Employer of Record (EOR) in Singapore

Best practice guidelines are to provide a written contract that specifies the employee’s compensation, benefits and termination procedures. The specific information regarding salary and any other compensation should be clearly specified in the offer letter and employment contract.

The standard work week in Singapore is 44 hours. Employees who work five or less days a week should not work in excess of nine hours a day. Employees who work more than five days should not work in excess of eight hours per day. If an employee is required to work more than 44 hours, he or she may be entitled to overtime pay. Workmen who earn under SGD 2,500 a month and non-workmen who earn under SGD $4,500 a month are paid overtime. The rate of pay for overtime hours is 1.5 times the base hourly rate.

Employers are required to provide a mandatory rest day each work week during which the employee cannot work. Employees may be required to work on Sundays as long as this is not the designated rest day.

Employees in Singapore are entitled to paid holidays for the public holidays in Singapore, which include:

• New Year’s Day
• Chinese New Year
• Good Friday
• Labor Day
• Vesak Day
• Hari Raya Puasa
• National Day
• Hari Raya Haji
• Deepavali
• Christmas Day

The holiday pay rate is the same as the employee’s gross pay. Employees are entitled to holiday pay if they:

• Were not absent on the working day immediately before or after a public holiday without agreement by the employer or with a reasonable excuse
• Were on authorized leave on the day immediately before or after a holiday
• Not on approved unpaid leave on the holiday

If the holiday occurs on a non-working day, the employee is entitled to an additional day or pay for an extra day at their regular rate. If an employee works on a public holiday on a regular working day, he or she is entitled to gross rate of pay for the holiday work hours and an extra day’s salary at the same rate. If the holiday occurs on a non-working day and the employee is required to work, the employee is entitled to an extra day’s salary and overtime pay for all hours worked. If the holiday occurs on a rest day, the working employee is entitled to payment for the work completed, overtime pay for work beyond normal hours and a paid holiday for the next working day. 

The amount of sick leave employees earn is based on their length of service. Employees who have worked for at least six months are eligible for two weeks of non-hospitalization leave and 60 days of hospitalization leave.

Employees who have been employed for less than six months are entitled to the following sick leave:

• Three months of employment – 5 days of outpatient leave, 15 days of hospitalization leave
• Four months of employment – 8 days of outpatient leave, 30 days of hospitalization leave
• Five months of employment – 11 days of outpatient leave, 45 days of hospitalization leave

Employees must inform their employer within 48 hours of their absence and have their sick leave certified by a company-approved doctor to be eligible for sick leave.

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

The statutory minimum amount of vacation leave is seven days plus one additional day for each year worked with a company until the eighth year of service. For the seventh year and beyond, the legal minimum is 14 days of vacation time. However, employers in Singapore may provide more vacation leave to be competitive. Senior executives may be offered three or four weeks of vacation leave.

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

In order to be eligible for paid maternity leave in Singapore, a female employee must be a citizen of Singapore, must be legally married to the father of the baby and must have worked for the employer for a minimum of three months. Maternity leave is for 16 weeks. For the first two pregnancies, the employer pays for the first eight weeks of leave and the government pays for the last eight weeks. The government pays for the entire maternity leave period for additional pregnancies. Wives may share up to four weeks of their maternity leave with their husbands.

If mothers are not citizens of Singapore or are not legally married to the father, they are usually entitled to 12 weeks of paid maternity leave unless their employment contract states otherwise. Employees who have worked less than three months with their current employer are not entitled to paid maternity leave. 

Working fathers are entitled to two weeks of paid paternity leave if they meet the following requirements:

• The child is a citizen of Singapore
• The father is or was legally married to the child’s mother between conception and birth
• The father has worked for the employer for at least three continuous months
• The father provides the employer with the dates of the paternity leave and the child’s birth certificate

Paternity pay is paid by the government. It is capped at SGD 2,500.

Adoption leave is 12 weeks. Employers are eligible for reimbursement for the last 8 weeks of leave for the first two children adopted.

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Many employment contracts in Singapore include a probationary period of three to six months, but this is not required by statute. During this period, a shorter termination notice is necessary. Typically, employment contracts call for a one-month termination notice for the employer or employee wishing to terminate the employment relationship. If there is no notice period specified in the employment contract, the following notice is necessary, based on the length of service:

I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Singapore’s mandatory minimum retirement age is 62. At this age, employers must offer employees re-employment up to the age of 67 if the employee:

• Has worked a minimum of three years for the employer, beginning before the age of 55
• Is a citizen or permanent resident of Singapore
• Is able to satisfactorily perform the required work

The national system provides basic insurance to employees.

Employers may provide additional benefits that are not mandatory by law. For example, they may offer supplementary health and life insurance. Some employers offer an allowance instead of paying for insurance. Stock options might be provided to executives or others as an added benefit.  Many employers provide an annual bonus to employees, which may be equal to one to three months’ average salary.