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Pathway

Singapore Flexible Work Pass for Top Talent

Singapore Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Singapore's ONE Pass is a five-year personalized pass for top earners and people with outstanding achievements. A separate AI and Tech track has been announced to replace Tech.Pass from 28 January 2027.

Type
Work residence
Job fit
Top earners or people with outstanding achievements in a listed field
Core requirements
Exact salary and established-company evidence, or outstanding-achievement evidence
What to know
Up to 5 years with flexible work and business activity; annual activity reporting applies
Salary requirement
SGD 30,000 per month under the salary route; applicants with listed outstanding achievements may qualify without it
Job offer required?
No for the past-salary or achievement route; yes for the future-employment route

Summary

Singapore's Overseas Networks & Expertise (ONE) Pass is a personalized work pass for a narrow group of top earners and people with outstanding achievements. It is different from an ordinary employer-sponsored work pass: the holder can work for more than one Singapore company, change jobs without applying for a new pass, and start or operate Singapore businesses. The first pass can be valid for up to five years, and renewal can also be for up to five years if the holder meets the renewal test.

The mainstream route is built around a fixed monthly salary of at least SGD 30,000. A person applying on past employment normally must have earned that amount from one employer for the 12 consecutive months immediately before applying. A person applying on a future Singapore job must be due to earn at least that amount from an established Singapore-based company and should apply only when the job will start within six months. MOM can also consider people with outstanding achievements in sports, arts and culture, or academia and research without the salary test.

Singapore has announced a separate AI and Tech track that is due to replace Tech.Pass on 28 January 2027. That track is not yet a current application route. Its announced tests include eligible AI or technology work, a qualifying company, SGD 30,000 monthly compensation under special composition rules, and at least five cumulative years of specified senior or technical experience during the previous ten years. Anyone planning around that future track should re-check MOM's live rules when applications open.

Pathway fit check

Eligibility

For the current mainstream ONE Pass, an applicant must fit one of these categories.

Past-employment salary route. You must have received at least SGD 30,000 in fixed monthly salary, or its foreign-currency equivalent, for the 12 consecutive months leading up to the application. The qualifying salary must come from one employer; two smaller salaries cannot simply be added together to reach SGD 30,000. If the relevant employer is overseas, it must ordinarily meet the established-company test, and you must have worked for it for the relevant 12-month period. MOM says other income may be considered case by case, but that is not the same as a guaranteed alternative to fixed salary.

Future Singapore employment route. You must have a prospective job with an established company based in Singapore paying at least SGD 30,000 in fixed monthly salary. The employment must be due to start within six months when you apply.

For either salary route, an established company must have at least USD $500 million in market capitalization or at least USD $200 million in annual revenue. MOM may assess combined figures from the company's global offices case by case. This is a company-size test, not the applicant's personal net-worth test.

Outstanding-achievement route. MOM may consider an applicant who does not meet the salary test but has outstanding achievements in sports, arts and culture, or academia and research. This is not a broad route for anyone with a senior job or a strong résumé. MOM and the relevant Singapore agencies review the actual work and major achievements, and the applicant must provide the field-specific documents MOM requests.

There are also practical rules that can change the timing. An existing Singapore work-pass holder must have worked in Singapore for at least one year before applying for ONE Pass. MOM assesses every application case by case, even where the published numbers appear to be met. The candidate can apply, and an appointed employment agency or employer can also apply for the candidate. MOM allows only one work-pass application for the candidate at a time.

The announced AI and Tech track should be treated separately from the current rules. Official 2026 materials say it is expected to cover people whose current or last role is with a technology company, a technology division, or a technology venture-capital firm. The announced company tests include established-company size measures, with an additional funding test for some technology companies. The announced compensation test permits a specified mix of fixed pay and vested non-cash components, but still uses a SGD 30,000 monthly total and a fixed-pay floor. It also calls for five cumulative years in founder, C-suite, or technical roles during the previous ten years. These details can be revised before 28 January 2027, so they should not be used as proof of present eligibility.

Policy watch 1 development we’re tracking
A specialized AI and Tech track opens in January 2027
Announced — not currently law

A specialized AI and Tech track opens in January 2027

Current official stage: Ministry of Manpower announcement and criteria factsheet published

The announced track is designed for senior AI and technology talent with qualifying company, compensation and experience evidence. It does not replace the current salary or outstanding-achievement routes, and no applicant qualifies under the new track before it opens.

Timing: The new track is scheduled to begin on 28 January 2027. It is not a current application route, and applicants should use the final live Ministry of Manpower criteria and transition instructions when the track opens.

Current pathway rules still apply.

Last checked Singapore Ministry of Manpower — 2026 foreign-workforce policy announcementSingapore Ministry of Manpower — foreign-workforce policy factsheetSingapore Economic Development Board — Tech.Pass transition guidance
Read the full briefing

What This Route Allows

A ONE Pass can provide up to five years of work residence. It is not tied to one job in the way an Employment Pass or S Pass is. Subject to employment-contract terms and any profession-specific regulation, the holder can concurrently start, operate, and work for multiple Singapore companies and does not need a new work pass merely because the holder changes jobs.

There is no employer foreign-worker quota or levy for the ONE Pass. Holders must nevertheless keep MOM informed. MOM requires notification of professional activities and annual income by 31 January of the following year, as well as updates to residential address and relevant personal information.

Eligible family members can receive separate passes. A legally married spouse and unmarried children under 21, including legally adopted children, can qualify for Dependant's Passes. A recognized common-law spouse, certain unmarried older disabled children, qualifying stepchildren, and the ONE Pass holder's parents can use the relevant Long-Term Visit Pass rules. A legally married or recognized common-law spouse can apply for a Letter of Consent to work; the Letter of Consent is still a separate approval, not automatic work permission. Other dependents generally need their own work pass before working.

Renewal is not automatic. Under the current mainstream rule, the holder must either have averaged at least SGD 30,000 in fixed monthly salary over the previous five years in Singapore, or have started and be operating a Singapore company employing at least five local employees, each paid at least the prevailing Employment Pass minimum qualifying salary. A renewal application can be made up to six months before expiry.

What This Route Is Not

The ONE Pass is not an ordinary high-skilled job visa and is not available simply because someone works in technology, manages a team, has a graduate degree, or earns a high household income. The current salary route uses the applicant's fixed monthly salary and exact employer evidence. The achievement route is confined to the listed fields and requires genuinely outstanding evidence.

It is not permanent residence or citizenship. A holder who wants Singapore permanent residence must make a separate application and will be assessed under ICA's rules; holding a ONE Pass does not guarantee approval or create an automatic waiting-period entitlement. Citizenship is a later and separate process, normally requiring permanent residence and, for adults, resolving Singapore's rule against dual citizenship.

The pass also does not remove other legal requirements. Regulated professions may require registration, a business must comply with Singapore company and licensing rules, and income may be taxable. Family members do not receive citizenship or independent permanent status through the pass.

Finally, the announced AI and Tech track is not a present route before its stated 28 January 2027 start. Tech.Pass holders should follow the official transition guidance rather than assuming that a future ONE Pass will be granted automatically.

Next Steps

  1. Choose the exact track you can prove: past fixed salary, future Singapore salary, or outstanding achievement. Do not add compensation from several employers to reach the current salary threshold.
  2. Confirm the employer evidence. Obtain reliable market-capitalization or annual-revenue records and documents showing the 12-month employment period or the future Singapore role and start date.
  3. Build a month-by-month compensation record. MOM's definition of fixed monthly salary does not necessarily include bonuses, share gains, allowances, or irregular payments.
  4. For the achievement route, use MOM's field-specific document list and organize evidence of the work, awards, appointments, publications, competitive results, and recognition on which the application relies.
  5. If you already hold a Singapore work pass, check the one-year Singapore-work rule before applying. Do not submit a competing work-pass application at the same time.
  6. Plan for annual reporting from the start. Keep contracts, payroll, tax, directorship, business, and activity records that support the report due each January.
  7. Review the separate family-pass rules for each relative and remember that a spouse needs a Letter of Consent or other valid work authorization before working.
  8. If you are considering the future AI and Tech track, wait for the live application rules and re-check the announced criteria close to 28 January 2027.
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Sources