Moving countries in your sixties or seventies is a big decision. For many Singaporean parents, the reason is family: children and grandchildren who now call Australia home.
Before you sell your flat or pack your bags, work through this checklist. It covers the questions we see families miss most often.
1. Is there a realistic visa?
Australia’s retirement visas are closed to new applicants. Most older Singaporeans rely on a parent visa, a partner visa, or long-stay temporary options such as the subclass 870 visa. Parent visa queues are long, so start early.
- Retiring in Australia from Singapore: visa options
- A guide for Singaporean parents moving to Australia
- Long stays with grandchildren: visitor visa, ETA or 870
2. Health care: Medicare and insurance
Permanent residents are generally eligible for Medicare. People on visitor visas and most temporary visas are not, and need private health insurance. Check that any policy covers older people and existing conditions, and what it excludes.
3. The Age Pension is not immediate
Australia’s Age Pension generally requires 10 years of Australian residence, including at least five continuous years, as well as meeting age, income and assets tests. Australia has social security agreements with some countries that can help in limited cases; check whether any apply to you. Plan your income on the basis that you will fund your own retirement for many years.
If you came on a contributory parent visa, an assurance of support may also mean your family must repay certain payments made in your first years.
4. Tax: you may become an Australian tax resident
Once you live in Australia, you will usually become an Australian tax resident. Australia generally taxes residents on their worldwide income. That can include:
- rent from a Singapore property,
- interest and dividends from Singapore accounts and investments, and
- some foreign pension or retirement payments.
How Australia treats CPF payouts, annuities, insurance policies and investment structures can be complex. Get advice from a registered tax adviser before you move, while there is still time to plan. See our article on pre-immigration planning.
5. Buying a home in Australia
- As a permanent resident living in Australia, you can generally buy a home without foreign investment approval.
- On a temporary visa, such as an 870 or a temporary contributory parent visa, you are usually treated as a foreign person. Strict rules apply, including the current ban on foreign persons buying established homes (until 30 June 2029).
- Think carefully before putting a home in a child’s name, or contributing to a child’s home. Document whether it is a gift, a loan or shared ownership. See parents funding a child’s home and our granny flat article.
6. Moving money
Large transfers from Singapore to Australia are routine, but banks will ask where the money came from. Keep records of property sales, savings and inheritances. Decide whether money given to children is a gift or a loan, and put it in writing.
7. Your wills, in both countries
Your Singapore will may not deal well with Australian assets, and an Australian will may be needed once you live here. If you keep assets in both countries, your wills must work together, not cancel each other out. See Australian will and overseas will.
8. Powers of attorney and health decisions
A Singapore LPA may not be accepted in Australia. Once you spend much of your time here, make Australian powers of attorney and appoint a medical treatment decision maker (or the equivalent in your state). See Singapore LPAs and Australian property.
9. Aged care
If you may need aged care in future, eligibility and costs in Australia depend on your visa, income and assets. Families often underestimate the cost. See our article on aged care costs when a parent moves into care.
10. Talk as a family
The best moves we see are planned together: parents, children and their partners, and the siblings who stay in Singapore. Agree who pays for what, where you will live, and what happens if your health changes. Write it down.
How Chua Tan Associates can help
Chua Tan Associates has helped overseas Chinese families settle in Australia since 1990. Our immigration team includes two Accredited Specialists in Immigration Law, and our estates and property lawyers prepare wills, powers of attorney and property documents. We advise in English, Mandarin and Cantonese, by video from Singapore, and we work with your tax adviser.
Book a 30-minute paid consultation to plan your move. If you go ahead, the consultation fee is credited to your first invoice.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get the Age Pension as soon as I become a permanent resident?
Generally no. The usual rule is 10 years of Australian residence, plus age, income and assets tests.
Will I get Medicare on a temporary parent visa?
Usually not. You will generally need private health insurance until you hold a permanent visa.
Do I have to pay Australian tax on my Singapore income?
If you become an Australian tax resident, Australia generally taxes your worldwide income. Get tax advice before you move.
Should I sell my Singapore flat before moving?
It depends on your visa, tax position and family plans. Decide with advice, not in a hurry.
Important: This article is general information only and must not be relied on. It is not legal, tax, financial or migration advice, does not take your circumstances into account, and may not reflect changes in the law after publication. Laws of other countries may also apply. Do not act or refrain from acting on the basis of this article. Reading it or contacting us does not create a lawyer–client relationship. Please book a consultation for advice on your situation.
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Chua Tan Associates acts for families, executors, trustees and their professional advisers in estate planning, estate administration and estate disputes in Australia and across borders. To arrange a confidential consultation, please contact our Melbourne office on +61 3 9602 3988 or submit an enquiry. Advice is available in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.
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