Expat Insurance in Singapore
Expatriate Insurance in Singapore
Expat Insurance in Singapore
Singapore is well known for its medical quality standards and offer various unique plans and schemes to cover for public healthcare costs. Unfortunately, many expatriates are not eligible for these schemes.
Government-sponsored medical care schemes that uses Singaporeans or PRs' Central Provident Fund (CPF) are not eligible for foreigners. In some instances, expats in Singapore have to consider and provide for their own insurance to cover for a public or private healthcare costs with a private insurance scheme. Singapore is an International business hub with a huge expatriates community (about 180,000 every year), and there are a number of established local and international owned private insurers here.
Singapore is well known for its medical quality standards and offer various unique plans and schemes to cover for public healthcare costs. Unfortunately, many expatriates are not eligible for these schemes.
Government-sponsored medical care schemes that uses Singaporeans or PRs' Central Provident Fund (CPF) are not eligible for foreigners. In some instances, expats in Singapore have to consider and provide for their own insurance to cover for a public or private healthcare costs with a private insurance scheme. Singapore is an International business hub with a huge expatriates community (about 180,000 every year), and there are a number of established local and international owned private insurers here.
Insurance for Different Type of Employment Pass Holders
- Insurance for Work Permit & S-Pass Holders
1) Work Injury Compensation Insurance, (WICI)
Under the Work Injury Compensation Act, employers will have to purchase Work Compensation Insurance to cover for medical and compensation for work-related injuries of the worker. The work injury compensation benefits is up to the limits stipulated under the Work Compensation Insurance Act.
2) Medical Insurance
The Medical Insurance serves a different purpose. It covers the workers for medical bills including hospital bills for conditions that may not be work-related which are not claimable from the WICI. Under the current requirement employers needed to purchase a medical insurance of a minimum coverage of S$15,000 for their workers.
- Insurance for the Employment Pass Holders
Many employers in Singapore cover their employees' medical expenses in part or full. In additional, insurance policies that have been bought in your previous country of residence may still be valid in Singapore. A check with the insurance company will confirm if they can service your policy here.
Other Insurance Options for Expat
Under-Insured or Not-Insured
Expats who plan to live in Singapore for a while usually sign up with an international insurance company. This applies particularly if they want to receive private care. Since expats are not part of the public healthcare scheme they do not need to contribute Central Provident Fund (CPF) for the insurance scheme. On the other hand, their medical bills are also not subsidized by the Singaporean government, therefore the bills will be higher, and often cash or a substantial deposit is needed. Emergency treatment for a foreign resident is the only exemption of this no-subsidize rule. Hence in an event of an emergency, the under-insured or the un-insured can suffer financial loss and resulting in a serious financial crisis. Therefore, it is prudent and important to check and understand the insurance policies your company provides.
1) Check if you a comprehensive enough coverage that is adequate to you especially if you prefer a private care.
2) Check if the insurance policies cover you for injury and illnesses that is not work related.
If you feel that you are under-insured or not-insured against certain risks you may want to consider taking a private insurance.
Under-Insured or Not-Insured
Expats who plan to live in Singapore for a while usually sign up with an international insurance company. This applies particularly if they want to receive private care. Since expats are not part of the public healthcare scheme they do not need to contribute Central Provident Fund (CPF) for the insurance scheme. On the other hand, their medical bills are also not subsidized by the Singaporean government, therefore the bills will be higher, and often cash or a substantial deposit is needed. Emergency treatment for a foreign resident is the only exemption of this no-subsidize rule. Hence in an event of an emergency, the under-insured or the un-insured can suffer financial loss and resulting in a serious financial crisis. Therefore, it is prudent and important to check and understand the insurance policies your company provides.
1) Check if you a comprehensive enough coverage that is adequate to you especially if you prefer a private care.
2) Check if the insurance policies cover you for injury and illnesses that is not work related.
If you feel that you are under-insured or not-insured against certain risks you may want to consider taking a private insurance.
Types of Insurance
Different insurers offer different product and services and may name their products differently. The following briefly describe the different type of insurance and its coverage. Contact us to find out more about different expat insurance in Singapore.
> Hospital Insurance helps with the expenses other than hospital bills, and compensate for lost of income
> Personal Accident Insurance helps to ease one's financial burden when one is injured or disabled as a result of an accident
> Critical Illness Insurance helps to ease financial burden should one contact a serious illness
Different insurers offer different product and services and may name their products differently. The following briefly describe the different type of insurance and its coverage. Contact us to find out more about different expat insurance in Singapore.
- Health Insurance
> Hospital Insurance helps with the expenses other than hospital bills, and compensate for lost of income
> Personal Accident Insurance helps to ease one's financial burden when one is injured or disabled as a result of an accident
> Critical Illness Insurance helps to ease financial burden should one contact a serious illness
- Home Insurance
- Travel Insurance
- Business Insurance
- Motor Insurance
- Tenant Insurance
Tenant Insurance mainly covers a tenant when:
- any damage to the structure or renovation of the building is the result of tenants' actions
- 3rd party liability, e.g medical cost, legal costs, damages
- loss of personal content due to theft
Tenant Insurance premium is usually about a couple of hundred of dollars to a few thousands of dollars depending on the property and the coverage of the insurance.
Do not dismiss the decision to buy a tenant insurance. The peace of mind of knowing you're covered in the event of a mishap is worth the small price of the tenant insurance. Take a look around before you decide on what company to use and try looking on the internet as discounts are often found there and adjust the deductible amount of the insurance premium that suits your budget.
Things to Consider when Purchasing an Insurance Cover
- Does the insurance cover include dependent family members that move to Singapore with you?
- Are the insurance documents provided in a language you can read fluently? Do your contact persons speak your language?
- Is there a 24/7 toll-free hotline for insurance-related questions?
- Does the healthcare plan cover pre-existing conditions, too?
- Does it include the costs for repatriation or medical treatment in the region you would travel to?
