Levies & quotas for hiring Foreign Workers

The Foreign Worker Levy is a pricing mechanism to control the number of Foreign Workers (including Foreign Domestic Workers) in Singapore. While they are not required to pay Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions for Foreign Workers, employers are liable to pay monthly levies to hire employees who hold Work Permits or S Passes.

If a Foreign Worker on the Foreign Worker Levy Scheme is subsequently granted Singapore Permanent Resident status, he will be placed on the CPF scheme. This will take effect from the day he is granted Permanent Resident status.

For your information

Read here to estimate the quota for Foreign Workers that apply to your industry and your company.
From 1 July 2011, changes to a company’s workforce profile will automatically be taken into account in the computation of a company’s monthly levy bill. Employers are no longer required to convert their foreign workers between levy tiers.

Foreign Worker levies applicable to Work Permit holders

Employers who hire skilled Work Permit holders can enjoy lower levy rates, subject to the Dependency Ratio of their industry. In order for lower levy rates to apply, i.e. in order for a Work Permit holder to be considered skilled, the Work Permit holder must possess relevant academic or skills-based test qualifications and certificates.

			Levy Rate ($)
Sector	Dependency Ratio	Worker Category	Monthly	*Daily
Manufacturing	Basic Tier / Tier 1: Up to 30% of the total workforce	Skilled	180	5.92
	Basic Tier / Tier 1: Up to 30% of the total workforce	Unskilled	280	9.21
	Tier 2: Above 30% to 50% of the total workforce	Skilled	240	7.90
	Tier 2: Above 30% to 50% of the total workforce	Unskilled	340	11.18
	Tier 3: Above 50% to 65% of the total workforce	Skilled ⁽¹⁾	450	14.80
	Tier 3: Above 50% to 65% of the total workforce	Unskilled ⁽¹⁾	450	14.80
Construction	1 local full-time worker to 7 Foreign Workers	Higher Skilled ⁽²⁾and on MYE ⁽⁴⁾	180	5.92
		Basic Skilled ⁽³⁾and on MYE ⁽⁴⁾	230	7.57
		Experienced and exempted from MYE ⁽⁵⁾	380	12.50
Marine	1 local full-time worker to 5 Foreign Workers	Skilled	180	5.92
Marine	1 local full-time worker to 5 Foreign Workers	Unskilled	300	9.87
Process	1 local full-time worker to 7 Foreign Workers	Skilled and on MYE ⁽⁴⁾	180	5.92
		Experienced & exempted from MYE ⁽⁵⁾	380	12.50
		Unskilled	300	9.87
Services	Basic Tier / Tier 1: Up to 20% of the total workforce	Skilled	180	5.92
	Basic Tier / Tier 1: Up to 20% of the total workforce	Unskilled	280	9.21
	Tier 2: Above 20% to 35% of the total workforce	Skilled	300	9.87
	Tier 2: Above 20% to 35% of the total workforce	Unskilled	400	13.16
	Tier 3: Above 35% to 50% of the total workforce	Skilled ⁽¹⁾	450	14.80
	Tier 3: Above 35% to 50% of the total workforce	Unskilled ⁽¹⁾	450	14.80

* Daily levy rate only applies to Work Permit holders who did not work for a full calendar month. From 1 January 2011, the daily levy rate is computed based on the following: (Monthly levy rate x 12) / 365 = rounding up to the nearest cent.

⁽¹⁾ Skilled workers belonging to the categories of above 50% to 65% of the total
workforce in the Manufacturing Sector and above 35% to 50% of the total workforce in the Service Sector are not eligible for the skilled levy rates.

⁽²⁾ Higher skilled workers in the Construction Sector refer to workers who are:

registered with the Construction Registration of Tradesmen (CoreTrade); or
issued with trade certifications recognised by the Building and Construction Authority; and who possess at least four years of construction experience in Singapore

⁽³⁾Basic skilled workers refer to workers who possess SPM and/or Building and Construction Authority’s Skills Evaluation Certificate (SEC) or Skills Evaluation Certificate (Knowledge) i.e. SEC(K).

⁽⁴⁾ The MYE allocation quota for Construction and Process Sectors will be reduced by 10% from 1 July 2011.

⁽⁵⁾ To be exempted from MYE, the Foreign Worker must have at least two years' working experience in the Construction Sector.

Foreign Worker levies applicable to Foreign Domestic Workers

Details about levies applicable to Foreign Domestic Workers can be found here.

Foreign Worker levies applicable to S Pass holders

		Worker Category	Levy rates ($)
Sector	Dependency Ratio		Monthly	*Daily
All sectors	Basic Tier / Tier 1: Up to 15% of the total workforce ⁽¹⁾	Skilled	120	3.95
All sectors	Tier 2: Above 15% to 25% of the total workforce ⁽¹⁾	Skilled	180	5.92

* Daily levy rate only applies to S Pass holders who did not work for a full calendar month. From 1 January 2011, the daily levy rate is computed based on the following: (Monthly levy rate x 12) / 365 = rounding up to the nearest cent.

(1) For all sectors, S Passes' Dependency Ceiling (DC) of 25% will be counted within the Work Permits' DC.

Levy bill computation

Company that is under the tiered system may refer to the Guidelines on Levy Bill Computation for an estimate breakdown of the levy bill.

Skills Development Levy

Under the Skills Development Levy Act, every employer is required to pay a monthly Skills Development Levy (SDL) for his foreign employees, i.e. Work Permit and S Pass holders.