IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The Ministry of Manpower has extended the deadline by which companies must switch to Singapore Corporate Access, or CorpPass, when using Employment Pass Online. The new deadline is June 30.

What does the change mean? Companies may continue using SingPass for the first half of 2018 before they will be required to register a CorpPass account. MOM is urging companies to register with CorpPass as part of the authorities’ drive to protect both personal and business information.

  • Implementation time frame: Between now and June 30 (the end of the second quarter of the year).
  • Who is affected: Employment Pass Online administrators and users who are granted individual access to the portal.
  • Impact on processing times: Using Employment Pass Online saves significant time in performing employment pass and S-Pass related transactions (applying, checking status, issuing, renewing and canceling passes).
  • Next steps: Companies may register for a CorpPass account on this website.

Background: MOM launched the use of CorpPass for companies using Employment Pass Online last year. The ministry initially said that CorpPass would become mandatory for companies using Employment Pass Online in December 2017. The deadline has since been extended through the first two quarters of this year. No reason for the extension was provided.

BAL Analysis: Even with the extension, BAL recommends that companies create a CorpPass account as soon as possible if they have not already done so. While both CorpPass or SingPass may be used for the first two quarters of the year, SingPass will eventually only be available for use by individuals and will no longer be used for business transactions.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in Singapore. For additional information, please contact singapore@bal.com.

Copyright © 2018 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries please contact copyright@bal.com.