Singapore · Family
Long-Term Visit Pass (family of a Singapore citizen or permanent resident)
Long-Term Visit Pass (family of a Singapore citizen or permanent resident) is issued by Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA). VisaAI tracks 17 official requirements for it, each traced to the government page that states it.
Last verified against the official source on .
VisaAI is not a government body and does not issue visas. It cannot decide, predict or guarantee the outcome of an application, and this page is not legal or immigration advice.
Requirements change. Confirm every item on Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)’s own page before you apply.
Each requirement below is written in plain English by VisaAI. The indented text beneath it is quoted from Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)’s own page, so you can check what we say against what they say. Where a quotation shows “ ... ”, text has been left out.
Conditions you must meet
- Seven categories qualify, and each has its own conditionsSpouse of a citizen; spouse of a PR; unmarried child under 21 born in or adopted into a legal marriage to a citizen or PR; parent of a citizen or PR; graduate of a Singapore institute of higher learning seeking employment; parent or grandparent of a child studying here on a Student's Pass; and a visitor seeking permission to give birth in Singapore.
As a foreigner, you are eligible to apply for a Long-Term Visit Pass if you are a/ an: ... Spouse of a Singapore citizen ... Spouse of a Singapore Permanent Resident (PR) ... Parent of a Singapore citizen or Singapore Permanent Resident (PR)
- Parents-in-law are not eligibleThe only category ICA states as an exclusion. A parent qualifies through their own child, never through a child's spouse.
Note: Parent(s)-in-law are not eligible.
- Marriage does not guarantee approvalICA's own words, on the page it matters most. The assessment weighs family ties, economic contribution, qualifications, age, family profile and length of residency.
Check the intended spouse’s chances of getting a Long-Term Visit Pass (LTVP) (as marriage does not guarantee LTVP approval).
- Work Permit holders — current AND former — must get the Controller of Work Passes' approval before marrying a citizen or PRAny marriage form, civil, religious or customary, in Singapore or overseas. The penalty is not a refused application: it is losing the right to work in Singapore, and possibly being barred from entering for a period.
Existing and former Work Permit holders (including Training Work Permit) who wish to marry Singapore citizens or Permanent Residents in Singapore or overseas, regardless the type of marriage (civil, religious or customary), must first seek approval from the Controller of Work Passes. If they fail to do so, their privileges to work in Singapore could be withdrawn. They may also be prevented from entering Singapore for a period of time.
- A Singapore sponsor lodges the application with their SingpassFor a spouse it is the citizen or PR spouse. For a parent of a citizen or PR aged under 21, or a Student's Pass child's parent or grandparent, or a birth visitor, it is any citizen or PR aged 21 or over.
After marriage, you may apply for the LTVP. Your Singaporean spouse must sponsor your application via ICA e-Service using Singpass.
- The in-principle approval is not an immigration pass and confers no right to stayICA states it as its own numbered point. An applicant holding one still needs a valid immigration pass to be in Singapore.
Do note that the in-principle approval of the LTVP application is not an immigration pass and does not confer any valid stay to the applicant.
- The pass is digital, retrieved through FileSGViewable in FileSG the next working day, or in the Singpass app after three working days. IHL graduates seeking employment and birth-permission applicants can only access theirs through FileSG.
LTVP holders will receive an email from ICA (via FileSG) on how to retrieve the digital pass.
Documents you must provide
- Originals plus official translations, and copies for ICA to keepICA names who may translate — the issuing country's embassy, a notary public, or a private translation attested or notarised — and endorses no translation company. Insufficient documentation may mean the application is not accepted.
You will need to provide original documents and official translations (for documents in languages other than English), as well as copies of the documents for ICA to retain.
Steps in the process
- Do the free Pre-Marriage LTVP Assessment BEFORE marrying: six weeks instead of six monthsThe single highest-value action on this route, and it is only available before the wedding. It costs nothing, and completing it afterwards is impossible. A couple who did it receives a Letter of LTVP Eligibility valid one year, used in the application after marriage.
This free online assessment helps the couple: ... Speed up the LTVP application process: 6 weeks instead of 6 months.
- Without the assessment, a citizen's foreign spouse waits up to six monthsICA states both figures in one sentence so the comparison cannot be missed. Nothing done after the marriage shortens it.
An LTVP application by a foreign spouse of a Singapore citizen will take up to 6 months to be processed. If you and your spouse had completed the PMLA before your marriage, the LTVP application processing time will be shortened to 6 weeks.
- Every applicant must declare in the e-Service, and a Singpass account takes 2 to 5 working daysA queue before the queue. ICA advises not starting an application until everyone who must declare already has an account.
Please note that the approval for a Singpass account application may take 2 to 5 working days. Sponsors/ Applicants are recommended to start an application only after all applicants have successfully registered for a Singpass account, where eligible.
- Most applications take six weeks, if the documents are in orderThe six-month figure applies to a citizen's foreign spouse without the pre-marriage assessment; six weeks is the general case.
Most applications will be processed within 6 weeks, provided all the required documents are submitted and in order.
- Complete the required tasks before the approval expires, or the application is treated as withdrawnThe tasks may include a medical check-up. Missing the expiry is not a delay; it ends the application.
Upon in-principle approval of the LTVP application, you will be informed of the tasks required to complete the formalities. This may include completing a medical check-up. These tasks have to be completed before the expiry of the in-principle approval, otherwise the application will be considered withdrawn.
- Pay within 14 days of being notified, or the application is withdrawnA second, shorter clock that starts only after ICA has verified the uploaded documents.
Once the uploaded document(s) are verified by ICA, the applicant will be notified to make payment online. Payment must be made within 14 days, otherwise the application will be withdrawn.
- Renew at least three months early — leftover validity is not carried forwardThe renewed pass runs from the date of issuance, so renewing very early forfeits the remainder of the current one. Three months before expiry is ICA's own figure.
Please submit your Long-Term Visit Pass (LTVP) renewal application at least 3 months before the expiry of your current LTVP. The validity of the renewed LTVP will be from the date of issuance (upon payment of the issuance fee). The remaining validity from the current LTVP will not be carried forward to the renewed LTVP.
Government fees
- S$45 per application at submission, non-refundableSGD 45Paid whether or not the pass is granted.
S$45 for each application ... All fees are non-refundable.
- S$60 to issue the pass, plus S$30 for a multiple journey visaSGD 60 · SGD 30 multiple journey visaDue at completion of formalities, and ICA warns that further fees may follow.
S$60 for issuance of LTVP ... S$30 for a Multiple Journey Visa (if applicable)
Official sources
- Becoming a Long-Term Visit Pass holder — Requirements, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)
- Spouse of a Singapore citizen — Eligibility, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)
- Completion of formalities and issuance of LTVP — How to apply, Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)