Pay transparency has become a critical issue in Singapore’s competitive job market. As organisations continue to evolve their compensation strategies, understanding the regulatory landscape and best practices is essential for maintaining fairness and attracting top talent.
What Singapore Actually Requires
In 2024, TAFEP (Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices) published Pay Transparency Guidelines developed jointly with MOM, NTUC, and SNEF. They’re not legally binding yet, but they’ll form the foundation for the Workplace Fairness Act, which will be.
The guidelines sit on five fair employment principles: recruit and hire on merit, treat employees with fairness and respect, give employees genuine opportunity for training and development, reward people equitably based on performance, effort, and contribution, and be transparent about pay practices.
The shift isn’t just about what you do. It’s about being able to demonstrate it. Saying your pay is fair isn’t enough anymore.
Salary Thresholds Are Moving
Three specific changes will directly affect your pay decisions over the next 18 months.
The Local Qualifying Salary rises to S$1,800 for full-time employees from 1 July 2026. This affects Fair Consideration Framework obligations when you hire foreign workers.
The Employment Pass minimum qualifying salary rises to S$6,000 for new applications from 1 January 2027.
The S Pass minimum qualifying salary rises to S$3,600 for new applications from 1 January 2027.
These aren’t just immigration compliance questions. They directly affect how you price, benchmark, and structure roles across your business. They also mean your existing salary bands might not hold up.
The NWC 2025/2026 Wage Guidelines
The National Wages Council’s guidelines for 2025/2026, accepted by government in November 2025, keep the focus on narrowing the gap between lower-wage workers and median earners. The NWC recommends wages for lower-wage employees grow faster than median wage growth, with specific dollar increases alongside percentage recommendations.
A flat percentage increase applied uniformly across your workforce doesn’t address wage compression at the lower end. That’s worth looking at in your next salary cycle.
Why Pay Transparency in Singapore Actually Works
The business case for pay transparency is solid. Organisations that’re clear about how pay decisions get made tend to retain people longer, attract stronger candidates, and have fewer grievances about compensation. Ambiguity around pay is one of the most consistent drivers of employee dissatisfaction, especially among younger workers who expect to understand how decisions happen.
Transparency doesn’t mean publishing everyone’s salary. In practice it means:
- Being clear about pay ranges for roles, particularly during hiring
- Being able to explain why two people in similar roles are paid differently
- Having a documented framework for pay decisions that can withstand scrutiny
What You Should Do Now
Review your current salary bands and assess whether they’re still competitive and internally consistent.
Stress-test your pay ranges against the 2026 LQS and 2027 EP/S Pass thresholds.
Document how pay decisions get made and make sure you can explain them clearly.
Start including salary ranges in job postings if you’re not already. Candidates increasingly expect it.
Review your annual salary increase approach against NWC guidance, particularly at the lower end of your pay structure.
Pay practices that can be demonstrated to be fair are becoming baseline expectation, not a differentiator. Expert People Solutions helps growing businesses review pay structures, build compensation frameworks, and prepare for the changes ahead. Get in touch if you want to talk it through.
