\n<\/p>\n
The number of harbourers and employers of immigration offenders arrested also fell by 28.8 per cent to 277 in 2025, down from 389 in 2024.<\/p>\n
Of the 141 harbourers, most either had existing relationships with the offenders or had allowed the offender to stay in their premises for financial gain, ICA said.<\/p>\n
The majority of the harbourers also did not check the immigration status of the offenders, or checked it only at the start of the tenancy, but did not ensure that their tenants\u2019 immigration status remained valid throughout the tenancy.<\/p>\n
Most of the 136 employers of immigration offenders arrested in 2025 claimed they were in the process of renewing the work pass of the immigration offenders, or had only performed checks to ensure that their employee had a valid work pass at the point of employment, but did not track their employee\u2019s work pass status subsequently.<\/p>\n
They also claimed to have overlooked applying for work pass extension or renewal for the immigration offender, or had not checked if their employee had any valid work pass.<\/p>\n
\u201cICA will continue to take tough action against harbourers and employers of immigration offenders,\u201d said the authority.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a serious offence to harbour or employ immigration offenders. Members of the public must not provide immigration offenders shelter and means of subsistence, so that we do not have illegal immigrant problems in Singapore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Homeowners who wish to rent out their property were advised to exercise due diligence by checking the immigration status of their prospective foreign tenants to ensure that their stay in Singapore is legal.<\/p>\n
Separately, the number of people arrested for marriage-of-convenience-related offences fell 63.4 per cent to 15 in 2025, down from 41 in 2024, ICA said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It added that it will take firm action against errant couples and middlemen.<\/p>\n
Monday\u2019s report comes after ICA, from Jan 30 this year, started issuing no-boarding directives to airline operators at Changi and Seletar airports to prevent flagged travellers from boarding flights bound for Singapore.<\/p>\n
Those who do not meet Singapore\u2019s entry requirements, such as possessing a valid visa or a travel document with at least six months\u2019 validity, would also be forbidden from boarding.<\/p>\n
In some cases, the airlines may be required to perform additional checks, such as the verification of visas or SG Arrival Card submissions, before allowing the passenger or crew member to board the flight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n