First 30 days

Photograph both sides once it arrives (password vault, not a group chat). Set up the SGWorkPass app with your digital work pass. Update your mobile number with MOM if HR used a temporary SIM earlier. Lost/stolen plastic → HR files MOM replacement within 1 week.

FIN holders 15+ can register. Use your Singapore mobile for SMS 2FA if your registered address is local. Wrong form fields can force a mail-PIN delay — double-check FIN and issue dates from SGWorkPass / notification documents.

DBS, OCBC, UOB, and Standard Chartered are common. Bring passport, physical pass, employment letter, and proof of address. Singpass + MyInfo makes online opening far easier once biometrics are done.

Link PayNow after the account is live. Prefer FIN over a recycled mobile number when the bank offers both. If you mistype a proxy, call your bank for erroneous-transfer recovery — never peer-refund strangers.

Match the pet’s export country to AVS Schedule I–III. Book AQC via QMS when quarantine applies; file the import licence as owner or via an AVS-recognised agent. Housing pet clauses must be in writing.

Most EP holders do not contribute to CPF. Know what is deducted and what is not so salary slips make sense.

Decide condo vs HDB eligibility, budget, and agent engagement. Sketch first-month cash (deposit + advance rent + stamp duty + agent) before you LOI — use the lease-duty tool if you only need the IRAS line item. If the TA has a diplomatic clause, sketch lock-in + notice dates on /tools/lease-notice before you assume an early exit is free.

Common 24-month TAs allow written notice after a 12-month lock-in with ~2 months’ notice — only if your clause says so. Run the dates before you rely on early exit when resigning later.

Port your prepaid number to postpaid or a longer prepaid once your address is stable enough for billing.

International-school waitlists and fixed admissions rounds (e.g. UWCSEA Sep–Nov for the following August) move slowly. Watch the calendar for AEIS/S-AEIS, P1, and IS application windows — AEIS tests are only held in Singapore.

Confirm inpatient vs outpatient cover, panel clinics, and maternity/mental-health riders if relevant.

Foreigners residing here generally get under 12 months on a foreign licence (+ IDP / English translation rules). Conversion usually needs BTT while still inside that window — calendar the clock from your arrival date, not from when you buy a car.

A chamber mixer, nationality association coffee, or hash run. Belonging is a 30-day problem, not a year-three problem.