Relocating from Vietnam to Singapore: Work Pass, Tax and Settling-In Guide (2026)

Vietnamese nationals holding an ordinary passport can enter Singapore visa-free for up to 30 days, but that visa-free arrangement covers tourism only. Relocating from Vietnam to Singapore for work is a different, more deliberate process, involving a work pass application, a change in tax residency, and a settling-in checklist that catches many Vietnamese professionals off guard because the two countries are ASEAN neighbours and the move can feel deceptively simple.

Singapore has become one of the default relocation destinations for mid-career Vietnamese professionals in finance, technology, manufacturing management, and trade, drawn by its role as the regional headquarters hub for companies operating across Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and the wider Mekong region. The commute between Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi and Singapore is under four hours, which keeps many newly relocated employees flying back for family visits or client work in the first year, a pattern worth planning for rather than discovering after the move.

This guide sets out, as at 24 September 2026, the work pass pathway most Vietnamese applicants use, how Singapore and Vietnam’s tax treaty affects a first-year move, and the practical settling-in steps, from housing to schooling, that a Vietnamese family needs before and after arrival.

Work Pass Options for Vietnamese Professionals Moving to Singapore

Most Vietnamese nationals relocating to Singapore for employment will apply for the Employment Pass (EP), Singapore’s principal work pass for professionals, managers and executives. As at 24 September 2026, the qualifying salary for a new EP application is at least SGD 5,600 a month for most sectors, and SGD 6,200 a month for financial services, both rising with age, per the Ministry of Manpower’s Employment Pass eligibility page. Meeting the salary bar is only the first stage: candidates must also score at least 40 points under the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS), which weighs salary relative to local benchmarks, qualifications, workforce diversity at the firm, and the company’s local PMET headcount, among other factors. Our full Employment Pass eligibility and requirements walkthrough breaks the COMPASS scoring down criterion by criterion.

Vietnamese professionals in trade, manufacturing supervision or logistics roles that fall below the EP salary bar, or whose role does not carry PMET-level responsibility, are more commonly sponsored on an S Pass instead, which has its own lower qualifying salary and a separate quota and levy structure that the employer bears. Founders relocating to set up or expand a Vietnam-linked trading or sourcing operation in Singapore should also consider the EntrePass route rather than the EP, since EP applications require an existing job offer from an operating company.

No Special Vietnam-Singapore Work Pass Category

Unlike the tourist entry arrangement, there is no ASEAN-specific fast track for Vietnamese nationals in the work pass system; applications from Vietnam are assessed on the same COMPASS criteria as any other nationality. Employers sometimes assume the ASEAN Free Trade Area shortens processing, but MOM’s intra-corporate transferee exemptions under Singapore’s free trade agreements are narrower than a general ASEAN carve-out and should be checked case by case rather than assumed.

Tax Treatment: What the Singapore-Vietnam DTA Does and Does Not Cover

Vietnam and Singapore have had a double taxation agreement in force since 1994, updated by a Second Protocol, which the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) confirms came into force covering permanent establishment, interest and royalty articles. The DTA primarily protects against double taxation on cross-border business income and passive income such as dividends, interest and royalties; it does not exempt an EP holder’s Singapore employment income from Singapore tax, and it does not affect the separate question of Singapore tax residency.

Whether a newly arrived Vietnamese employee is taxed as a Singapore tax resident or non-resident in the first year turns on IRAS’s own 183-day test, not the DTA. A foreigner is treated as a Singapore tax resident for a Year of Assessment if they are physically present or working in Singapore for 183 days or more in the preceding calendar year, or if they hold a work pass valid for at least a year, as set out in our Singapore tax residency and 183-day rule guide. An employee who lands mid-year and works fewer than 183 days in their first calendar year is typically taxed as a non-resident on that year’s income, at a flat rate (currently 15% or the resident rate, whichever gives more tax) with no personal reliefs, before becoming a resident for the following Year of Assessment. This catches many first-year arrivals from Vietnam by surprise, since Vietnam’s own personal income tax system does not apply an equivalent day-count threshold in the same way.

Declaring the Move to Vietnamese Tax Authorities

Departing Vietnamese employees remain subject to Vietnam’s own tax residency rules until they cease to meet Vietnam’s 183-day or permanent-residence tests there; a Singapore posting does not automatically end Vietnamese tax residency in the year of departure. Employees should keep a clear record of arrival and departure dates in both countries and, where income is earned in both jurisdictions in the same year, take independent tax advice on apportionment rather than assume the DTA settles the matter automatically.

Settling In: Housing, Banking and Family Logistics

Once the work pass is approved, most Vietnamese EP and S Pass holders rent private condominium units rather than HDB flats, since non-PR foreigners generally cannot rent HDB flats directly unless the landlord holds a subletting approval. Rental budgets vary sharply by district; our neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood rental guide sets out indicative 2026 price ranges, from suburban two-bedroom units in Punggol or Tengah through to city-fringe condominiums near international schools.

Opening a Singapore bank account is usually one of the first practical tasks after arrival, since a local account is needed to receive salary and pay rent. Most banks will open an account for an EP holder once the pass is issued, though requirements vary by bank; our Singapore bank account guide for EP and S Pass holders covers the documents each major bank asks for.

Vietnamese employees relocating with a spouse or children will usually need a Dependant’s Pass (DP), sponsored once the EP holder’s fixed monthly salary meets MOM’s DP sponsorship threshold. Our Dependant’s Pass, LTVP and Letter of Consent guide explains who qualifies, and when a Letter of Consent lets a spouse work locally without a separate Employment Pass.

Schooling for Children Moving from Vietnam

Families relocating with school-age children generally choose between an MOE local school place, which requires sitting the Singapore Admissions Exercise for International Students for most primary and secondary levels, and one of Singapore’s international schools offering an IB, British or American curriculum. Given how competitive local school places can be mid-year, many Vietnamese families budget for an international school for at least the first year, as covered in our Raffles Corporate Services guide to relocating a business and family to Singapore, which also covers the corporate and incorporation side of a Vietnam-linked Singapore move.

Cost of Living and Healthcare for a Vietnamese Family in Singapore

Singapore’s cost of living is materially higher than Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi across almost every category, and families relocating from Vietnam to Singapore should budget accordingly rather than anchor expectations on Vietnamese prices. Housing and school fees are usually the two biggest step changes; our cost of living in Singapore for expats guide sets out current 2026 monthly budget ranges for a single professional versus a family of four, covering housing, transport, groceries and childcare.

Healthcare is another area where the Vietnam-to-Singapore transition surprises new arrivals. Singapore does not extend subsidised public healthcare rates to work pass holders in the way Vietnamese social health insurance covers local citizens, so most employers include a group medical insurance plan as part of the EP or S Pass employment package, and it is worth confirming what that plan covers, particularly maternity and dependant coverage, before the move rather than after a medical bill arrives. Employees who intend to bring elderly parents to Singapore on a Long-Term Visit Pass, rather than a Dependant’s Pass, should note that LTVP holders are not automatically covered by an employer’s group insurance and typically need a separate private policy.

A Practical Timeline for a Vietnam to Singapore Relocation

A realistic timeline for a Vietnamese professional moving to Singapore on an Employment Pass runs roughly as follows: two to four weeks for the employer to prepare and lodge the EP application once an offer is signed, up to three weeks for MOM’s decision under normal processing, and a further two to four weeks to arrange housing, open a bank account and, where relevant, lodge a Dependant’s Pass application for accompanying family. Employees should avoid resigning from a Vietnam-based role or signing a Singapore lease before the EP is approved in principle, since COMPASS outcomes are not guaranteed even for well-qualified candidates.

Because Vietnam and Singapore sit close enough for frequent travel, some employers structure the first few months as a commuting arrangement before the employee’s family fully relocates. Where that applies, keeping a clear day-count log across both countries from day one avoids disputes with IRAS over tax residency later, and gives the family a firmer basis for deciding when to commit to an international school place or a longer condominium lease.

Getting the Move Right

A relocation from Vietnam to Singapore is straightforward on paper, an ASEAN neighbour, a short flight, a visa-free tourist entry, but the work pass, tax residency and settling-in steps behind that simplicity still need to be sequenced correctly. Getting the COMPASS scoring right before an employer lodges an EP application, understanding that the Singapore-Vietnam DTA does not exempt salary income from Singapore tax, and lining up housing, banking and schooling in the right order all reduce the risk of an expensive false start.

Singapore Employment Agency works with employers and relocating professionals on Employment Pass, S Pass and Dependant’s Pass applications for moves just like this one. For the incorporation, nominee director and business relocation side of a Vietnam-linked move, Raffles Corporate Services handles the corporate services in parallel with the work pass application.

The Editorial Team, Little Big Employment Agency