Staying on to look for job after studies - HOW?

[incognito]

my boyfriend is about to complete his graduate studies here in singapore. he is a foreigner, and he hopes to find a job here. the job hunt so far has yielded nothing, but he is hoping to stay on for a few months after his student visa expires, to look for a job. i've heard of an employment eligibility pass, but is this applicable to his situation? also, if the only way he can stay here for the next few months is on a social visit pass, does he have to renew the pass by going just to JB or does he have to return to his home country? he is from western europe (no entry visa requirement for tourist visit). i apologize if my questions seem naive to some, but i would be grateful if someone knowledgeable of such procedures could give us some constructive advice. thank you.

[cs]

If you see my previous posting, you can see that it is becoming increasingly difficult to get a pass to stay in Singapore. Even if your boyfriend can get a job, there is no garantue that the EP will be approved.

Going to JB/Batam has it's dangers. If they see you doing it too many times, they can give you a one day pass and ask you to go down to Lavender to be processed. Also flying to Bangkok, KL etc and back doesn't do the trick. SIR makes a distinction and in instances, will require a confirmed ticket to your country of origin before renewing the social visit pass.

If you are ready, your best bet probably would be to register your marriage and then sponser him for PR. In most instances SIR would tend to be sympathetic and renew his application for a social visit pass. This of course means a big leap in comittment and you would not want to do this unless you are absolutely sure. Also you would of course  need to have sufficent education qualifications and income to ensure that  the PR application is approved.    

[incognito]

Thanks cs for your reply. I am actually a Singapore citizen, and I realise that marriage would probably be his best chance of staying here. However I was trying not to exercise that option simply for reasons of convenience, but I guess this is how the world works now. I don't think he is really looking for a PR; he's looking to work here on an employment pass for a few years before moving on, or, if he decides, getting his PR.

Reading your reply and the other messages on this board, it does seem that the situation isn't as easy as we'd imagined it to be. But what about this 'employment eligibility' pass? Isn't it something that you can hold so you can stay here and look for a job? He holds a post-graduate degree, does this make a difference at all?

Again, thank you. Government websites seem vague and superficial when it comes to addressing issues like these.

[cs]

No harm applying and trying your luck. You can hope for the best but you should prepare for the worst in the event he qualifies but they don't give it to him. You have to take into account that you are probably not the only case. As we head deeper into recession, it is likely that there will be more and more cases of people being displaced. SIR will have to make a decision and they can't obviously let everyone stay and swell the ranks of the unemployed in Singapore.

If the recession is protracted, even getting PR might be a problem. This is because as the job cuts deepen, more who are here on EP who probably apply for PR to ensure that they can stay in Singapore in the event things take a turn for the worst. In such a scenario, it would be unlikely for SIR to grant PR to everyone who applied.    

Best of luck to you.