Every year, a steady stream of Employment Pass and S Pass holders move to Singapore with a spouse on a Dependant’s Pass (DP), and sooner or later the same question comes up: can my husband or wife work here too? The honest answer in 2026 is more nuanced than most people expect, and it has changed substantially from what many employers and families still believe.
For a long time, the Letter of Consent (LOC) was the go-to route for a DP holder who wanted to take up a job. That is no longer the case. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) restructured the scheme some years ago, and today the LOC for a Dependant’s Pass holder is reserved almost entirely for those who own or operate a business, not for those taking up salaried employment with an employer. Anyone still planning a hire on the old assumption is at real risk of an illegal employment issue.
This guide sets out, for both employers and spouses, exactly what a Letter of Consent covers today, who actually qualifies, how the application works, what happens at renewal or when the sponsoring pass changes, and where DP holders now go instead if they simply want a job with a Singapore employer.
What a Letter of Consent Covers for Dependant’s Pass Holders in 2026
A Letter of Consent is a permission issued by MOM that allows a specific category of pass holder to work in Singapore without applying for a standalone work pass such as an Employment Pass, S Pass or Work Permit. Historically, an LOC could be used either for taking up a job with an employer or for running a business. That is no longer accurate for Dependant’s Pass holders specifically.
As MOM’s current guidance confirms, a DP holder who wants to work for an organisation must now be sponsored for an Employment Pass, an S Pass, or a Dependant’s Pass Work Permit (DP-WP), the same as any other foreign hire, subject to the usual qualifying criteria. The Letter of Consent route for DP holders is now confined to one situation only: operating your own ACRA-registered business in Singapore. If your goal is a salaried role with an employer, the LOC is not the mechanism, whatever older articles or well-meaning HR colleagues may say.
Why the Confusion Persists
The confusion is understandable. LOCs remain very much alive for other groups, such as eligible LTVP and LTVP+ holders (typically the foreign spouses of Singapore citizens or permanent residents), who can still be hired on an LOC for ordinary employment. Because the paperwork, terminology and the word “Letter of Consent” are identical across schemes, people naturally assume the same rules apply to a Dependant’s Pass holder. They do not.
Who Qualifies for an LOC as a Dependant’s Pass Business Owner
To be eligible for an LOC under the business owner route, the DP holder must hold one of the following positions in an ACRA-registered business:
A sole proprietor of the business; a partner in a partnership; or a company director holding at least 30% shareholding in the company, or a member in a company limited by guarantee. Anyone outside these three categories, including a DP holder who merely holds shares without an operating role, or one who wants to be a regular employee, will not qualify under this scheme.
The Sponsor’s Own Pass Matters Too
Before any of this becomes relevant, the DP itself has to be valid, and DP eligibility has genuinely tightened. To sponsor a spouse or child on a Dependant’s Pass at all, the principal Employment Pass or S Pass holder must earn a minimum fixed monthly salary of at least $6,000, a threshold that applies regardless of whether the sponsor holds an EP or an S Pass. Because the ordinary S Pass qualifying salary sits well below this figure, an S Pass holder needs to be earning meaningfully more than the pass minimum before their spouse or child can even obtain a DP in the first place. Employers should verify the exact prevailing figures directly on MOM’s website before relying on them, since qualifying salaries are reviewed periodically.
LOC (Business Owner) vs DP-Work Permit vs EP/S Pass: A Quick Comparison
| Route | Who it is for | Key features |
|---|---|---|
| Letter of Consent (business owner) | DP holder who is a sole proprietor, partner, or director/CLG member with at least 30% shareholding | Free to apply; no levy; tied to the DP; renewal requires hiring at least one Singaporean/PR employee at the prevailing Local Qualifying Salary |
| DP-Work Permit (DP-WP) | DP holder taking up ordinary employment with a Singapore employer | No minimum qualifying salary; validity tied to the DP; subject to sector levy and quota, but exempt from six-monthly medicals and security bond |
| Employment Pass or S Pass | DP holder who qualifies on their own merits for a professional or skilled role | Full standalone work pass; the DP holder’s stay is no longer dependent on the sponsor, and the DP must be cancelled once the new pass is issued |
How an Employer or Spouse Applies for the Letter of Consent
Before applying, the Dependant’s Pass must have at least three months of validity remaining; if it does not, the DP itself needs to be renewed first. The current process runs in stages. The DP holder or their appointed employment agent first submits an online request to MOM indicating the intention to operate the business, along with the business’s ACRA details and the applicant’s shareholding or role. MOM typically responds with an outcome within a week.
If the initial request is approved, the formal LOC application is then filed, either through the Employment Pass eService on the myMOM Portal or via a licensed employment agent, and the applicant’s business turnover information should be updated beforehand. From there, processing takes roughly four weeks for most cases, and the application status can be checked online after about three weeks; MOM may request supporting documents during this window, such as ACRA business profiles, shareholding records or proof of the DP holder’s role. Critically, the DP holder must not begin operating the business until the LOC has actually been approved. There is no cost to apply.
Duration, Renewal, and Cancellation
A first-time LOC is valid for whichever is shorter: one year from the date of issue, or the remaining validity of the Dependant’s Pass. Subsequent renewals run up to the expiry date of the DP itself, and can be submitted up to six months before the current LOC lapses, with the renewed period starting only after the existing LOC expires.
Renewal is not automatic. At the point of renewal, the business must have hired at least one Singaporean or Permanent Resident employee earning at least the prevailing Local Qualifying Salary, currently $1,800 a month for a full-time local worker, and that employee must have received CPF contributions for at least three consecutive months before the renewal is submitted. This local-hiring condition is easy to overlook and is one of the more common reasons renewals stall.
The LOC stops being valid the moment the underlying Dependant’s Pass is cancelled or expires, since the LOC cannot outlive the pass it depends on. It must also be cancelled, within one week, once the business ceases to be active, even if the DP itself remains valid; advance cancellation requests can be lodged up to 14 days before the intended date. A lost LOC can be reported and replaced through MOM’s online form.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
The most damaging mistake is assuming that holding a Dependant’s Pass is, on its own, sufficient authority to work, whether in a job or a business. It is not, and working before the correct approval, whether that is an LOC, a DP-WP, an EP or an S Pass, is illegal employment and exposes both the individual and any engaging business to penalties. A close second is assuming the old employment-based LOC still exists for DP holders; it was withdrawn some years ago, and any hiring manager still quoting it is working from outdated information. Business owners also frequently forget the local-hiring condition at renewal time, only to discover the shortfall when the LOC is close to lapsing, by which point hiring and onboarding a qualifying local employee takes real lead time.
How This Interacts With the Sponsor’s Own Pass Renewal
Because every LOC and DP-WP is tethered to the Dependant’s Pass, and the DP is in turn tethered to the sponsor’s Employment Pass or S Pass, a lapse anywhere in that chain brings everything else down with it. If the sponsoring EP or S Pass is not renewed in time, or is cancelled because the sponsor changes employer or leaves Singapore, the DP is cancelled, and the LOC or DP-WP built on top of it falls away automatically, regardless of how much validity it appeared to have left. Families and employers who are managing an LOC or DP-WP alongside a work pass renewal should align both timelines and start the sponsor’s own renewal well ahead of expiry, rather than treating the two as unrelated processes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Dependant’s Pass holder take up a normal job on a Letter of Consent?
No. That pathway was withdrawn for DP holders some years ago. A DP holder who wants ordinary employment now needs their prospective employer to sponsor an Employment Pass, an S Pass, or a Dependant’s Pass Work Permit (DP-WP), depending on the role and salary.
Does a Letter of Consent let my spouse start working immediately?
No. The business may only begin operating after MOM has actually issued the LOC, not from the date of application. Starting earlier is treated as illegal employment.
What if my spouse holds shares in a company but is not a director?
A shareholding alone does not qualify. The DP holder needs to be a sole proprietor, a partner, or a company director (or CLG member) holding at least 30% of the shares, with an active operating role in the business.
Will my Letter of Consent survive if I switch business structures?
Generally not without a fresh look. The LOC is tied to the specific business and the DP holder’s role in it, and it lapses if the business stops being active. Any change in structure, ownership or the DP holder’s role should be checked against the eligibility criteria again before assuming continuity.
Where can I confirm the exact current salary thresholds?
Qualifying salaries and the Local Qualifying Salary are reviewed periodically. Always check the figures on MOM’s website at the time of application rather than relying on a number quoted in an older article, including this one.
For a broader look at how employers hire family and long-term pass holders more generally, see our related guide on the Letter of Consent for LTVP and Dependant’s Pass holders. Families sponsoring parents or other relatives may also want to read about the Long-Term Visit Pass in Singapore. Employers converting a foreign hire between pass types can refer to our guide on converting a Work Permit holder to an S Pass or Employment Pass, and multinational employers relocating staff on the same group should see our piece on the Employment Pass FTA exemption for intra-corporate transferees.
For authoritative and up-to-date detail, refer directly to MOM’s pages on the Letter of Consent for Dependant’s Pass holders who are business owners, the eligibility criteria for a Dependant’s Pass, and the Local Qualifying Salary.
The Editorial Team, Raffles Corporate Services