Exceptions For Foreigners To Own Landed Properties
To be eligible to apply for ownership of a landed property in Singapore, there are certain criteria to be fulfilled;
Applicant is a permanent resident of Singapore
A foreigner who contributes to the economic benefit of Singapore
A foreigner who possesses qualifications, skills or experience that provides value or benefit to the economy of Singapore
If the foreigner fulfils any of the above stated criteria he may be granted approval for ownership of a landed property for residential use by following the steps below.
A non-refundable application fee of $900 is to be made in favour of “Singapore Land Authority”
Submit Form A to “Singapore Land Authority Land Dealings (Approval) Unit 55 Newton Road #12-01 Revenue House Singapore 307987” together with the supporting documents stated in Form A
The application takes approximately 3 months to process and once approval is granted, the foreign purchaser must undertake that the property is to be used solely for residence and not for any sort of income-generating purposes or investment. The in-principle approval has an expiry date of 6 months from the approval date.
It is also important for the foreign purchaser to include the additional clause within the Option to Purchase or Sales Agreement;
This sale and purchase is subject to the Purchaser obtaining the approval from the Land Dealings (Approval) Unit before completion. In the event that such approval is not granted, the sale and purchase herein shall be annulled and all monies paid shall be immediately refunded free of interest and neither party shall have any claim against the other thereafter.
An OPEN listing is when the seller of the property has to pay a commission to the broker who made the sale, but the seller reserves the right to sell the property on his own without paying a commission. Open listings may be given to any number of brokers on the same property.
An EXCLUSIVE right to sell agreement is a listing agreement whereby the seller is obliged to pay a commission to the broker with exclusive right to sell a property during a stated period, even if the owner makes the sale himself.
