Rejections of Applications for Hiring of Foreign Domestic Workers

Ms Tin Pei Ling asked the Minister for Manpower (a) in the past two years, how many applications for the hiring of foreign domestic workers had been rejected; and (b) what are the key reasons for the rejections and percentage of each reason.

Mrs Josephine Teo: For the two years of 2019 and 2020, about 5% of applications for migrant domestic workers (MDWs) were rejected. The key reasons were the prospective employer’s lack of or instability of income, or inability to meet the criteria for hiring a second MDW. In 2020, in addition to these two reasons, rejections became more common due to enhanced border controls. Entry approvals were subject to strict daily limits to help control the risk of importing COVID-19. However, from around October 2020, MOM has given entry approvals for more new MDWs as the COVID-19 situation improved in Singapore.