Marriage

New Measures for Foreign Spouses

You should know that the number of marriages between Singaporeans and foreigners are rising here. With this, the Social and Family Development provided measures to permit foreign spouses to start the processing of their application for Long Term Visit Pass (LTVP) early. This new measure will start on January.

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Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing announced that the ministry will introduce new marriage support and preparation packages for transnational couples. According to the National Population and Talent Division, the number of transnational marriages grows every year. In 2013, there were 21,842 registered marriages. Thirty percent of the number or about 6,540 are marriages between a foreigner and a Singaporean.

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Furthermore, 8 in 10 transnational marriages are between Singaporean grooms and foreign brides. The changes for LVTP will surely benefit the couples. Presently, transnational couples are free to apply for LTVP but only after the marriage. The foreign spouse will wait for a few months for the approval of his/her LTVP. The foreign spouse is allowed to stay here for up to 1 year before renewing the LTVP.

If pursued, the changes would be ideal for couples. Couples only need to submit letter of eligibility before they are married. The ministry will then ask the couples to give details about their education, financial backgrounds, family and criminal records. If one of the parties was once married, he/she should also furnish a copy to the ministry.

The letter of eligibility will take more or less four weeks to be processed. After obtaining the letter, the couple can then use it to support their application for LTVP. LTVP can be approved within 6 weeks instead of 6 months.

Coming Home Long Term Visit Pass Plus v2