Despite the thinning expatriate package – a global trend that has taken on steam in the current slowdown – 91 per cent of the expatriates in Singapore have not considered returning home. This is higher than the global average of 85 per cent, revealed the HSBC’s Expat Economics survey held early this year, the results of which were announced in July. Where expatriate packages used to include housing benefits, car allowances, children’s school fees and club memberships, only 30 per cent of expatriates here receive such perks now. Instead, contract renewals are being converted into local packages with lump sum allowances. One possible reason for expatriates staying on in Singapore could be that 75 per cent of them have more disposable income here than back home even while the cost of living in Singapore exceeds the global average.
