# Singapore for software professionals from India



## ip_28

Hi All,
I am a software developer having more than 4 years of experience in leading firms. I have few questions:-
i) How is Singapore for software professionals? (Scopes, opportunities and salaries)

ii) Is it advisable to handle immigration process individually or better to contact an agency (I have enquired about few like oasis and y-axis in India and found them little fishy)

iii) What is the demand of IT professionals (web developers and designers) in Singapore?

iv) After I settle there I want my parents to come and stay with me, how safe is it for the elderly in Singapore?

Thanks in advance for your responses


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## ani_india

I have spent few months in Singapore and below are the answers in my point of view



ip_28 said:


> Hi All,
> I am a software developer having more than 4 years of experience in leading firms. I have few questions:-
> i) How is Singapore for software professionals? (Scopes, opportunities and salaries)
> 
> This question is vague..its a heaven if you are from BFSI domain but not so good if you are from Mfg domain...its good if you a Java professional but not so great if you are an ERP consultant...even in ERP, its a decent place for SAP but not so for Oracle EBS...So tell us your BG then may be we can say its good or not
> 
> ii) Is it advisable to handle immigration process individually or better to contact an agency (I have enquired about few like oasis and y-axis in India and found them little fishy)
> 
> Working in Singapore is different from working in US , UK or AUS. You really dont need to worry about the Visa process until you get a Job in a Singapore. The visa process in singapore is quite streamlined & takes a day in the best case scenario.
> 
> iii) What is the demand of IT professionals (web developers and designers) in Singapore?
> 
> Not much as per my knowledge
> 
> iv) After I settle there I want my parents to come and stay with me, how safe is it for the elderly in Singapore?
> 
> I think its THE safest place for all esp. Indians. Its safe as any other developed country with Zero racism.
> 
> Thanks in advance for your responses


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## BBCWatcher

ani_india said:


> I think its THE safest place for all esp. Indians. Its safe as any other developed country with Zero racism.


Singapore is one of the safest countries in the world in terms of physical safety: incidence of crime (including racially motivated crime), prevalence of disease, water and food quality, workplace and roadway accidents (but pedestrians must stay alert!), quality of medical care and public health efforts (vaccinations, mosquito eradication), frequency of natural and manmade disasters, war and terrorism, etc.

"Zero racism"? That would be great, but unfortunately it's not true. There's a large Indian population in Singapore, but there is still some reported racially-motivated discrimination in social, professional, and immigration-related settings. There are also some reported vestiges of class and caste prejudices and associated behavior within Singapore's Indian community. There's discrimination against gay and lesbian residents of Singapore as well, though the situation is slowly improving.

Anyway, Singapore has a great deal of racial harmony and compares very well to most of the rest of the world. But perfection has not yet been achieved even in Singapore.


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## ani_india

BBCWatcher said:


> "Zero racism"? That would be great, but unfortunately it's not true. There's a large Indian population in Singapore, but there is still some reported racially-motivated discrimination in social, professional, and immigration-related settings. There are also some reported vestiges of class and caste prejudices and associated behavior within Singapore's Indian community. There's discrimination against gay and lesbian residents of Singapore as well, though the situation is slowly improving.


I do agree with you. When I said Zero racism I didn’t literally meant that. I was trying to say that an Indian ‘ll feel much more comfortable in Singapore compare to US, UK or any other European countries because of the sheer number of Indians in Singapore. … Having said that I have enjoyed my stays in all those countries, and never felt any racial discrimination any part of the world except in India  though I am an Indian


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## ip_28

Thanks for your detailed response ani_india 
As you have mentioned different technologies and thier demands, I would like to tell you that I am a dot Net professional with experience mainly in ASP dot NET (websites) and WCF/WebApi (services).

Great to know that Singapore is safer and also for Indians it is not too far like other developed countries e.g. Canada,US etc.

I have got two queries further:-

i) As you told it is advisable to have a job in hand before the visa application so does Singapore's IT companies roll out vacancies for potential immigrants? Where can I view and apply Jobs then?

ii) How easy or difficult it is to get visas for aged parents after I get one? (for countries like Australia it is almost impossible


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## ani_india

ip_28 said:


> I have got two queries further:-
> 
> i) As you told it is advisable to have a job in hand before the visa application so does Singapore's IT companies roll out vacancies for potential immigrants? Where can I view and apply Jobs then?
> 
> You can apply jobs in sites like JobsDB, STjobs & Job street etc, But normally companies /consultancies don't consider if you don't have Singapore number. So, your best bet is either Naukri.com or MonsterIndia.
> 
> Be patient & Keep applying. It might take but its that difficult for Java/Dot Net professionals to get a job in singapore
> 
> 
> ii) How easy or difficult it is to get visas for aged parents after I get one? (for countries like Australia it is almost impossible


Its a bit tricky. If you get job with salary more than 8000 (P1 visa) then your parents 'll be eligible for DP pass , and can stay with you as long as you are in Singapore.

If you get less salary then they can come in visit pass & stay up to 2 months.


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## BBCWatcher

For completeness, it's also possible to get a P1 Employment Pass via Singapore's EntrePass program and thus qualify to sponsor parents (but not parents-in-law) for DPs. In that case, a fixed monthly salary of S$8000 or more is not a requirement. However, there are other financial requirements associated with the EntrePass relating to the number of employees you hire and turnover in your business. (EntrePass is one of the programs for foreigners starting new businesses in Singapore.)

Ani_india: We agree.


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## ip_28

@ani_india - Is it advisable to do an MBA before I start applying? Do they have demand for managers? I am a B.Tech in computer science.

@bbcwatcher - thanks for your reply  I feel getting a $8000 pm job will be lil difficult.. but I have not yet explored the job market in Singapore.


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## ani_india

ip_28 said:


> @ani_india - Is it advisable to do an MBA before I start applying? Do they have demand for managers? I am a B.Tech in computer science.


Those things are not related at all ...

If you are asking this qs to an unknown person in an forum , and planning to take a decision on that then its better you dont do MBA   just kidding

are from IIT/NIT ?

I dont think it makes any economic sense to do a full time 2 year MBA from any Indian institute after 4-5 yrs of exp... I have stopped counting the number of IIMs after IIMK :noidea: so really don't have much idea abt MBA in India

If u r thinking abt GMAT then chk out other forums such as beatthegmat or gmatclub


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## ip_28

ani_india said:


> Those things are not related at all ...
> 
> If you are asking this qs to an unknown person in an forum , and planning to take a decision on that then its better you dont do MBA   just kidding
> 
> are from IIT/NIT ?
> 
> I dont think it makes any economic sense to do a full time 2 year MBA from any Indian institute after 4-5 yrs of exp... I have stopped counting the number of IIMs after IIMK :noidea: so really don't have much idea abt MBA in India
> 
> If u r thinking abt GMAT then chk out other forums such as beatthegmat or gmatclub


Nope I am not from IIT/NIT


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## simonsays

BBCWatcher said:


> For completeness, it's also possible to get a P1 Employment Pass via Singapore's EntrePass program and thus qualify to sponsor parents (but not parents-in-law) for DPs. In that case, a fixed monthly salary of S$8000 or more is not a requirement. However, there are other financial requirements associated with the EntrePass relating to the number of employees you hire and turnover in your business. (EntrePass is one of the programs for foreigners starting new businesses in Singapore.)
> 
> Ani_india: We agree.


P1 qualifying salary is being raised .. FYI.

And the benefits of Entre-pass are too being tightened .. I wouldn't bet on it anymore .. 



ani_india said:


> Its a bit tricky. If you get job with salary more than 8000 (P1 visa) then your parents 'll be eligible for DP pass , and can stay with you as long as you are in Singapore.
> 
> If you get less salary then they can come in visit pass & stay up to 2 months.


As I mentioned to BBCWatcher, P1 is not going to automatically entitle you to a DP for parents .. if expected new changes are to be believed ..

Plus in any case, if your parents come on SVP, (from India, I believe you need to get a visa in advance) you can do a one time extension of 30 days to 60 days.



ani_india said:


> ... I was trying to say that an Indian ‘ll feel much more comfortable in Singapore compare to US, UK or any other European countries *because of the sheer number of Indians in Singapore. … *


Not to get into argument, but come end February, the "sheer Number" may be seriously curtailed .. MAYBE !!!!!


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## BBCWatcher

Yes, these are the current rules, but the MOM has been tightening many of them.


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## ip_28

ecureilx said:


> Not to get into argument, but come end February, the "sheer Number" may be seriously curtailed .. MAYBE !!!!!


Are you trying to say from this Feb getting a Singpore visa will be tough for an Indian? Are they going to change some rules due to increasing number of immigrants from India?


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## simonsays

ip_28 said:


> Are you trying to say from this Feb getting a Singpore visa will be tough for an Indian? Are they going to change some rules due to increasing number of immigrants from India?


curtail immigrants ? man, I wouldn't go there .. it is a taboo subject .. 

If you read the news you should know the recruitment trend in Singapore .. and the MOM tightened rules ..


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