PR - Part II

As I had blogged earlier (here and here), I had applied for Permanent Resident status in Singapore, which was accepted (in record time, I might add). I am glad to report(?) that I finished all my formalities, passed my AIDS test (got 55 as Chris Rock would say), my chest X-Ray reported no Tuberculosis and paid all my fees. And got my passport stamped as Permanent Resident of Singapore.

Now I am free to roam the country without fear of my employer throwing me out and me needing to leave the country (I still fear my employer throwing me out because of the tiny detail of a salary hitting my bank account every month, something that I have become quite attached to).

So what does that mean? It means other than voting priveleges and a few caveats in the case of buying HDB houses, for all practical purposes, I enjoy every bit of the benefits that Singaporean citizens get to enjoy. It also dissociates me from the Employment Pass that I was working on up until now, which means that I am no longer tied to my employer for being in Singapore and that I do not have to leave the country in case I chose to or am asked to leave the company. I am not looing to do either, but you never know what happens in today's world.

The big benefit is CPF, which makes the company contribute towards my retirement. So it is forced savings in effect, something that is good for someone like me who is not too much into savings. I know I have to, but haven't exactly got around to doing a lot of it.

I haven't got my local ID card yet, but all the formalities are done and I should get the card in a few days.

So PR it is. Now I need to get to know the system a little more and see how I can make it work to my advantage.