Assessment of Non-resident Population Increase from 2021 to 2025 and Contributing Factors

2 Ms He Ting Ru asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) what proportion of the close to 30% increase in non-residents between 2021 and 2025 is temporary; and (b) what are the reasons for this increase.

Mr Gan Kim Yong (for the Prime Minister): Work Permit Holders (WPHs) accounted for 60% of the increase in the non-resident population between 2021 and 2025. About half of these were from the construction sector, including those supporting the ramp-up of public housing and major infrastructure projects, such as Changi Terminal 5. The next largest increase, accounting for 13% of the increase in the non-resident population, was in the number of migrant domestic workers to meet the greater demand for caregiving support for children and the elderly. Both WPHs and MDWs are transient groups.

The 30% increase in non-residents between 2021 and 2025 should also be interpreted against the context of COVID-19. Border restrictions and weaker economic conditions contributed to the lower base of non-residents in 2021. With the subsequent easing of travel restrictions and recovery of economic activity post-COVID-19, firms backfilled positions vacated during the pandemic. This was especially marked in the construction sector where contractors hired a significant number of WPHs to catch up on delayed projects. As such, the annual increase in the non-resident population was 6.8% on average from 2021 to 2025, compared to 2.2% when using the pre-COVID-19 base year of 2019.