Advisory note on the employment of International / Foreign Students

General <strong>note</strong>
<strong>Advisory</strong> <strong>note</strong> on the employment of International / Foreign Students
1. Work pass exemption will be granted to foreign students from Institute of Higher Learning (IHL)
recognised by MOE to do their internships/industrial attachments if they fulfill the following
conditions:
Conducted during the stipulated school vacation; or
Within 16 hours per week during term time; or
Compulsory course work requirement for graduation; or
Non-compulsory but are modular credits awarding and contribute towards graduation
requirement.
2. NUS International Students who undertake voluntary internship/industrial attachment that is non-
modular credits awarding in Singapore during term time, where working hours are more than 16
hours per week, Training Employment Pass (TEP) is required. The TEP is only valid for up to a
maximum of 3 months. Please refer to the website link
(http://www.nus.edu.sg/registrar/calendar.html) for the NUS academic calendar.
3. Foreign students will be prosecuted under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act if they are
found working in Singapore without a valid Work Pass.
4. Employers who hire foreigners without valid work passes will be prosecuted under the
Employment of Foreign Manpower Act.
5. For more information and clarification, please contact MOM Hotline at 6438 5122.
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For employers
If you are employing NUS International Students under voluntary internship (non-modular credits
awarding) during term time, please adhere to the following procedures required by MOM:
1. Before the internship commences,
Apply for Training Employment Pass (TEP) from MOM. There is no quota for TEP
applications.
2. Upon receiving the In-Principle Approval (IPA) letter for TEP from MOM
Inform student so he/she can proceed to return their Student’s Pass to Immigration &
Checkpoints Authority (ICA). Please <strong>note</strong> that each IPA is valid for 6 months from the
date of letter.
3. Upon completion of internship, employer is required to cancel the TEP and return it to MOM by
Additional <strong>note</strong>:
either hand or post.
Both students and organisation are exempted from contributing Central Provident Fund for
internships or industrial attachments approved by NUS.
The training allowance paid to the student is not liable for income tax in Singapore.
For International Students
If you are undertaking voluntary internships (non-modular credits awarding) which are not compulsory
requirements by your course during term-time, the following procedures apply:
1. You will need to apply for Leave of Absence (LoA) from your faculty for the semester. Upon
receiving the approval from the faculty, you should advise your employer to apply for TEP.
2. Before internship commences
Upon being informed by the employer that the In-Principle approval (IPA) letter for TEP
has been received
3. Prior to completion of internship
Check with your employer on the TEP collection arrangement
Return Student’s Pass to ICA after obtaining the TEP
About 6 to 8 weeks before the end of the internship, please <strong>note</strong> to activate the re-
application process for Student’s Pass
Students will need to go through medical check-up if their last check-up was
done more than 2 years ago
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There is a processing fee of $30 per application and a issuance fee of $60 per
Student’s Pass. Please refer to next section on the detailed guidelines on the Re-
application process for Student’s Pass.
4. At the end of internship, return your TEP to employer for cancellation after obtaining the Student’s
Pass.
Re-application process for Student’s Pass
1. Student submits a Re-Application of Student’s Pass Form (downloadable from
http://www.nus.edu.sg/registrar/forms.html). Please follow the following procedures:
a. Undergraduate Student: Registrar’s Office (RO) at University Hall, Lee Kong Chian Wing,
Level 4 (call extension number 61476 at the counter for assistance).
b. Graduate Research Student (except NGS/SMA): Registrar’s Office (RO) at University
Hall, Lee Kong Chian Wing, Level 4 (call extension number 62302 at the counter for
assistance).
c. Graduate Coursework Student and NGS/SMA Students: Faculty/School Dean’s Office
2. Student is required to check his/her NUS email account daily to receive updates (if any) relating
to the Student’s Pass application.
3. RO/Faculty/School registers the student through the Student’s Pass On-line Application &
Registration (SOLAR) with the following information:
a. Name, date of birth, gender and nationality of the student (as appeared in travel
document)
b. Course details, course commencement and course end dates
c. SOLAR application reference number
4. Once RO/Faculty/School successfully registers the student in SOLAR, RO/Faculty/School will
notify the student via email, to access SOLAR to submit eForm 16 (the purpose of this step is for
student to verify and submit his/her personal particulars/course details to ICA). This should be
done within 5 working days from the date of receipt of email notification from RO/Faculty/School.
5. Upon submission of the eForm 16 through SOLAR, student is required to print a copy of the
submitted eForm 16 and pay the Processing Fee of $30 via credit/debit card or internet banking.
6. ICA will issue an In-Principle Approval (IPA) letter to student if ICA deems there are no issues
with the application. ICA processing time for issuance of IPA letter is within 5 working days for
students who do not require a visa to enter Singapore.
7. Student submits an e-appointment request to see an ICA officer and complete the Student's Pass
formalities at ICA. It is important to time the e-appointment date to before the expiry date of the
TEP.
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8. The IPA letter and copy of the eForm 16 are part of the supporting documents required to be
submitted to the ICA officer when student completes his/her formalities at ICA. Student must refer
to the IPA letter for detailed instructions and the full list of documents required for submission so
as not to delay the issuance of the Student’s Pass. An issuance fee of $60 must be paid at this
point in time (by NETS or Cashcard) before ICA issues the Student's Pass to the student.
Additional Notes
Pass matters
Students are advised that the re-instatement of Student’s Pass is not guaranteed and is
subjected to medical clearance (i.e. for those who had their medical check-up done more than 2
years ago) and ICA guidelines.
In Singapore, it is illegal to hold two passes at any one point in time. However, students must
ensure that they remain in Singapore on a valid pass at all times.
Hostels & Halls stay
A student (be it local or international) who is not covered under the NUS student insurance
scheme during Leave of Absence and wishing to stay in an NUS hostel would need to secure an
alternative protection scheme for the duration of his or her stay or for the period in which he or
she is not covered under the NUS insurance scheme, whichever is earlier.
Students will need to secure a personal accident and a hospitalisation and surgical scheme with a
coverage equal or exceeding the amount provided by NUS if they want to continue to stay in the
NUS hostels and halls. Details of the NUS insurance scheme can be found at
http://www.nus.edu.sg/uhc/healthservice/insurance/index.html. Students can seek UHC advice on
the insurance providers.
Students will need to provide a copy of the above insurance policies (primarily a copy of the page
stating the benefits or coverage and assured details) to the Hostel Administration Services (HAS).
Alternatively, students can do so online at www.hosteladmission.nus.edu.sg or walk in to our
frontline counters at Student Service Centre (SSC).
For queries, students can contact the frontline counters at SSC, call HAS at 6516 1384 or drop an
online query at www.hosteladmission.nus.edu.sg.
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Other references
TEP application process:
http://www.mom.gov.sg/foreign-manpower/passes-visas/training-employment/before-you-
apply/Pages/default.aspx
http://www.mom.gov.sg/foreign-manpower/passes-visas/training-employment/when-you-
apply/Pages/default.aspx
Collection of TEP:
http://www.mom.gov.sg/foreign-manpower/passes-visas/training-employment/after-you-
apply/Pages/default.aspx#collection
Cancellation of TEP:
http://www.mom.gov.sg/foreign-manpower/passes-visas/training-
employment/cancellation/Pages/pass-cancellation.aspx
Student’s Pass application:
http://www.ica.gov.sg/data/resources/docs/Visitor%20Services/STP_Notes1e.pdf
http://www.ica.gov.sg/page.aspx?pageid=325
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