Singapore has announced further revisions to the salary benchmarks used under the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS), with the updated thresholds set to take effect for new Employment Pass (EP) applications submitted from 1 January 2027 and renewals of passes expiring from 1 July 2027.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) published the revised COMPASS C1 salary benchmarks in August 2026, outlining the fixed monthly salary levels that foreign professionals must meet to earn points under one of the framework's foundational criteria.
The latest benchmarks replace the current salary thresholds released in August 2025. However, the existing benchmarks will continue to apply to EP applications submitted between 1 January and 31 December 2026 and to renewals for passes expiring between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027.
Introduced in September 2023, COMPASS is Singapore's points-based system for assessing EP candidates. Applicants must earn at least 40 points under the framework while also meeting the country's minimum EP qualifying salary requirements.
The C1 criterion evaluates a candidate's fixed monthly salary against the wages of local professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) in the employer's sector. Candidates can receive 10 points if their salary meets or exceeds the 65th percentile of local PMET wages within their sector and age group. They can earn 20 points if their salary reaches or exceeds the 90th percentile.
Salary thresholds vary across industries and increase progressively with age, beginning at age 23 and extending to candidates aged 45 and above.
Under the updated benchmarks, a 35-year-old applicant in the professional services sector would need a monthly salary of SGD9,556 to secure 10 points and SGD17,618 to obtain 20 points.
In the information and communications technology sector, a 30-year-old applicant would require a monthly salary of SGD9,226 for 10 points and SGD14,204 for 20 points.
Meanwhile, candidates aged 25 applying in banking and other financial activities would need to earn SGD8,772 to receive 10 points and SGD12,819 to obtain 20 points.
MOM updates the C1 benchmarks annually using data from its Comprehensive Labour Force Survey to ensure salary assessments remain aligned with local labour market conditions.
The ministry also reiterated that COMPASS salary benchmarks should not be confused with EP qualifying salaries, which represent the minimum salary threshold required to be eligible for an Employment Pass.
From 1 January 2027, the minimum EP qualifying salary for most sectors will increase from SGD5,600 to SGD6,000, rising progressively with age to SGD11,500 for applicants aged 45 and above.
In the financial services sector, the minimum qualifying salary will rise from SGD6,200 to SGD6,600 and increase to SGD12,700 for older applicants.
Candidates who fail to meet the minimum EP qualifying salary will remain ineligible for an EP, regardless of their COMPASS score. Conversely, candidates earning a fixed monthly salary of at least SGD22,500 will continue to be exempt from the COMPASS assessment.
The latest changes are expected to prompt employers to reassess compensation strategies for foreign hires and review renewal cases well before the new rules come into force. Organisations may also need to recalculate COMPASS scores for candidates whose applications are heavily dependent on C1 salary points.
Employers are encouraged to review their MOM sector classification, verify salary thresholds according to a candidate's age and evaluate whether proposed compensation packages are sufficient to achieve the required COMPASS score before submitting an application.