Private education organisations that wish to enrol international students must ensure they are certified under CaseTrust for Education and apply for entry passes for international students.

Can All Private Education Organisations Enrol International Students?
What Type Of Visa/Entry Pass Must International Students Have To Study In Singapore?
What Are The Enrolment Procedures For International Students?
Must I Provide Housing/Accommodation To International Students?
Are International Students Allowed To Work While Studying?
How Can I Help International Students To Adapt?
Some International Students Enrolled Have “Disappeared”. What Should I Do?
I Have A Dispute With An International Student. What Can I Do?

• Only Private Education Organisations (PEOs) that have CaseTrust for Education certification are able to enrol international students.
  
  
• Certain PEOs are not required to have CaseTrust for Education certification before enrolling international students, such as:
  
  Kindergartens
  
  
  • registered with the Ministry of Education (MOE); and
  • have in place a Student Protection Scheme (SPS)
    
    
  Religious colleges
  
  
  • declared by a Gazette to be of purely religious character and exempted from the Education Act; OR
  • declared itself as a purely religious body to a Statutory Declaration before the Commissioner for Oaths
    
    
• However, religious colleges that charge fees for training/courses are required to also have in place a Student Protection Scheme (SPS).
  
  

  See:	CaseTrust for Education

back to top

What Type Of Visa/Entry Pass Must International Students Have To Study In Singapore?

• International students wishing to pursue full-time courses in CaseTrust-certified or CaseTrust-exempted PEOs are required to apply for a Student’s Pass. Student’s Pass applications should be submitted 2 - 6 months before the commencement date of the course.
  
  
• International students attending short-term classroom courses of up to 30 days are exempt from a Student’s Pass and should apply for a Social Visit Pass instead.
  
  
• International students from certain countries (e.g. India and Myanmar) may also require visas.
  
  

  See:	• Apply for Student's Pass • Apply for Visit Pass • Visa Requirements

back to top

What Are The Enrolment Procedures For International Students?

• Before enrolling any international student, PEOs must be certified under CaseTrust for Education.
  
  
• New PEOs or existing PEOs offering new courses must also apply for entry passes for international students to study in Singapore. There are two types of entry passes PEOs should be familiar with:
  
  
  • Social Visit Pass for short-term (up to 30 days) classroom courses
  • Student’s Pass for full-time courses
    
    
• PEOs applying for Student’s Passes must seek permission from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) to submit Student’s Pass applications before recruiting international students.
  
  

  See:	• Apply for Student’s Pass • Apply for Visit Pass

back to top

Must I Provide Housing/Accommodation To International Students?

• Private education organisations are not required to provide housing/accommodation to international students.
  
  
• You may wish to download and provide a copy of the Student Accommodation Handbook (PDF), published by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), to international students so that they can arrange for their own accommodation.

back to top

Are International Students Allowed To Work While Studying?

• All foreigners, including international students, who wish to work in Singapore must hold a Work Pass (e.g. R-Pass, S-Pass or Employment Pass).
  
  
• International students studying in Singapore (full-time/short courses) hold Social Visit Passes or Student’s Passes and are, therefore, not allowed to work.
  
  
• The only exception applies to international students studying full-time at education institutions approved by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). These students may work:
  
  
  • full-time during the school holidays
  • part-time during the school term for 1 - 16 hours a week
    
    
• You should be aware that international students who need to undergo industrial attachment as part of their course work need to apply for Training Work Permit or Training Employment Pass from MOM.
  
  

  See:	Employment of Foreign Students

back to top

How Can I Help International Students To Adapt?

• You can refer them to the Singapore Education Services Centre (SESC). SESC provides orientation programmes and counselling services to international students.
  
  
• The Overseas Students' Association (OSA) at SESC also provides student members with opportunities to develop and foster intellectual, cultural, social athletic and recreational interests and skills.
  
  

  See:	Singapore Education website

back to top

Some International Students Enrolled Have “Disappeared”. What Should I Do?

• When a student fails to show up for class, you should always try and contact the student and his/her local sponsor to find out the reasons.
  
  
• If the student cannot be contacted/located or is no longer in Singapore, you must inform ICA immediately of the situation and cancel his/her Student’s Pass.
  
  
• PEOs are required to provide a relevant police report or proof of the student’s departure from Singapore to ICA.

back to top

I Have A Dispute With An International Student. What Can I Do?

• You should always try and settle the dispute amicably.
  
  
• As a CaseTrust-certified PEO, you may approach the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) for mediation, subject to the consent of the parties involved in the dispute.
  
  

  See:	Disputes with Students

back to top