S'porean man, 45, asked Vietnamese wife, 27, to pay S$1,000 monthly 'marriage fee', both lied about living together

In 2021, a Singaporean man got to know Vietnamese woman and approached her for her number, wanting to get to know her better.

A few months later, the two began dating.

The woman, who was 18 years younger than the man, proposed to the man a year later and they got married.

However, she only lived with the man for a few days before moving out of his house.

This was despite both declaring that she lived at his address in Bukit Batok West Avenue 8 to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA).

After discovering that he was cheating on her, she was even more reluctant to "go home".

The two had a big quarrel about this, and the man later asked the woman to pay a "marriage fee" of S$1,000 every month.

Authorities discovered the lies in 2024 and both were arrested for making false declarations to obtain long-term visit pass for the woman, Shin Min Daily News reported.

They each pleaded guilty to one charge of violating an immigration act on Sep. 12 and were both fined S$3,500.

Married but didn't live together for long

Lim Kok Guan, 45, and Phan Thi Nhan, 27, registered their marriage on Nov. 17, 2022.

Most of the people who attended the ceremony were reportedly Lim's family and relatives, while Phan had only one friend present.

She then moved in with Lim for three to four days before moving out to live elsewhere with her sister in Ang Mo Kio and Punggol.

She would go over to his place for one or two days a week.

Man asked woman for a marriage fee

In May 2023, Phan discovered that Lim was having an affair and the two quarrelled, causing her to not return to live with him.

Two or three months later, Lim asked Phan to come back, and she agreed, moving back to the usual schedule of living one to two days with him.

In August 2023, the pair argued again.

Lim asked Phan to give him S$1,000 per month as their "marriage expenses," and she agreed.

She had been paying Lim this amount up until they were arrested.

Rented a place in Geylang to live with relatives even when she's pregnant

In March 2024, Phan discovered that she was pregnant with Lim's child.

Lim then asked her to move in with him but she refused, continuing to stay with her sister.

Three months later in June, she rented a unit in Geylang and lived there with her relatives.

She gave birth to the child on Nov. 2.

Submitted form to ICA with false declaration

Phan’s Long-Term Visit Pass was set to expire on Jan. 13, 2025.

Lim submitted an application for her on Oct. 26, 2024, with both claiming they were living together at an address on Bukit Batok West Avenue 8.

Both also declared that Phan had never been denied entry into Singapore.

However, Phan had a history of being banned from entering Singapore for two years in 2016, though she successfully appealed the ban the following year.

Their false statements were finally uncovered when ICA officers conducted a surprise inspection on Dec. 4, 2024, to verify the residential address declared by Phan.

Top photos from Canva