Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Recently, the topic of changing citizenship has suddenly become popular on Indonesian social media. Especially since the release of the quick count results for the 2024 Election.
Netizens believe that there are several reasons for this desire to emerge, for example economic and political factors. Meanwhile, one of the destination countries for Indonesian citizens (WNI) if they want to change citizenship is Singapore.
The Ministry of Law and Human Rights (Kemenkumham) noted that there were at least 3,912 Indonesian citizens who decided to move to become Singaporean citizens (WN) during 2019-2022.
Director General of Immigration Silmy Karim said that the reason thousands of Indonesian citizens changed citizenship to become Singaporean citizens was the potential to obtain a more prosperous standard of living. However, he admitted that he had no problem with the Indonesian citizens’ decision as long as it was done legally and in accordance with the law.
“I think it is legal for Indonesian citizens to change citizenship for a better standard of living as long as it is done legally. Those who move are of productive age, with potential,” said Silmy, quoted on Sunday (18/2/2024).
Based on data from the Director General of Immigration, around a thousand people change citizenship every year to become Singapore citizens. On average, Indonesian citizens who change citizenship are in the productive age group, namely 25 to 35 years old.
“The Indonesian citizens who changed citizenship to become Singapore citizens are in the productive age group, aged 25 to 35 years,” said Silmy Karim.
If you are really interested in changing citizenship to become a Singapore citizen, there are several steps and conditions that must be met. Anything? Here’s the procedure.
Quoting from the official website of the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Singapore, someone who has been a permanent resident (PR) of Singapore for at least two years and is aged 21 years or above has the right to apply for Singapore Citizenship.
Apart from that, someone who has been a PR for at least two years and has been married to a Singaporean citizen for at least two years also has full rights to apply for citizenship of the Lion Country.
Meanwhile, unmarried children under the age of 21 are also entitled to apply for Singapore citizenship if they were born from a legal marriage with or have been legally adopted by a Singaporean citizen. Likewise with PR and the elderly (seniors) from Singaporean citizens.
Lastly, for students who have resided/lived in Singapore for more than 3 years, at least one year of which was as PR and have passed at least one national examination, namely PSLE, GCE ‘N’/’O’/’A’ level or are in the Integrated Program (IP) can also change citizenship to become Singaporean.
Fees for Applying for Singapore Citizenship
According to the same official page, changing citizenship to Singapore is not free. There are fees set by the government based on a number of categories in order to enable someone to change citizenship.
Below are details of the costs if you want to become a Singaporean citizen, assuming an exchange rate of IDR 11,621/S$
1. Adult Permanent Residents (PR) and PR Children
– Fee for each application: S$100 or around Rp. 1,162,248
– Successful applicant fee: S$70 or around IDR 813,675 for a Singapore Citizenship Certificate and S$10 for a Singapore Identity Card or around IDR 116,241 (applies to new citizens aged 15 years and above).
2. Children Born Abroad to Singaporean Citizen Parents
For the record, the fees that apply to this category are if the pregnant mother is a Singaporean citizen or the father is a Singaporean citizen and is married to the child’s pregnant mother at the time the child is born.
– Fee for each application (including Singapore Citizenship Certificate): S$18 or around Rp. 209,231
– Successful applicant fee: S$10 for a Singapore Identity Card or around IDR 116,241 (applies to new citizens aged 15 years and above)
3. All Children Born Abroad or Domestically
– Fee for each application: S$100 or around Rp. 1,162,248
– Successful applicant fees: S$70 or around IDR 813,675 for a Singapore Citizenship Certificate and S$10 for a Singapore Identity Card or around IDR 116,241 (applies to new citizens aged 15 years and above)
For your information, all processing fees will be collected online when you submit your application. Successful applicants will pay an additional fee at the time of registration.
[Gambas:Video CNBC]
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