Just to clarify, the proportion-of-local-employees isn't really a problem if you're mostly hiring programmers. Programmers generally come in under Employment Passes, which there's no official quota on. The main issue is the wait time and the uncertainty of approval.

The businesses that run up against the limit are those that hire lower-pay foreigners, which the government doesn't want to encourage anyway. For tech/innovation-driven startups, the limit shouldn't be a barrier.

@sjogress: It makes sense to start a company in Singapore if you're looking to target multinational companies that have their regional headquarters here. Also, if you're considering setting up in Singapore, it's good to have a Singaporean as a cofounder - it makes getting the smaller grants simpler.

@nopzor: Really? Is it an unwritten quota? All the official statements are that there's no quota for Employment Passes[1][2]. It makes sense that the government wouldn't allow a company to be 100% foreigners on EPs, but I think there's some flexibility in how many EP holders you can hire.

@mdda: The advertise-to-locals-first rule only applies to companies larger than 25 people, so it doesn't really hinder startups. We actually applied for an EP for my co-founder (a foreigner) and got it on appeal, with only 1 local employee besides me. As you say, the process is fairly straightforward if somewhat tedious.

[1] http://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/employment-pass/key...

[2] http://www.mom.gov.sg/~/media/mom/documents/brochures/servic...