A 37-year-old man from China claimed he was told that if he invested S$2 million into a local company, he would be granted Singapore permanent residency within three years.

Zhang Qingqiao, a businessman, wanted to migrate to Singapore with his family.

However, he didn't take up the "S$2 million investment plan" but instead opted for a "zero-returns S$370,000 investment plan".

The catch is he had to become an "employee" of the company.

Zhang was sentenced to four weeks' jail on Oct. 9, 2023, for one count of making a false declaration to the Controller of Work Passes.

What happened

According to CNA, Zhang met a woman named Wang Jue around July 2019.

Wang reportedly told Zhang that he could attain permanent residency in Singapore within three years if he forked out S$2 million for an "investment plan".

However, he rejected the plan and settled on a "zero-returns" investment of S$360,000 in a company named MW Dynamics.

The plan was to get an employment pass through the company claiming he would work as a business development director for MW Dynamics with a salary of S$10,000 per month.

However, he was not required to do any work and would supposedly have received his full investment sum back by three years through his salary.

He submitted his employment pass application to the Controller of Work Passes in September 2019 with the false declaration that he would be doing work for MW Dynamics.

The application was approved, and his deception continued for about 18 months.

Trial

Zhang was charged in court after the authorities discovered the scheme.

According to CNA, Zhang claimed trial for his offence and defended himself by saying Wang had misled him.

However, the trial judge was "not persuaded by the defence's attempt to pin the blame" on Wang.

After the judge convicted Zhang of his charge, the prosecution asked for four to six weeks in jail, while his defence lawyers asked for a fine, reported CNA.

In his decision on Zhang's sentence, the judge pointed out that the deception spanned about 18 months, and the offence had a "knock-on effect" on Singapore's immigration policy.

On the defence's arguments that Zhang had "no economic benefit" derived from the errant employer, the judge pointed out that the company did receive a large sum of money.

While the defence also argued that Zhang could "easily have obtained an employment pass for himself through his family office, the same way his wife had obtained hers", the judge said it was "pure speculation".

The judge also did not consider the defence's plea for leniency that Zhang might face deportation or an entry ban even though they claimed his family is "very settled" in Singapore.

Zhang was eventually sentenced to four weeks' jail for one count of making a false declaration to the Controller of Work Passes.

He could have faced a maximum sentence of two years in jail, a fine of up to S$20,000, or both for making a false application in his declaration form for an employment pass.

According to CNA, Zhang intends to appeal his conviction and sentence.

Top photo from Ministry of Manpower