INDIA, SINGAPORE SOFTEN VISA NORMS

In a landmark agreement on movement of professionals, India and Singapore have agreed to ease visa restrictions on professionals in a wide range of areas, including IT, medical, nursing and pharmacists, engineering across all streams, metallurgists, surveyors, botanists, zoologists, university lecturers, accountants, financial professionals and advertising executives.

Under the pact, which is to be signed tomorrow, both Singapore and India would recognise the degrees issued by specified universities and technical education boards of each other for the purpose of issuing multientry/job or stay visas. The new agreement would save Indian pros seeking Singapore visas having to present separate proof for their educational qualifications. Both countries are, however, free to deny visas on grounds of national security. As many as 127 professional categories are included in the list for grant of easy visas. The pact is part of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) being signed between the two countries.

Besides the relaxation for professionals, the new visa regime also envisages creating fresh categories of contractual service providers and independent service providers who can obtain limited-period working visas for nine months to one year. Visa seekers under these categories just have to present a copy of their contracts with companies or institutions in each other's countries for obtaining temporary work permits.

Government sources said India has agreed to set a minimum remuneration level equivalent to 2,500 Singapore dollar for contractual or independent service providers for seeking temporary work visas. This is to ensure only professionals who are suitably qualified and experienced are eligible for visas under this category. Sources said the new norms would be extended to corporates for their intra-company transfer of employees.

Significantly, the new pact exempts professionals working on temporary visas in Singapore or India from the mandatory contributions to the social security funds in the host country. The new agreement also envisages easy extensions to the professionals working in each other's territory on temporary job visas.

Besides the usual IT, medical and engineering professionals, the other categories of professionals who are eligible include historians, polytechnic lecturers, taxation experts, fund managers, economists, sociologists, market research analysts, political scientists and psychologists. The only noted exemption in the list of professionals are journalists.