New courses for Singaporeans marrying foreigners

Singaporeans marrying foreigners will soon be able to participate in marriage preparation and support programmes tailored for them.

The programmes, which will cover money, job, housing and immigration issues, will be offered from Dec 1, Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing announced yesterday.

The programmes are being launched at a time when the number of "transnational" marriages is going up, added Mr Chan.

"We are looking at a marriage preparation programme to help both parties to set the expectations and manage some of the day-to-day issues that they will encounter.

"For example, how to prepare for settling down in Singapore, how to do their financial management, whether they are able to work or not and whether they will get immigration privileges," The Straits Times quoted Mr Chan as saying.

TRANSNATIONAL

The Marriage Preparation programme aims to help transnational couples prepare for marriage, while the Marriage Support programme will help already married couples settle into married life.

The programmes will first be rolled out at the Family Service Centres run by Fei Yue and Care Corner.

Mr Chan said the programmes will be voluntary, but he hopes couples will see their value and sign up for them.

"If both parties come to the table and have a frank discussion on their expectations of each other, and the kind of challenges that they would need to encounter together, I think it will help to bond them in the marriage," he said.

This article was first published on October 21, 2014.
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