How to hire in Singapore through an EOR

Fixed-term contracts in Singapore can't easily roll into permanent roles without risking employee claims. Most companies default to indefinite contracts to keep things clean.

Indefinite contracts cover around 90% of hires in Singapore. They fit the local labour market well and avoid the complications that come with repeated fixed-term renewals. If you're hiring for anything ongoing, this is the contract type to use.

What has to be in the contract

Contracts don't need to be fully written to be valid. Oral and implied terms are allowed under Singapore law, but you're still required to provide key employment terms (KETs) in writing within 14 days of the start date. There's no language requirement beyond being clear.

At minimum, your contract needs to cover these 15 KETs:

• Full names of you and the employee
• Job title, duties, responsibilities
• Start date
• Duration (if fixed-term)
• Working hours, days, rest days
• Salary period, basic salary, rate (hourly/daily if applicable)
• Fixed allowances, deductions
• Overtime period and rate
• Bonuses, incentives
• Leave types: annual (at least 20 days/year after first year), sick, hospitalisation, maternity (16 weeks), paternity (2 weeks), childcare
• Medical benefits, insurance
• Probation period
• Notice period (at least 30 days after probation)
• Place of work (optional but worth including)

Probation is typically up to 3 months, or 90 days. There are no special rules beyond notice: you can end employment during probation with one day's notice before 26 weeks of service. Pay the pro-rated salary and any accrued leave. State the probation terms clearly in the contract to avoid disputes later.

Contractor vs employee

Getting this wrong is costly. A contract of service means someone is your employee and gets full legal protections. A contract for service is for genuinely independent workers. There's no single test; courts look at things like who controls the work, who provides tools, how payment is structured, and who has hiring and firing authority.

If you lose a misclassification dispute, you could owe back payments for CPF contributions (up to 17% employer share), overtime, leave, and bonuses. Fines start with warnings but escalate. Wrongful dismissal claims go to the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management, and damages can include lost wages.

Non-competes are hard to enforce in Singapore. They need to protect a legitimate business interest like trade secrets, be reasonable in scope (typically under one year, with limited geography), and not place an excessive burden on the employee. Courts will strike down anything too broad. IP assignment is enforceable if it's written explicitly into the contract. Employees own their inventions by default, but you can claim work-related IP if the contract says so clearly.

For core roles, stick with employees. Use contractors only for distinct projects where they're working independently with their own tools. Get your KETs right from day one. If you're unsure, an EOR can draft compliant contracts quickly and take the guesswork out of it.

Singapore's legal minimum for annual leave is just 7 days in year one. That's well below what employees actually expect — most local professionals look for 15-21 days to be in line with market norms.

Leave starts accruing after 3 months of service and is pro-rated based on completed months: (completed months / 12) x full-year entitlement. The statutory entitlement begins at 7 days in year one and increases by 1 day per year, reaching 14 days after 8 years. Employees can't take leave until they've passed the 3-month mark, and many companies pay out unused days when someone leaves.

There are 11 public holidays in 2026. If an employee works on one, they're entitled to a substitute day off or paid compensation.

All job-protected leave types come with strong protections against dismissal. Pay is at full salary unless the leave is government-funded.

Mandatory benefits

Every employer in Singapore must contribute to the Central Provident Fund (CPF), the country's social security and pension system. In 2026, the employer contribution is 17% of wages (up to a $6,800/month ceiling), and the employee contributes 20%. Rates adjust by age: under 35 it's 17/20, and that shifts to 12.5/20 for employees aged 55 and over. CPF covers retirement, healthcare, and housing costs.

There's no mandatory private health insurance requirement. Public healthcare is partly covered through Medisave, which is built into CPF. That said, most employers top this up with private plans like MediShield Life upgrades to stay competitive.

There are no unusual mandates like meal vouchers or transport allowances. Overtime pay is required at 1.5x the hourly rate for hours worked beyond 44 per week, though that's a wage obligation rather than a benefit.

What people actually expect

The statutory minimums often catch foreign companies off guard. Seven to 14 days of annual leave reads as low to most Singapore-based professionals. Tech firms, financial services companies, and multinationals typically offer 15-21 days, and with 11 public holidays on top, total time-off expectations often sit at 26 days or more.

Private health insurance is effectively expected, not optional, if you want to attract decent candidates. Medisave covers the basics, but employees generally want coverage for specialists, dental, and outpatient care. You'll usually need to cover premiums fully or share the cost.

Remote work stipends of $50-100/month are fairly common for home office setups. Hybrid and flexible working arrangements have become the baseline in most industries. If you don't offer some version of this, you'll lose candidates to employers who do.

Parental benefits matter more than many companies expect. Beyond the statutory 16-week maternity and 2-week paternity leave, parents tend to look for practical support around childcare and infant care. If you offer 18 or more annual leave days alongside these entitlements, you'll generally find it easier to hire and retain people.

Firing someone in Singapore without solid grounds can lead to wrongful dismissal claims, reinstatement orders, or compensation payouts. Document everything carefully — if a dispute ends up at the Employment Claims Tribunal, your paper trail matters.

Firing someone

Singapore gives employers flexibility to terminate with notice or pay in lieu, without needing to state a reason. But wrongful dismissal claims can still arise if you dismiss without just cause, like citing misconduct or poor performance without any proof, or terminating during a protected period such as maternity leave or union activity.

Valid grounds include redundancy (you'll need to show there's no intent to replace the role), breach of contract like unapproved absences, or proven misconduct following a fair inquiry where the employee had a chance to respond. Unfair dismissal also covers discrimination based on age (under 63 or retirement age), race, gender, religion, or disability, and retaliation for filing complaints.

Protected categories include pregnancy, union membership, and statutory leave. Singapore isn't as employee-heavy as some countries in the region, but tribunals do look closely at retrenchments. Base decisions on objective business needs, treat people with respect, and give longer notice if you're doing mass layoffs.

Notice periods

Your contract sets the notice period, and it has to apply equally to both sides. If there's no contract term, the Employment Act defaults apply.

Always issue a written termination letter. You can pay salary in lieu if you need to end things immediately. During the notice period, employees are entitled to accrued leave and CPF contributions.

Severance

There's no mandatory severance for most terminations in Singapore. Retrenched employees over 45 with 2+ years of service can access payments through the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support Scheme, but that's government-funded, not something you owe directly.

Contracts often include discretionary bonuses or ex-gratia payments, typically half to one month's salary per year served. There's no statutory formula or cap unless your contract says otherwise. For retrenchments, calculating by tenure and last-drawn salary is common practice, but it's not legally required.

Work permits and visas

You can hire foreign nationals through an EOR. The EOR acts as the legal employer and sponsors the work pass through the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

The main categories are: Employment Pass (EP) for professionals earning S$5,000+ monthly (higher for older applicants), S Pass for mid-skilled workers at S$3,150+, and Work Permit for semi-skilled roles in sectors like construction or marine. EP and S Pass approvals typically take around 3 weeks. Work Permits can take up to 3 months.

Key requirements include relevant qualifications, a job ad on MyCareersFuture for 14 to 28 days (for EP and S Pass), fair salary benchmarking, and company financials. There's no digital nomad visa. Your EOR handles sponsorship, renewals every 1 to 2 years, and ongoing compliance like levy payments. From 2027, there'll be no cap on Work Permit duration.

Other things worth knowing

On data protection, the Personal Data Protection Act applies. You'll need employee consent for data use, breach notifications within 72 hours if the breach is significant, and a Data Protection Officer for larger operations. Fines can reach S$1 million.

Trade unions cover about 20% of workers, mostly blue-collar. Collective agreements can set better terms than the Employment Act, but they rarely apply to tech or professional roles. Unless your workforce is unionised, you'll negotiate directly.

A few upcoming changes to track: retirement age rises to 64 (re-employment to 69) from July 1, 2026, then 65/70 by 2030. A three-tiered dispute resolution system starts in 2027. Financial firms will need to report misconduct within 21 days. Nothing that directly changes EOR obligations yet, but it's worth watching MOM updates.

Use written contracts, run proper inquiries for misconduct cases, and lean on your EOR for pass sponsorship. Wrongful dismissal claims take time and money to deal with, so document performance issues as they come up, not after the fact.