founder pass ≠ employee pass
EntrePass is a venture / innovator product with TBS / local-workforce renewal bars. An Employment Pass is a sponsored role under Stage 1 salary + COMPASS (unless exempt) and usually FCF. Your own Pte Ltd can sponsor an EP only when it is a credible employer filing — not because ACRA shows your name twice.
| Folklore | Safer reading |
|---|---|
| “I’ll just convert EntrePass to EP in eService” | There is no one-click morph — new EP file while EntrePass stays valid |
| “30% shareholding guarantees EP for myself” | Shareholding is an EntrePass gate, not an EP exemption |
| “Skip FCF because I founded the company” | Self-hire still faces live FCF / advertising rules unless MOM publishes an exemption for your case |
| “Missed TBS? EP will paper over renewal” | Different products — stage EP before EntrePass dies |
Exit checklist
- Model the next EntrePass renewal TBS / LWF bar — if you will miss it, start the EP calendar early.
- Confirm fixed monthly salary vs live EP age-band floor and COMPASS inputs with whoever files.
- Keep EntrePass valid until EP is issued (not merely IPA’d) unless MOM instructs otherwise in writing.
- Separate resident-director / ACRA hygiene from the pass story — resident director vs pass.
- If top-talent / spouse-LOC is the real goal, compare ONE / PEP chooser instead of forcing an EP self-hire.
Decision rule
Exit EntrePass to EP when a real sponsored role clears COMPASS/FCF — not because incorporation folklore promised a conversion button.
Sources & citations
Admin and policy details change. Prefer the official page when making decisions; we cite primary sources for Singapore government and statutory guidance.
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