A significant upcoming changes to Employment Pass eligibility has been decided by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). A point based Complementarity Assessment Point Framework (COMPASS) has been introduced.
What is Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS)
A major change has been decided for Employment Pass. In addition to meeting the qualifying salary, Employment Pass (EP) candidates must complete the Complementarity Assessment Point Framework (COMPASS). COMPASS is a new framework which is designed by the Ministry of Man Power (MOM). This enables employers to select high-quality foreign professionals, and improve to build a strong Singaporean core. It is a transparent system that provides businesses with greater clarity.
This major change for EP applicants would be implemented from 1 September 2023 for new applicant and from 1 September 2024 for renewals.
COMPASS scoring table for Employment Pass (EP) :
| Criteria | Individual attributes | Firm-related attributes |
| Foundation criteria | C1. Salary Relative to local PMET salary norms for sector | C3. Diversity Whether candidate improves nationality diversity in firm |
| C2. Qualifications Based on candidate’s qualifications | C4. Support for local employment Based on local PMET share relative to industry peers | |
| Bonus criteria | C5. Skills bonus (Shortage Occupation List) For candidate in job where skills shortages exist | C6. Strategic economic priorities bonus For partnership with Government on ambitious innovation or internationalization activities |
( Source: MOM Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) web Page )
COMPASS evaluates Employment Pass (EP) applications based on a holistic set of individual and company attributes. Your application is evaluated according to four basic criteria. Applications earn points if they meet or exceed expectations.
| Points for each foundational criterion | Assessment |
| 20 | Exceeds expectations |
| 10 | Meets expectations |
| 0 | Does not meet expectations |
( Source: MOM Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) web Page )
Your application may also receive additional bonus criteria points if it meets the applicable eligibility conditions. These criteria recognize applications that address skills shortages and support strategic economic priorities, and will create good jobs for Singaporeans.
Applicants of an Employment Pass need to earn 40 points to pass COMPASS.
- Applications that meet expectations (earn 10 points) on all 4 foundational criteria will pass (Example A-1 and Example A-2).
- Otherwise, applications can make up the required points by exceeding expectations on another basis such as (Example B) or by scoring bonus points such as (Example C).
COMPASS scoring for Employment Pass
| Foundational criteria | Points |
| C1. Salary (Individual) Fixed monthly salary compared to local PMET salaries in sector by age | |
| ≥ 90th percentile | 20 |
| 65th to < 90th percentile | 10 |
| < 65th percentile | 0 |
| C2. Qualification (Individual) Based on candidate’s qualifications | |
| Top-tier institution | 20 |
| Degree-equivalent qualification | 10 |
| No degree-equivalent qualification | 0 |
| C3. Diversity (Firm-related) Share of candidate’s nationality among firm’s PMETs.* | |
| < 5% | 20 |
| 5 to < 25% | 10 |
| ≥ 25% | 0 |
| C4. Support for local employment (Firm-related) Firm’s share of local PMETs within its subsector* | |
| ≥ 50th percentile | 20 |
| 20th to < 50th percentile | 10 |
| < 20th percentile | 0 |
| Bonus criteria | |
|---|---|
| C5. Skills Bonus – Shortage Occupation List (Individual) | |
| Job on the Shortage Occupation List | +20# |
| C6. Strategic Economic Priorities Bonus (Firm-related) | |
| Firm meets specific assessment criteria on innovation or internationalisation activities | +10 |
( Source: MOM Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) web Page )
A summary of the COMPASS is provided below. More information can be found on Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) web Page.
C1 Salary :
All applicants must meet the EP qualifying salary, which increases with age. COMPASS also takes into account sectoral differences in salary standards. The application earns points for meeting sector-specific criteria for PMET salaries. These benchmarks are also age-adjusted.
C2 Qualifications :
Employers are responsible for ensuring that a candidate’s qualifications are genuine and have been awarded by accredited institutions. Qualification is not a mandatory requirement under COMPASS. Candidates who do not have a degree-equivalent qualification can still pass COMPASS by obtaining sufficient points for other criteria.
C3 Diversity :
More points are awarded to applications where the candidate’s nationality makes up a small proportion of the company’s PMET employees. If a company applies to hire a candidate whose nationality currently makes up a significant proportion of its PMET employees, no points are earned. When calculating this criterion, MOM considers all employees who earn at least S$3,000 per month in the company to be PMETs.
C4 Support for local employment :
An applicant receives more points if the firm has a relatively higher proportion of local residents among PMET employees compared to the applicant’s peers in the same subsector. When calculating this basis, MOM considers all employees who earn at least S$3,000 per month in the company to be PMETs.
C5 Skills bonus (Shortage Occupation List) :
The “SOL” Shortage Occupation List recognizes EP holders in occupations requiring highly specialized skills that are currently in short supply in the local workforce. MOM says this could include specialized Infocomm-related roles supporting Singapore’s digitalization. SOL is determined by a robust tripartite evaluation process that takes into account industry needs and local workforce development efforts.
C6 Strategic economic priorities bonus:
COMPASS recognizes companies that are undertaking ambitious innovation or internationalization activities in collaboration with the government in line with Singapore’s economic priorities. Such companies should also have the scale or potential to provide good jobs to locals.
Exemption from COMPASS
A candidate is exempt from COMPASS if they meet any of the following category :
- Candidate earns at least $20,000 fixed monthly salary (similar to the prevailing Fair Consideration Framework job advertising exemption).
- If you apply as an overseas intra-corporate transferee under the World Trade Organization’s General Agreement on Trade in Services or a relevant Free Trade Agreement that Singapore is a party to. Or,
- The role should be on a short-term basis, i.e. 1 month or less.
Reference materials on MOM website
The MOM web page is available on The Upcoming changes to Employment Pass and Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS)
