The Singapore Police Force is one of the most recognisable uniformed organisations in Singapore and one of the 7 departments under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Aspiring police officers can join the Force as Direct-Entry Sergeants or Inspectors. Here’s how much in salary, sign-on bonuses, and other monetary incentives you can earn if you choose to join the Singapore Police Force as a Sergeant or an Inspector.
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How Much Does A Singapore Police Officer Earn?
Entry Requirements
While the physical requirements for Sergeants and Inspectors are the same, the difference is in the entry educational qualifications. Sergeants enter with a minimum of 5 GCE ‘O’ Level Credits and Inspectors enter with a minimum of Degree pass in any discipline.
Source: SPF
Starting Salaries
If you join the Singapore Police Force as a Direct-Entry Sergeant, you can expect to earn between $2,000 to $2,960 depending on your educational qualifications, relevant work experience and completion of full-time National Service. In comparison, the median graduate starting salary for diploma holders and NITEC (without NS) is $2,614 and $1,800 respectively in 2021.
If you join the Singapore Police Force as a Direct-Entry Inspector, you can expect to earn between $4,850 to $5,600 depending on your educational qualifications, relevant work experience and completion of full-time National Service. In comparison, the median graduate starting salary for degree holders is $3,800 in 2021.
| Educational Qualifications | Sign-On Bonus | Starting Salary |
| GCE ‘O’ Levels | $10,000 | $2,000 to $2,960 |
| NITEC | ||
| Higher NITEC | ||
| GCE ‘A’ Levels | $30,000 | |
| Diploma | ||
| Degree or higher | N.A. | $4,850 to $5,600 |
Sign-On Bonus
Direct-Entry Sergeants will receive a Sign-On Bonus of $10,000 (Higher NITEC, NITEC and GCE ‘O’ Level holders) or $30,000 (Diploma holders of local Polytechnics, International Baccalaureate (IB), NUS High School, NAFA, LASALLE and ITE Technical Engineering, or GCE ‘A’ Level holders) upon appointment.
Direct-Entry Inspectors are not eligible for this bonus.
NS Fulfilment
Additionally, Direct-Entry Sergeants can serve out their NS liability by serving 5 years as a regular police officer while still receiving their full salary and benefits. To do so, pre-enlistees will need to apply 3 months before their enlistment date.
Direct-Entry Inspectors are not eligible for this bonus.
Training and Posting
Direct-Entry Sergeants go through a 6-month residential training programme while Direct-Entry Inspectors go through a 9-month residential training programme.
Direct-Entry Sergeants are trained to be Ground Response Force officers and may be posted to other departments and units, which includes frontline duties, staff work, investigation or intelligence. Depending on suitability and available vacancies, they may also be posted to specialist units such as the Police Coast Guard, Security Command and the Traffic Police.
Direct-Entry Inspectors are trained in the same curriculum with the addition of criminal investigation lessons and leadership development. They are also rotated through foundational postings in Frontline Policing as a Ground Response Force Officer, Investigation as an Investigation Officer, Command as a Team Leader and Staff as a Staff Officer.
Good-performing Direct-Entry Sergeants can be directly promoted to the rank of Inspector within the first few years in the Force, even without a degree. Additionally, the SPF also offers many scholarships and sponsorships for eligible candidates to either join the Force or to improve themselves while in the Force:
Source: SPF
Retirement Schemes
Both Direct-Entry Sergeants and Inspectors are eligible for the INVEST Scheme, as well as Strategic Payment Scheme and Police (Invest) payment.
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Police Officers Are Eligible For Retirement Benefits Under The INVEST Scheme
The INVEST Scheme is a scheme for uniformed officers under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). It was established to help officers transit into their second career as they have an earlier retirement age of 55 as compared to the rest of the Civil Service at 63, and also compared to the Civil Service’s re-employment age of 68.
Under the INVEST Scheme, Direct-Entry Sergeants and Inspectors will have a contribution equivalent to 7.75% and 13.25% of their gross salary credited monthly into the respective officer’s retirement account starting from the first year in service and ending when the officer reaches 55 years old. The monies are invested to earn investment returns. Upon retirement, the officer can withdraw the full sum in the retirement account.
Read Also: Salary Guide: How Much Can You Earn If You Join The Singapore Prison Service (SPS)
Police Officers Also Receive Retention Reward For Staying In The Force
According to the Home Affairs Uniformed Services (INVEST Plan) Regulations, a month of gross salary is contributed to the officer’s retention account on the completion of 1 year of service up to the 6th year of service, then 1.5 month of gross salary is contributed for the 7th to 10th year of service. This will be paid out /vested in the 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th year of service.
Taking a gross salary of $3,940 and assuming no annual increment (which is an unlikely scenario), an officer should receive a total of $39,400 of retention reward on top of his or her regular salary and bonus.
| Years Of Service | Annual Contribution | Cumulative Contribution | Vesting |
| 1 | $4,340 | $4,340 | – |
| 2 | $4,340 | $8,680 | – |
| 3 | $4,340 | $13,020 | – |
| 4 | $4,340 | $17,360 | – |
| 5 | $4,340 | $21,700 | – |
| 6 | $4,340 | $26,040 | 25% ($6,510) |
| 7 | $4,340 | $23,870 | |
| 8 | $4,340 | $28,210 | 33% ($9,309) |
| 9 | $4,340 | $23,241 | |
| 10 | $4,340 | $27,581 | 50% ($13,790) |
| 11 | – | $13,790 | |
| 12 | – | $13,790 | 100% ($13,790) |
According to SPF, new officers can look forward to cash payouts of 3 months (Assistant Superintendent of Police and below) quantum upon reaching their 3rd, 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 20th, and 25th year in service. It is unclear from the SPF website, whether this is inclusive of the Retention Account of the INVEST Scheme.
Additionally, in recognition of the challenging nature of Police work, police officers will also receive an annual cash payment, where the quantum of payment ranges from 0.5 month to 1.5 month, as they advance up the ranks.
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Joining The Police Force Is More Than The Salary
The safety of Singapore is something that most of us take for granted in this country. We can sleep easily at night without fear of being burgled, robbed or mugged. All this is thanks to the ceaseless efforts of the Singapore Police Force (and the rest of the Home Team).
As seen from the above, our Police Force is fairly compensated. In fact, the starting salaries are higher than the median graduate starting salaries. Thus, joining the Force should be more than the salary but about how much you uphold the values of the Force: Courage, Loyalty, Integrity and Fairness.
Cover image credit: Raymond Quek
This article was first published on 23 March 2021 and updated with new information
The post Salary Guide To How Much Can You Earn If You Join The Singapore Police Force (SPF) appeared first on DollarsAndSense.sg.
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