Ministry of Manpower (MOM) Work Permit Holders (WPH) Landscape Scheme

With effect from 1 July 2007, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has implemented a new Work Permit Holders (WPH) scheme for Landscape Companies. MOM requires companies applying for WPH Landscape Scheme to be a registered Landscape Company administered by the National Parks Board (NParks).

NParks registered Landscape Companies will be allowed to employ WPHs of up to 50% of their total allowable workforce.

Industry	Allowed WPH Dependency	Allowed WPH Sources
Landscape	50%	Traditional Source Malaysia North Asian Sources Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Taiwan Non-Traditional Sources Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, PRC, Sri Lanka, Thailand

Please refer to CUGE Training Programmes for information on MOM’s approved Training and Composite Assessment programme (WSQ) for converting your foreign workers into skilled foreign workers.

Foreign worker levy rates

The Budget Speech 2010 has announced changes to the levy rates and levy tiers for S Pass and Work Permit holders. The changes will be implemented gradually in stages from July 2010 till July 2012 (see attached table and graph for details of the change). The changes, implemented over three years, will provide companies time to adjust and invest in measures to boost productivity.

Key Features of the Changes
The key features of the changes are:

i.	Increase in the S Pass and Work Permit levy rates. This is to better moderate employers’ demand for foreign manpower and to encourage investment in productivity;
ii.	Greater differentiation in levy rates between skilled and unskilled foreign workers. This aims to encourage companies that need foreign workers to employ better skilled and thereby more productive ones;
iii.	No change in Dependency Ratios, but higher dependency will attract higher levy rates. This maintains companies’ access to, while at the same time encourages them to reduce reliance on, foreign manpower.

MOM will also be stepping up monitoring and enforcement against employers who attempt to recover the levy from their foreign workers, whether directly or indirectly. Those who do so will be prosecuted and/or barred from hiring foreign workers.

Source: MOM’s press release on changes of Foreign Workers Levy for sustainable growth

FAQs for Foreign Worker Levy Changes

Table: Changes to Foreign Workers Levy Rates for the Landscaping Scheme

S Pass Levy Charges

Current

1 Jul 2010

1 Jan 2011

1 Jul 2011

1 Jan 2012

1 Jul 2012

Tier

Levy ($)

Basic Tier

<25%

≤20%

100

≤20%

110

≤15%

120

≤15%

130

≤15%

150

Tier 2

20%-
25%

120

20%-
25%

150

15%-
25%

180

15%-
25%

210

15%-
25%

250

R Pass Levy Charges

Current

1 Jul 2010

1 Jan 2011

1 Jul 2011

1 Jan 2012

1 Jul 2012

Tier

Levy ($) (R1
/R2)

Basic Tier

<50%

150/ 300

<50%

160/ 300

≤25%

170/ 270

≤20%

180/ 280

≤20%

190/ 290

≤15%

200/ 300

Tier 2

25%-
40%

300

20%-
35%

300/ 400

20%-
35%

300/ 400

15%-
35%

300/ 400

Tier 3

40%-
50%

450

35%-
50%

450

35%-
50%

450

35%-
50%

450

R1 Pass - Skilled (Landscape WSQ composite assessment)
R2 Pass – Unskilled