# De Facto Visa in Singapore?



## lorenzo_gr

Good morning everyone,
I'm a young Italian guy who is just about to finish his double master degree in geology (Italian and American (USA)). I have no previous work experience and, as a geologist, I don't even really know if there are prospectives for me in Singapore.

I tried to look up on the Singaporian immagration website and I didn't find anything it was even close of what I wanted, so I'll try to ask my question here.

My girlfriend is from the US and she has been offered an on-going working position in Singapore. Unluckily I don't know exactly what kind of visa she would get, but the position, as I said, is an on-going one and so she would need to stay in Singapore durably and for a long time (years+). 
The decision may be dependent also on my ability to follow her into the country as soon as I finish my study (about 6 -9 months period).

Long story short, we were wondering if there is any kind of visa who would let me do this.
I saw that also the Working Holiday Programme (WHP) for Singapore (just, maybe, to get there and work on a more stable visa later) cannot be requested by Italian citizens and there is also a limit of age (25) which I'm about to exceed.

So, the main question is, is there perhaps a _de facto_ Visa (like for example the Australian one, _sorry but it doesn't let me post the url, anyway it's under Partner Visa - Department of Immigration & Citizenship, at immi.gov.au_) or something similar that would allow me to take advantage of my girlfriend's visa to join her into the country on a more or less stable position?
We're a young couple, we'll soon reach our "first year anniversary" but we are not married or anything, so we could be classified exactly as a _de facto partners_. Moreover, even if we have lived together, we wouldn't have much to prove it (no shared bank accounts or rent agreement or anything like this).

I know it sounds desperate (and probably it is) but I thought it was worth to give it a shot.

Thanks a lot to everyone who can take a few minutes to give me an opinion/answer.

lorenzo


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## BBCWatcher

Those two routes probably don't work. Singapore wants a legal (opposite sex) marriage if you want to stay based on your relationship to her, and she would need one of the upper employment pass levels in that case (meaning a sufficiently high salary). If Singapore's working holiday program isn't open to Italians then it isn't open to Italians. (And this Italian is posting in English from Singapore so everyone can read. Mi dispiace. )

Many other routes are possible, though. Lots of international students come to study in Singapore, the Italian government has some employees here (at the embassy, Cultural Institute, etc.), the hospitality industry wants lots of help (if you have plausible Italian culinary skills, for example), geologists are probably in reasonable demand among some employers (likely an expertise comparatively hard to find in Singapore).... There are some possibilities.


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## beppi

Singapore does(occasionally) recognize and issue a Dependent Pass (DP) visa for de-facto partners if the relationship is recognised and certified by the applicant's home country. But since this does not fit the local moral and social preferences, it is a case-by-case decision and not common. It also requires your girlfriend to have above S$4000/month salary - and you cannot work on a DP.
So, if you want to try this, first register as de-facto couple in Italy and then ask her employer to apply for a DP for you at MoM.


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## BBCWatcher

A DP holder can work if his prospective employer applies for a Letter of Consent and if MoM approves it.

Italy has debated introducing something like the French PACS, but it hasn't happened yet and may never happen. Some communes have partnership registries, but I'm not optimistic about Singapore's MoM giving much weight to such partnerships.

The best bet I think is to find a separate, independent way into Singapore, and there are several such possibilities, most based on finding suitable employment and a willing employer sponsor.


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## philgallo

Agreed with bbcwatcher - the DP and can too hit-and-miss... go for employment and EP


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## asublimepizza

Try:

- General Government site: ICA - Immigration & Checkpoints Authority of Singapore. 
ICA - Immigration & Checkpoints Authority of Singapore
- Information for visitors: ICA - Visitor Services
ICA - Visitor Services
- Contact: ICA - Contact Info
ICA - Contact Info

Best as cross border intra company transfer, affiliate transfers, networking word of mouth. Also simply applying when in the country. Look up qualifications in searching, List of Approved professional bodies under Singapore Government, unless its a foreign school or business like a gym you intend to work at, which has broader horizons than the commoner garden Singapore profiling of what a job must entail for it to be successfully carried out.


Above information. Get it from the horses mouth. Email or call.


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## lorenzo_gr

Thanks everyone for the advice!

I have another question if you guys can help me,

does anyone know how frequently a foreigner is able to access a turistic visa to singapore? or anyway, in my case (since i read i don't need a visa), how frequently can i go in and out of the country as a visitor/turist? how long are you required to wait between two visits?

and i read that the one month period may be extended up to a three months, how likely is this to happen? does this require particular conditions? 

thanks again!!


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## beppi

Renewing a visa-on-arrival, up to 90 days, is relatively easy. They will ask for the reason of your long stay (no real tourist stays that long in a tiny and expensive place), so give a convincing one and avoid suspicions that you may work illegally.
Re-entering the country after a (short) stay abroad is always a risk. If the authorities suspect you want to circumvent visa rules or do other illegal stuff, they will not admit you (or, if it's the first time, give you a few days entry so you can arrange your trip home). The longer you stay out of Singapore, the less likely this is. You also cannot stay in Singapore for more than 90 days in any 6 months period.


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## lorenzo_gr

Hi again everyone, and thanks very much for the great advice so far!

While I will probably try to move to Singapore later next year, I'm going to visit my girlfriend there for this upcoming Christmas.

Hope you'll get this the right way, but since Singapore seems so strict on moral/public offense rules, I wanted to ask someone and this looks like a good place to do it:

1) Can you bring condoms into Singapore?
2) Since, as far as I understood, even something like an innocent "modern kamasutra" book would be taken as an offfese...should I delete it from my computer where I have one as pdf?

Even if it seems to be highly unlikely that they will check my computer or anything like that (is it even possible?) I seriously don't really know what to expect from Singapore security/customs.

Thanks everybody!


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## beppi

Hahaha, this is a funny question!
Singapore isn't as strict as you may think.

1. Condoms are freely available in many places (there are even Condom shops on Orchard Road) and you can import resonable quantities for private use without any problems.
2. The book is probably banned due to nude pictures (which are not allowed publicly to protect minors), but the text should be fine. It is very unlikely that your data storage is checked/scanned, but to be 100% sure you can of course delete it (and download it again from within Singapore).


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