Why The "Little Red Dot" Is My First Choice
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The Little Red Dot, aka Singapore, is one of the most powerful economies in South East Asia. Most countries dream of being like Singapore. Singapore holds top ranks in safety, healthcare, education, public transport, infrastructure and many more.
I have been living in Singapore since March 2018. This article shares my top 25 reasons I like Singapore. And why Singapore is my first choice as the county to settle in if I get permanent residency (PR).
My background
I am a Sri Lankan and a Software Test Engineer by profession. I hold a degree in Computer Science and am currently reading a master’s in IT. I am an EP holder and presently working for an MNC in Singapore.
Why do I need a different country to settle in?
Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with lovely people and is highly rich in different cultures. Most importantly, the location of Sri Lanka has a strategic value. Sri Lanka is one of the most famous destinations and has everything a traveller must deserve. Lonely Planet named Sri Lanka the best destination to travel to in 2019.
However, the “Pearl of the Indian Ocean” is now almost near the edge of a substantial financial crisis. Since the foreign reserves hit a record low, Sri Lanka cannot afford crucial imports like food, petrol, gas, and medicine. There is a massive shortage of such stuff and long power cuts (7+ hours per day) in Sri Lanka. Due to this crisis, everyone is trying to move out of the country before it worsens. At least for the short term.
After speaking to a couple of people around, I understand that Australia and Canada are the top picks of Sri Lankans because of their comparatively easy and well-defined PR processes.
Selecting a country to live in for the rest of your life is crucial, and it highly depends on person to person. It depends on what you value most and what you need to achieve in your life. We should not make the decision to move out just because one of our friends moved or try for a country where the PR process is easy to minimize disappointment later.
Here is a simple framework I created with the factors we need to consider when choosing a country to settle in. Consider reading it if you are interested👇🏽
Disclaimer
I am sharing the top 25 reasons here based on my opinion and experience living four years in Singapore. Some points are based on my research. Please do not use this article to make any crucial decisions. I recommend you do your research before that.
The first 20 reasons are purely based on my experience living in Singapore, and the last 5 reasons are my research findings.
1. Singapore is super, super safe
Singapore is one of the safest countries and has one of the lowest crime rates in the world. According to The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Safe Cities Index 2021, Singapore ranked number 3 among the world’s safest cities. I can freely walk around, take a taxi, go for a jog or run etc., at any time. Also, I do not want to worry about forgetting to close my apartment’s main door at night or when going out. This gives me peace of mind to live in Singapore.
A small example from one of my friend’s Facebook posts.
2. Silicon Valley of Asia
Singapore is (the) IT hub in the Asian region. Most tech giants, including Google, Facebook, and Microsoft, maintain their software development centres in Singapore. Therefore, it’s fair to say Singapore is Asia’s Silicon Valley. Since I am a software guy, job opportunities are relatively high in Singapore. Of course, I should have skills and qualifications too.
3. Comparatively close to Sri Lanka
I am a family-oriented person who loves to hangouts with the family frequently. It gives me joy and happiness when my parents, sisters, nephews, and in-laws are around. It’s just a 4-hour flight from Singapore to Colombo, and it will cost around SG $450- $600, which is super affordable.
4. Singapore offers visa-free arrival for Sri Lanka's passport holders.
Only ten countries in the world offer visa-free arrival for Sri Lanka passport holders, and Singapore is one. This will help me to stay connected with my family in Sri Lanka. My family can visit us and stay in Singapore for 30 days without the annoying visa process.
5. English-speaking country
Mandarine, English, Tamil & Malay are the four national languages of Singapore. Most of the residents are comfortable with English. I can comfortably speak, read, and write 50% of Singapore’s national languages, English and Tamil. Hence, I do not need to learn another language to communicate with society.
6. Zero tax for the earned incomes through stock trading
I usually do swing and options trading. It’s pretty exciting for me, and it’s giving me some extra bucks in my pocket. Gains from the shares and financial instruments in Singapore are generally not taxable. Also, I have access to almost all the major markets, including NYSE, Nasdaq, LSE, and SGX.
7. Low tax rate for personal incomes
The personal income tax is relatively low in Singapore. Please refer to some examples from IRAS below.
- If the annual income is SG $40,000, the tax is SG $550 per year, 1.37% of the yearly earnings.
- If the annual income is SG $80,000, the tax is SG $3350 per year, 4.18% of the yearly earnings.
- If the annual income is SG $120,000, the tax is SG $7950 per year, 6.625% of the yearly earnings.
- If the annual income is SG $160,000, the tax is SG $13950 per year, 8.72% of the yearly earnings.
Please refer to the below link to understand the taxes in Singapore.
I personally prefer this way of tax instead of 30–40% tax with some benefits from the government, like healthcare. Also, I only have to pay tax end of the year. So I can invest the money and use the return on investment (ROI) to pay the tax end of the year.
8. Perfect public transport system
Singapore has an excellent public transportation system. More importantly, it is punctual. For example, if its scheduled arrival time is 1:53 pm, you will see the train on the platform precisely by 1:53, not 1:52 or 54. The frequency is also high; I do not want to worry if the train leaves when I reach the platform. The next train will be reached in a few mins (less than 10 mins in most cases). Usually, public transport operates from 5.30 am to around midnight daily. Through this, I can save a few hundred dollars by minimizing the usage of cabs/taxis.
Sidenote: Singapore's public transport system has been ranked top globally by a US-based travel website, Far & Wide.
9. High-speed internet
I usually consume the internet a lot. I work from home, video calls my parents and friends daily, and provide online video coaching for my workouts. Also, I watch lots of videos on YouTube and scroll on social media. Plus, I do stock trading, teach online, do an online master’s program, learn online, etc. A stable and high-speed internet connection is crucial for me for all of these. Home broadband is unlimited and relatively cheap in Singapore. Does this matter? The answer is “yes for me.”
Sidenote: Singapore ranked #1 as the best place for internet quality.
10. Perfect infarstucture
Singapore has an excellent infrastructure around the island. I only experienced 2 minutes of unexpected power cuts during my last four years in Singapore. I do not want to wait until a garbage-collecting vehicle comes to chuck my garbage. It’s within 10m distance. Also, garbage collections happen much more frequently. I can give many examples of this; the infrastructure is perfect.
11. Friendly Climate
As I grew up in Sri Lanka and lived there for 27 years, I was used to the weather of Sri Lanka. Fortunately, the weather in Singapore is almost the same as in Sri Lanka. Hence it’s easy for me, and I do not need to adjust to a new climate. The average weather in Singapore is around 30 celsius.
12. Diversity of food, including "Halal."
Singapore has a variety of food choices, and it’s an excellent place to explore different dishes from other countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Korea, India, Arab, etc. Since I am a Muslim, I prefer to eat halal food, and in Singapore, it’s effortless to find halal food stalls/restaurants. Some travel websites named Singapore one of the world’s best countries for food
13. No need to deal with discrimination or racist attack
I never faced discrimination or racist attacks in Singapore because of my nationality, race, religious view, complexion or gender, etc. And Singapore takes these racist-related activities with utmost seriousness.
Also, there is no room for any other violence, so there is no need for "Stop Asian Hate" or "Black Lives Matter" campaigns in Singapore.
14. Easy to travel from Singapore
Singapore is a travel hub in Asia. Since my wife and I love to travel the world, staying in a travel hub has an advantage. I can find a direct flight from Singapore to any major city worldwide in most cases. (I wish covid would disappear soon). If not covid, going for a quick vacation to nearby countries like Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia is easy and cheap.
Sidenote: Singapore Airlines is one of the best airlines in the world. Also, Changi Airport is one of the best airports in the world.
15. Can meet people from different countries and cultures
I love to explore cultures and meet people from other countries. I adore participating in their traditional events and trying their traditional foods. Singapore is a place for that.
16. Easy to get things done
I can say Singapore is a digital city. Almost all the services, including government services, are digitalized. Also, everything is well defined and explained on the service providers’ or government agencies websites. I can get things done in a few clicks and scrolls. Some of them are,
- Create a bank account or take a bank loan online.
- Get the vaccination certificates and check the results of all PCR tests done before via the MOH web.
- Check the tax to be paid in IRAS and pay the tax online.
- Register or remove a tenant associated with a flat online.
- Book a cab, order a meal, and book a sports facility online.
- Find a cleaner, carpenter or electrician or any other house-related services online.
- Sell or buy used items. Buy some household items and secure delivery service online.
- And many more.
The resident's data are centralized. Hence, getting things done is pretty fast. SingPass's "my info" service is one of my favourites.
17. Activities friendly
I involve one activity almost every day to be active. Those activities are cycling, playing badminton, home workouts, and running. Road cycling in Singapore is comparatively safe. I can book a badminton court nearby to play, and I do my exercises in the play area near my HDB flat. I use well-connected pavement for running. Well, for me, this is enough to be active.
Here is my workout channel on YouTube with 210 subscribers. You can see how I do workouts near my HDB block in Singapore.
Here is the most viewed video (45,000 views)
Cycled around the tiny red dot
18. Clean and well-organized country
I think no need for more explanations for this. Simply, Singapore is extremely clean. I love it. Streets, pavements, parks, food courts, playgrounds, kid play areas, trains, buses etc., are super clean. Cleaners do frequently cleaning to maintain the cleanliness of the tiny red dot.
WION News named Singapore one of the cleanest cities in the world.
19. Job opportunities for my wife (Nurse)
My wife is a nurse. Since Singapore has a comparatively sound health care system, Singapore need nurses. Also, I think Singapore maintains comparatively an excellent nurse-to-patient ratio. All this explains the opportunities for a nurse in Singapore are pretty high, and my wife can contribute to health care in Singapore.
20. Friendly neighbouring countries
Singapore is an island, and it’s not sharing a border with any other country nearby. Also, Singapore maintains a good relationship with its neighbouring countries. The conflict between Ukraine and Russia opened my eyes to think about this point.
From point #21 onwards, the findings were based on my research.
21. Business-friendly
Singapore is one of the best countries for business. The process of starting a business is relatively easy and safe. As per my research, the rules for the companies are very transparent. According to the wall street journal, Singapore ranked #2 in ease of doing business.
22. Good education system
Singapore’s education system is comparatively good. Also, the two major universities of Singapore (NUS and NTU) are the top-ranked universities in the world. If we (me and my wife) decide to have a kid(s) in the future, living in a country with a quality education system is essential.
Ps. Currently, I do not have any experience with Singapore’s education system as I do not have schooling kid. The above points are based on my research.
23. Quality healthcare
Singapore’s healthcare is one of the best in the world and one of the most efficient in the world. Singapore has a good reputation for medicine globally, and medical tourism is comparatively high. All this explains the quality of Singapore’s healthcare. It’s essential to have a sound healthcare system in the country we live in.
Top 10 medical tourism in the world
Singapore healthcare ranked #2 by Bloomberg as the world's most efficient healthcare system in 2018
The last two reasons are (24) political stability and (25) the growth of Singapore. Those reasons matter too.
According to "The Global Economy.com", Singapore ranked #4 in the political stability index in 2020.
Conclusion
Singapore is a beautiful and almost perfect country for me. It also has some challenges. I will share the challenges in a separate article. People have different views about Singapore, and this is mine.
Are you living in Singapore, or do you know about Singapore? I would love to hear your thoughts about Singapore.
Published on Mar. 4th, 2022
