Can You Successfully Apply for Singapore Self-Employment EP Without Academic Qualifications?
The Singapore Self-Employment EP program provides foreign entrepreneurs with a pathway to start a business, work, and ultimately immigrate to Singapore. This program requires applicants to register a company in Singapore and employ themselves as executives to apply for an Employment Pass. Unlike many immigration programs, Singapore's Self-Employment EP demonstrates surprising flexibility in educational requirements—official policy sets no absolute educational threshold. Even if applicants lack a bachelor's degree, they still have opportunities for approval as long as they meet other requirements.
This policy design stems from Singapore's open attitude toward diverse talent. In recent practical operations, a bachelor's degree is typically viewed as a relatively safe baseline. However, this is by no means an insurmountable hard requirement, and many entrepreneurs with education below bachelor's level have successfully obtained EP through proper planning.
The real key lies in understanding the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS) that Singapore introduced in September 2023. This scoring system transforms the EP application into a more transparent and quantifiable assessment process. Applicants only need to reach 40 points to meet the requirements. This system includes four basic scoring dimensions, where education is just one component (C2), while the other three are salary (C1), company employee nationality diversity (C3), and support for local employment (C4).
1. How Those Without Academic Qualifications Can Clear the COMPASS Threshold
For applicants without higher education backgrounds, salary level becomes the most important lever. In COMPASS, the salary scoring rules are as follows: reaching 65%-90% of the fixed monthly salary of local peers of the same age earns 10 points; if the salary exceeds that of 90% of same-age peers, it earns 20 points. This means that through salary alone, applicants can potentially obtain nearly half of the required points.
It's worth noting that Singapore's salary requirements are not one-size-fits-all. The 2025 new regulations implement differentiated requirements based on age and industry:
- The older the age, the higher the salary requirement
- The more high-tech the industry, the higher the salary requirement (finance, information technology, and other industries are significantly higher than food service and service industries)
Young applicants have a clear advantage in salary requirements.
The other two scoring items provide crucial supplements for those without academic qualifications:
- Company employee nationality diversity: Newly established companies with fewer than 25 employees typically receive 10 points directly
- Supporting local employment: Hiring Singapore local employees can also earn 10 points
With reasonable combination, the scoring path for those without academic qualifications becomes clear:
Salary 20 points + Employee diversity 10 points + Local employment support 10 points = 40 points
Even if salary only scores 10 points, 10 points each from the latter two items is sufficient to meet requirements.
For high-income entrepreneurs, there's also a shortcut: A monthly salary of 22,500 SGD directly exempts from COMPASS requirements, without needing any educational credentials. However, COMPASS exemption does not mean automatic EP approval
2. Practical Strategies for Applicants Without Academic Qualifications
1. Enhance Company Credibility
Singapore company registration must meet:
- Recommended registered capital of 200,000 SGD minimum (paid-up system, transferred to registered capital in batches within one year)
- Applicant serves as company director or shareholder in executive positions
2. Salary Design Techniques
- Meet the 20-point salary score in the COMPASS framework
- Specifically, assess salary based on the Ministry of Manpower's self-assessment system, according to the company's selected industry classification and applicant's age
3. Materials Highlighting Business Experience
- Prepare detailed entrepreneurial experience, personal work history, and position descriptions
- Showcase professional skills and management experience through resume
Conclusion: Educational Shortcomings Can Still Secure Self-Employment EP
Singapore's Self-Employment EP program reveals new trends in talent assessment: actual ability and contribution value matter more than diplomas. Entrepreneurs without academic qualifications can completely overcome educational shortcomings and obtain Self-Employment EP approval by precisely grasping COMPASS scoring rules and through practical strategies such as salary design, resume description, and enhancing company credibility.
