Photo by Mark Stoop on Unsplash
🇸🇬 Southeast Asia
Moving to Singapore from the US
Singapore for American digital nomads: no dedicated nomad visa, and a tax-friendly regime once you become tax resident. Tourist entry for US passports: 90 days visa-free.
Southeast Asia 🧾 tax-friendly
Singapore in numbers
At a glance
| 🛂 Tourist entry | 🇺🇸US90d🇪🇺EU90d🇬🇧UK90d🇨🇦CA90d🇦🇺AU90d |
| 🛂 Digital nomad visa | No dedicated digital nomad visa |
| 🏠 Path to permanent residency | Possible after years on Employment Pass, at discretion of ICA, not nomad-relevant in practice |
| 🌍 What gets taxed | Mostly local income only Mostly taxes only income earned inside the country; foreign income is generally out of scope, with some exceptions. |
| 📈 Top income-tax rate | 24% Brackets: 24% top |
| ✨ Special regime | No nomad-specific regime, the real barrier is getting legal residence, not the tax rate |
| 🇺🇸 US tax treaty | ✅ Yes Stops the same income being taxed by both countries and can lower tax withheld on things like dividends. |
| ⚖️ Family-law exposure (payer) | Obligation 6/10 · cross-border collection 5/10 |
| 🗣️ English | An official language |
| 🏥 Healthcare access | Very high (WHO coverage index 88/100, 2023) How well essential care reaches the population. Most Americans abroad use private care and insurance; this measures the public system. |
| 👩 Women's safety & rights | Very high (WPS index 0.887) Women, Peace and Security Index 2023/24 (Georgetown GIWPS): safety, legal rights and inclusion. |
| 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ equality | Low (Equaldex index 44/100) Equaldex Equality Index (equaldex.com, CC BY-SA): laws plus public attitudes. |
| 🛡️ Safety (hard stats) | Homicide 0.2/100k · road deaths 2.8/100k |
Full detail with ratings and sources: visas & residency · tax breakdown · legal exposure · safety & crime
Data last updated · Source: Compiled from the visas, tax and legal datasets
Cities we cover in Singapore
Photos from Unsplash: Singapore by Mark Stoop on Unsplash
Month-by-month weather: Singapore climate
⭐ Singapore on our best-of lists
🍜 Other countries in Southeast Asia
Moving to Singapore: common questions
Can Americans move to Singapore?
There is no dedicated nomad or passive-income visa, so most Americans need work, study, investment or family routes. Path to permanent residency: Possible after years on Employment Pass, at discretion of ICA, not nomad-relevant in practice.
How long can Americans stay in Singapore without a visa?
About 90 days visa-free as a tourist on a US passport. Singapore has no dedicated digital nomad visa, so living there longer needs another residence route.
Will I pay tax in Singapore as an American?
Little or no local tax on income earned abroad once you are resident. What gets taxed: mostly local income only; the top rate is 24%. As an American you also keep filing with the IRS wherever you live; the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion and foreign tax credits usually stop you paying twice.
What does it cost to live in Singapore?
About $4,088 a month for one person, all-in (everyday costs plus a 1-bedroom city-centre rent), across the 1 city we cover.
Is English spoken in Singapore?
English is an official language, so day-to-day life in English is easy.
Is Singapore safe?
Singapore's homicide rate is 0.2 per 100,000 people a year (the US is roughly 6), and road deaths are 2.8 per 100,000. On our country scale that's "safer".