Insights

What we see in the work.

Short, practical writing on Singapore payroll, work passes and HR practice. From the team that handles it.

Enston HR — contractor or employee, what actually gets looked at
HR practice

When is a contractor actually an employee?

No CPF, no leave, no employment records. It looks like the cheap option until the arrangement is examined, the label does not survive, and the CPF is backdated against the employer for both shares.

Enston HR — employee record retention periods in Singapore
HR practice

How long do you have to keep employee records in Singapore?

Two years is how much of the record you hold. One year is how long you hold it after someone leaves. The two get mixed up constantly, and the tax rule runs longer than both.

Enston HR — the payroll cycle, from set up through to year-end
Payroll

What does payroll outsourcing actually include?

Most providers process the monthly payroll and hand everything else back. Contracts, work passes, year-end filings and final pay return to a team of one or two, who are now managing a vendor as well.

Enston HR — Employment Pass pitfalls and what passes
Work passes

Why Employment Pass applications get rejected

The company qualifies. The candidate meets the benchmark. It still comes back rejected. Three reasons that have nothing to do with salary, and why appealing them rarely works.

Enston HR — no CPF submission does not mean no SDL
Payroll

Do you pay SDL for Employment Pass holders?

Yes. A company with no local staff makes no CPF submission, and that is usually where the Skills Development Levy stops being paid too. Nothing looks wrong until SSG asks.

Enston HR — HR should make work easier
HR practice

HR should make growing a business easier, not harder

As a company grows, the people side of the business gets more complicated than it needs to be. Hiring, work passes, payroll, leave, CPF, records. Our view on what good HR should actually feel like.

Enston HR — what employees notice about a well-run HR function
HR practice

What employees actually notice about a well-run HR function

Employees do not judge HR on strategy decks. They judge it on whether pay lands on time, whether day one works, and whether a claim comes back this week. Five things they actually notice.

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