Foreign Worker Levy Calculator

What the levy costs an employer

Every Work Permit and S Pass holder attracts a monthly foreign worker levy, paid by the employer. It is not a tax on the worker and cannot be deducted from wages. The amount depends on the sector, on how heavily the company already relies on foreign labour, and on whether the worker is certified as higher-skilled.

The S Pass is the simple case. Since 1 September 2025 the levy has been harmonised at SGD 650 a month across every sector and every tier. The daily rate, used when a pass holder does not work a full calendar month, is SGD 21.37.

How a Work Permit levy is worked out

1. Identify the sector. The dependency ratio ceiling — the largest share of your total workforce that may be foreign — is 35% in services, 60% in manufacturing and 83.3% in construction and process. Marine shipyard sits at 75%.
2. Find the tier. Tiers rise with the proportion of your workforce on Work Permits, so the more heavily you rely on them, the more each one costs.
3. Check the skill level. A worker certified as higher-skilled attracts a lower levy than a basic-skilled worker in the same tier.
4. Read off the monthly rate, or the daily rate for a part month. The daily rate is the monthly rate times 12 divided by 365, rounded up to the cent.

In services the basic-skilled rates run SGD 450, SGD 600 and SGD 800 across the three tiers, with higher-skilled workers at SGD 300, SGD 400 and SGD 600. In manufacturing they are SGD 370, SGD 470 and SGD 650 basic-skilled, and SGD 250, SGD 350 and SGD 550 higher-skilled.

Construction is priced differently

Construction is not tiered by workforce share at all. It is priced by where the worker comes from and what kind of work is done. A basic-skilled worker from a Non-Traditional Source attracts SGD 900 a month, and a higher-skilled one SGD 500. A worker from Malaysia, the North Asian sources or the People's Republic of China attracts SGD 700 basic-skilled and SGD 300 higher-skilled. Off-site construction is cheaper again. A worker whose permit is issued without the required certification is charged at SGD 900 regardless of source.

That structure is deliberate. The gap between the basic-skilled and higher-skilled rate is large enough that certifying a worker pays for itself quickly, which is precisely the behaviour the levy is designed to encourage.

Why your levy bill will differ

MOM assigns the tier from your own workforce records, not from what you select here. It computes the number of local employees from your CPF account over the preceding three months, and only employees earning the Local Qualifying Salary count towards your quota entitlement. Late or inaccurate salary and CPF declarations can push your workers into a higher tier without you doing anything.

The S Pass has its own sub-quota inside the overall ceiling — 10% of the total workforce in services and 15% in the other sectors — so a company can be within its dependency ratio ceiling and still be unable to hire another S Pass holder. Levy waivers, the construction levy bond and the Migrant Domestic Worker levy and its concession are all outside this calculator.

Common questions

Can I recover the levy from the worker? No. It is the employer's cost and deducting it from wages is not permitted.

Why did my levy go up when I hired more people? Because tiers are based on the share of your workforce on Work Permits. Hiring more foreign workers without hiring locals moves some of them into a dearer tier.

When is the daily rate used? Only when a pass holder does not work a full calendar month — the month they arrive, the month they leave, or a month with a cancellation in it.

How do I get the higher-skilled rate? By having the worker's qualifications or certification recognised by MOM. The application is made in advance and the lower rate applies once approved.

Levy rates, tiers and dependency ratio ceilings are published by MOM and change at the Budget. Check your own quota and tier through MOM before budgeting.