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A Malaysian chef who has worked in Singapore for over 20 years lost SGD6,500 (about RM21,000) after falling for a scam that promised to secure him permanent residency (PR) in the country
According to Shin Min Daily News, the 42-year-old, surnamed Lai, had previously failed twice in his attempts to obtain Singapore PR and decided to seek professional help.
In November 2025, he came across a Facebook advertisement by a company claiming a 95% success rate and over 1,000 approved applications.
He reached out and paid an initial SGD300 "preliminary application fee" and a SGD1,200 "document verification fee".
Screenshots of false advertisements on social media.
Image via Singapore Police Force
Screenshots of false advertisements on social media.
Image via Singapore Police ForceHe was later sent a letter bearing the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) logo, inviting him to attend two interviews at its headquarters.
However, Lai said both appointments were were cancelled at the last minute.
He said the scammers called him on the morning of the interviews, claiming his documents were insufficient and urged him to pay more to increase the chances of his application being approved.
Lai also said he was asked to install an app that supposedly tracked his PR approval chances, which remained red throughout the process.
Over time, he was persuaded to make additional payments in separate transactions to improve his chances, but the status never changed.
He only grew suspicious when he was asked to enrol in a SGD5,000 course, prompting him to stop and lodge a police report
Lai said the scammers tried to reassure him when he hesitated, even offering to cover half of the course fees.
"When they saw that I was having second thoughts, they tried to calm me down," he said.
When he later requested a refund, he was told to pay an additional SGD800 fee to process it.
He added that the syndicate's methods were highly convincing, as they even operated a 24-hour customer service chat group to handle queries and maintain the illusion of legitimacy.
Even after he stopped responding, the scammers continued messaging him, at one point falsely claiming connections with members of parliament to regain his trust.
"The scam was so realistic, it wasn't that I was naive," Lai said.
Singapore police have since warned the public to remain vigilant against scams involving fake social media advertisements offering assistance with PR applications
"Since 1 January 2026, there have been at least 24 reported cases, with total losses amounting to approximately SGD397,000," it said in a statement.
The police also urged the public not to transfer money to unknown individuals and to take precautions when dealing with suspicious messages, phone numbers, or websites.
