FAQ

A. Companies can approach and instruct us to search new staff for them. 

Overview:

Job ad in local daily print and online, SGC website
Preview of all CVs
Pre-selection of CVs,
Shortlisting and submission of pre-selected CVs to client
Interview arrangements
Interview (by instructing company, per request, SGC can sit in as neutral observer with extra charge) Final selection (by instructing company)

On average this process takes about six weeks.

For further details, please contact Mr Valdemar Llenos: valdemar.llenos(at)sgc.org.sg 

A. A good way to get information on job vacancies in Singapore is to contact the companies directly. You may also view the differentonline job portals in Singapore. Please view next segment below.

You might also want to have a look at our members listing on our website: https://www.sgc.org.sg/membership/members-listing/ after which you may then contact the companies directly for further information on job vacancies.

A. You can visit these online job portals:

www.jobstreet.com.sg

https://sg.jobsdb.com/ 

www.jobsbank.gov.sg/ 

 A. We have our members listing on our webpage: <link membership members-listing>www.sgc.org.sg/membership/members-listing/ 

 A. Yes, you need a working visa to work in Singapore. All non-Singaporeans and non-PR in Singapore need a working visa in Singapore. It is illegal to work in Singapore without a working visa. Please find out more on the pages of the Ministry of Manpower (MoM): http://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits 

A. It depends what kind of working relationship you have with your company. The main categories are related to your formal education, experience on the job and salary. For the different types of working visa please visit http://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits 

A. The company that hires you will be the one to apply for your working visa. You have to submit all necessary documents to your future employer for processing.

A. Under certain conditions you may be able work without working visa in Singapore for maximum 60 days. In any case you should inform MoM about it. Failure to inform MoM is against the law in Singapore. Please check the MOM webpage under: ”work pass exempt” for further details. Please always inform yourself on the website of the MoM for any changes: www.mom.gov.sg

A. You can send your full applications to Mr Valdemar Llenos at valdemar.llenos(at)sgc.org.sg  The SGC regularly hires interns for a period of 6 months. The terms start usually in spring and autumn. Should your profile be of interest to us, we will contact you on short notice.

A. Unfortunately, we do not offer internships to law students. The SGC does not have the possibility to supervise law students due to our regulations. Please visit our website www.sgc.org.sg and search for our list of German-speaking lawyers in Singapore that might be of interest to you.

Please also check the webpage of the Ministry of Manpower: http://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits for the current situation on Work Passes. It is worthwhile checking these pages since there have been numerous changes in recent months.

A. Yes. Depending on your profession or the place you trained/ studied, you might face restrictions in practicing your job here in Singapore. Examples are the medical profession and law related jobs.

If you have other inquiries please send email at info(at)sgc.org.sg

Singapore company register
You can obtain information about registered Singapore-based companies from DP Information Group www.dpgroup.sg, via its Online-Portal: www.questnet.sg. In this portal you will be able to access both registration and various reports on Singaporean companies. Furthermore, most companies in Singapore are either Public listed or Private Limited companies.

If you would like to obtain the financial statements and reports of Public Listed companies, you can find them on the Singapore Stock Exchange homepage for free: www.sgx.com For other companies that are not public listed, you may also retrieve such information via the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) website. All companies are to be registered with ACRA, and are obligated to submit their annual reports, which can be purchased by the public. You may even find out whether the specific company is still active in Singapore.

If you are interested to obtain their annual reports, please use the following steps: Go to the Homepage www.acra.gov.sg/home/ Click on “Buy Information” when you scroll down the page Look for “Extracts & Lodgements”, and then click on “Extracts” In the search machine, you can either enter the Company Name or Registration No. From there you can narrow your search accordingly Please note that there are usually costs involved when purchasing information purchased from ACRA Bizfile. Payment can be made using a credit card.

German company register
You can find out legal information about the company by acquiring an excerpt of the German Company Register. Please visit the website handelsregisterauszug-online.de for more details on how to purchase the document. This website is equivalent to the ACRA in Singapore. The homepage is available in English. Kindly note however that the document will be in German. If you need someone to translate it, you may approach one of the approved interpreters on our website: www.sgc.org.sg/business-info/lawyers-tax-consultants-job-agencies-interpreters/ We hope this information was useful. Should you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Customs in Singapore
Please have a look at the info paper attached (below) which provides you with basic information regarding the Singaporean customs. For more detailed questions, please contact the Singaporean customs office directly. The customer service line (+65 6355 2000) is available 24 hours. Alternatively, you may send an email to customs_documentation(at)customs.gov.sg. The website of the Singapore Customs is www.customs.gov.sg 

Customs in Germany
For questions regarding the German Customs we suggest to get in touch with the German Customs Information & Knowledge Management Department. The contact details can be found under this link: http://www.zoll.de/EN/Service/Enquiries/enquiries_node.html. Further information is provided on their homepage under: http://www.zoll.de/EN/Home/home_node.html. We hope this information was useful. Should you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Unfortunately, we do not have a legal department in the SGC. However, it is possible to contact a lawyer for assistance in paperwork and documentations to found a company. You may find a list of German-speaking lawyers on our SGC website: List of German speaking lawyers in Singapore We hope this information was useful. Should you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We provide a listing of all our member companies on the SGC website (www.sgc.org.sg). We have more than 600 members, out of which more than 200 are German companies. This list is free of charge. In total, there are more than 1,300 German companies in Singapore. Further information and contact details can be obtained via the search engine “Kompass”: sg.kompass.com. We hope this information was useful. Should you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Please have a look at the info paper “GST” (below) to get an overview of the tax system in Singapore. As we do not have a legal department in the chamber, we are unfortunately unable to provide you with legal binding advice concerning your tax inquiries. We recommend you to contact the Singaporean authority Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) directly, as they are in charge of taxes for imports and exports: www.iras.gov.sg  

These are some of the officers you may contact.

Ms Regina FOO Manager (Corporate Tax Division - Small Corporations Branch) Tel.: +65 63513379 E-Mail: regina_foo(at)iras.gov.sg 

Ms Julia CHEW Manager (Corporate Tax Division - Small Corporations Branch) Tel.: +65 63513242 E-Mail: julia_chew(at)iras.gov.sg 

Furthermore, you may also choose to contact one of our lawyers if you need assistance with paperwork or legal advice. Please kindly take a look at our website www.sgc.org.sg/business-info/lawyers-tax-consultants-job-agencies-interpreters/ under “Business info” for a list of approved German lawyers in Singapore. We hope this information was useful. Should you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

if you have further inquires send email at melissa.brandner(at)sgc.org.sg

Please fill out the Online Form. We will contact you once it has been approved by the Board.

Any person, corporation, association, private, public or official body having its place of business or domicile in either Germany or Singapore and who participates in trade or other commercial activities in Germany or Singapore may be admitted to Ordinary membership. Any such person, corporation, association, private, public or official body qualifying for Ordinary Corporate membership shall appoint only one representative exercising all the membership rights and privileges (Ordinary Corporate Member). Any Ordinary Member may nominate in addition to the Ordinary Corporate Member further representatives as Ordinary Individual Member. Every Ordinary Member, whether a person or a corporation has one vote. Only Ordinary Corporate Members are eligible to stand for election. Any person, corporation, association, private, public or official body having an interest in the activities of the Chamber may become an Associate Member. An Associate member will have access to all membership benefits but is not allowed any voting rights.

Members benefit from us in many ways. You will: Benefit from the Chamber's strong working ties (with both government agencies, business organisations and companies in Singapore and Germany) Be able voice your interests to Singaporean and German decision makers Expand your network through our events, seminars and others Be able attend our signature monthly Business Luncheons free of charge Enjoy our events at a special price Gain in-depth insights about your field of work or interest by participating in one of our various committees Acquire strategic and timely information related to business Receive free copies of targeted SGC business publications Receive our comprehensive Newsletter regularly Receive benefits through our SGC Membership Card Most importantly, being a SGC member allows for diverse opportunities to network within and outside the SGC framework. The SGC works closely together with other national business organisations to always offer fresh contact opportunities.

The membership is generally transferable to an alternate personnel of the company. The company is required to fill up a ‘Transfer of Membership’ form including the details of the proposed new member and send back to SGC. We will update our database thereafter.

Any member may terminate his membership by writing in to the Executive Director with three (3) months’ notice to the end of the financial year and pay all monies due to the Chamber. The termination letter can be sent by e-mail or normal post. This should follow a completion of the termination form which can be obtained from the membership department.

SGC membership fees are not tax-deductible.

Currently, we have the Newsletter which is sent out on a weekly basis. Your email is automatically included in our mailing list when you become a member. Otherwise, we may from time to time send out mass mailers about our events or events of other members.

The membership can be transferred to a colleague. No entrance fee will be charged. You can contact the membership department to obtain the ‘Transfer of Membership’ form.

As freelancers and individuals, you are most welcome to join the Chamber as long as you have the place of business or domicile in either Germany or Singapore and participate in trade or other commercial activities in Germany or Singapore. All memberships are of course subject to approval by the Board.

For further clarification, please contact: Ms Lakshmi Swarnam Head of Membership, Events and Communications Singaporean-German Chamber of Industry and Commerce +65 6433 5337 +65 6433 5359 lakshmi.swarnam(at)sgc.org.sg  ww.sgc.org.sg 

If you have further inquiries email at SGC.Membership(at)sgc.org.sg 

Generally, if you have a dispute with a Singapore-based company, check the contract or agreement that you entered into with the Singapore-based entity for the agreed governing law and any agreed method for resolving disputes arising from the contract or agreement. For example, the contract may state that it is governed by Singapore law and for any disputes arising from it to be resolved by arbitration in Singapore. You may contact one of our members who are German speaking law firms for consultations.

Singapore is a renowned hub for alternative dispute resolution. It is the 3^rd preferred seat for arbitration worldwide, after London and Paris (according to a QMUL International Arbitration Survey, 2018). In August 2019, the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements from Mediation (Singapore Convention on Mediation) was signed in Singapore by 51 countries including Singapore. The Convention will facilitate international trade and commerce by enabling disputing parties to easily enforce and invoke settlement agreements across borders.

The relevant ADR institutions in Singapore are:

1. Maxwell Chambers (https://www.maxwellchambers.com/)
2. Singapore International Arbitration Centre (https://www.siac.org.sg/)
3. Singapore International Mediation Centre (http://simc.com.sg/)
4. Singapore Mediation Centre (https://www.mediation.com.sg/
5. Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration (https://www.scma.org.sg/)
6. Financial Industry Dispute Resolution Centre (https://www.fidrec.com.sg/website/index.html)

Personal data in Singapore is protected under the Personal Data Protection Act 2012 (“PDPA”) which mainly came into effect on 2 July 2014. It is a baseline standard of protection – organizations handling personal data would have to comply with the PDPA and other legislation that are applicable to their respective industries.

The main authority in matters of data protection in Singapore is the Personal Data Protection Commission. More information on Singapore’s data protection laws can be found at www.pdpc.gov.sg.