An Overview Of Singapore’s Regulations For Expats Who Want To Own Homes In The Country
Foreigners may find staying in a hotel room for the entire duration of their stay in Singapore to be a truly expensive quandary. If a expatriate owned a residential property in Singapore, the expensive dilemma would have been averted.
The Singapore government does not restrict foreigners from purchasing or acquiring residential properties in the country.
Primarily, Singapore’s Residential Property Act aims to let Singapore nationals to acquire, at affordable rates, their own residential properties. Moreover, the act enables expatriates who are acknowledged by the government to be capable of of contributing to the financial prosperity of the country to purchase residential properties in Singapore.
Foreigners may buy non-restricted residential properties even without pre-approval from the Singapore government. Below are some examples of non-restricted residential properties:
- apartment units within a building that is not more than 6 floors in height – condo units in approved condo development sites included in the Planning Act – a lease term on a restricted residential property; the agreement must not exceed seven years
A foreign national may intend to purchase all units in an apartment or condominium; still, before this can become possible, Singapore’s Minister of Law must issue an official sanction.
In the same vein, a foreigner cannot buy or acquire residential properties that are categorized as restricted not unless he or she has been issued an official sanction by Singapore’s Minister for Law to purchase any such residential property.
Under the Residential Property Act of Singapore, the following are classified as restricted residential properties:
- an empty residential land – townhouses, detached or semi-linked homes, or terraced houses built on residential lots – properties not approved for condominium development under the Planning Act
The foreigner who intends to own a restricted residential property must fill out a form and then submit this, together with the necessary supporting documents, to the Singapore Land Authority. This government agency is in charge of receiving the requests of the expatriate regarding the proposed ownership of a restricted residential property. The Singapore Land Authority will evaluate and approve or disapprove the application, depending on the virtues of the expatriate’s qualifications.
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