Moving to Singapore

Moving to Singapore: a housing checklist for foreigners

Your Employment Pass in-principle approval letter lets you enter Singapore and gives you 6 months to get the pass issued. For your first weeks, stay in a hotel, which has no minimum stay, or a serviced apartment, which has a 7-day minimum: any other home must be rented for at least 3 consecutive months. Stamp your tenancy agreement with IRAS within 14 days of signing, update your address with MOM within 5 days of moving in, and open a utilities account with SP Group at least a week before you move.

Checked against official sources on 2 November 2026

Before you arrive

Your employer applies for your Employment Pass. The in-principle approval (IPA) letter works as a single-entry visa, and gives you 6 months to enter Singapore and get the pass issued.
Read the IPA letter: it says whether you need a medical examination after you arrive.
Book somewhere to stay for your first weeks. A hotel has no minimum stay and a serviced apartment has a minimum of 7 days. Stays of less than 3 consecutive months are not allowed in any other home.

Your first weeks in Singapore

Get your pass issued within the 6 months of the IPA. You must be in Singapore for this.
If your notification letter asks for it, register your fingerprints and photo at the Employment Pass Services Centre within 2 weeks of the pass being issued.
MOM delivers your pass card within 5 working days of that registration, to a Singapore home or office address.
Other passes can set different deadlines, so follow the dates in your own letter.

Renting a home

A condo, apartment or landed home must be rented for at least 3 consecutive months, and holds at most 6 unrelated people. Renting a condo or private home as a foreigner
An HDB flat must be rented for at least 6 months, and a whole flat only within its block’s non-citizen quota. Renting an HDB flat or room
Stamp the tenancy agreement on IRAS’s myTax Portal within 14 days of signing it in Singapore. Duty is 0.4% of the total rent for a lease of up to 4 years. Tenancy stamp duty calculator

When you move in

Update your residential address on MOM’s EP eService within 5 days of moving. This applies to Employment Pass, S Pass and Dependant’s Pass holders, including when you move out of a hotel or serviced apartment.
Open a utilities account with SP Group for electricity and water, on its website, in the SP app or at a Customer Service Centre. You need to be 18 or older, with your identification and proof of tenancy.
Apply at least a week before you move in. The security deposit is charged on your first bill, and what is left after your final bill is refunded within 30 business days of closing the account.

If you plan to buy later

A foreigner can buy a condo or apartment without approval, but not an HDB flat, and pays 60% Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty unless a free trade agreement gives them a Singapore citizen’s rates. Buying property as a foreigner
Foreigners have no CPF, so the part of the price a home loan does not cover is paid in cash. Home loans for foreigners

Find a home to rent

See condos, apartments, landed homes and HDB flats for rent across Singapore, with the asking rent and size.

See homes for rent

Questions

Where can I stay for my first month in Singapore?

In a hotel, which has no minimum stay, or a serviced apartment, which has a minimum stay of 7 days. Other homes must be rented for at least 3 consecutive months.

How long do I have to get my Employment Pass issued?

6 months from the in-principle approval. You must be in Singapore to get the pass issued.

Do I need to tell MOM my new address?

Yes. Employment Pass, S Pass and Dependant’s Pass holders update their residential address on EP eService within 5 days of moving.

How do I set up electricity and water in my new home?

Open a utilities account with SP Group online, in the SP app or at a Customer Service Centre, at least a week before you move in. A security deposit is charged on the first bill.

Sources

Rules and fees change. Check the linked official pages before you commit, and ask a lawyer about your own sale or purchase.

Related guides

Renting a condo or private home in Singapore as a foreigner

What a foreigner renting a condo, apartment or landed home in Singapore should know: the 3-month minimum stay, the occupancy cap, what the agent checks and charges, stamp duty, and updating your pass address within 5 days.

Renting an HDB flat or room

Who can rent an HDB flat or room, including foreigners on a work, student or dependant pass, the non-citizen quota, the 6-month minimum, tenant limits and what to check before you pay.

Buying property in Singapore as a foreigner

What a foreigner can buy in Singapore without approval, which homes need SLA approval, why HDB flats and new ECs are out of reach, and the 60% ABSD, with the free trade agreement exception.