Errant employers face fines of up to S$20,000 per fraudulent work pass application and a ban on hiring foreign workers
[SINGAPORE] About 100 employers have been hit with enforcement actions for fradulently inflating their foreign worker quotas through “phantom worker” arrangements between 2024 and 2025, Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said on Tuesday (Mar 3).
Dr Tan was responding to Workers’ Party MP Kenneth Tiong, who asked whether the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has assessed the extent of quota circumventions through such schemes.
Phantom worker arrangements involve employers making false Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions for locals who do not actually work, artificially boosting a firm ’s foreign worker entitlement.
In a written response, Dr Tan said MOM investigates such arrangements based on complaints as well as proactive on-site checks, and these are what led to the enforcement actions against the errant employers.
In response to a separate parliamentary question last week, he said errant employers may be fined up to S$20,000 for every work pass application made using the inflated quota, and will be debarred from hiring foreign workers.
Phantom workers who actively collude with such errant employers may also face enforcement actions for abetting the offence.
