Almost 6,000 foreign students granted PR from 2008-2017: Josephine Teo
UPDATE: This story has been corrected to reflect the years in which the foreign students applied for permanent residency. Minister Teo referred to the years 2008-2017, not 2000-2017.
Of the 7,251 foreign students who applied for permanent residency (PR) between the years 2008 and 2017, 5,932 were granted PR status, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Josephine Teo on Tuesday (6 February).
Speaking in Parliament, Teo added that of these permanent residents, 1,072 subsequently took up citizenship as at the end of 2017. Eighty-five of them have renounced their permanent residency.
The Minister was responding to a parliamentary question from her fellow Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Saktiandi Supaat, who wanted to know the trend among foreign students applying for PR status in Singapore in the last decade.
In response to Supaat’s supplementary question on the nationalities of the students whose applications were successful, Teo said she did not have the detailed breakdown, adding that it would reflect the profile of the foreign student population in Singapore.
“I think a good majority of them would come from Asia,” said Teo.
Other Parliament stories:
Scope for short-term accommodation in Singapore: Lawrence Wong
Changes to law eyed to curb ‘littering’ of bicycles by users: Lam Pin Min
