Man Jailed For Housing Chinese Overstayers Who Engaged in Vice Activities

Some people may think that renting out a property can be an easy way to make a quick buck.

And for some, this is true.

However, this is not the case for a 26-year-old Singaporean man, Xu Yixuan, who rented a Tampines housing unit and sublet it to two Chinese nationals. The two had participated in vice activities at the housing unit and were discovered during a joint operation between the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) and the police on 4 November 2019.

It was also found that the two of them had overstayed in Singapore, which means that their immigration passes have already expired.

Man Jailed For Housing Chinese Overstayers Who Engaged in Vice Activities

Based on investigations, it was found that Xu signed the tenancy agreement of the housing unit in Tampines in October 2019.

Following this, he sublet the flat to Huang Huoying and He Lei on 27 October for S$110 and S$120 per day respectively in rent.

The apartment was theirs to use while he stayed in his own house in Woodlands.

In a statement, ICA said, “As Xu did not exercise due diligence in ascertaining that the PRC nationals’ immigration passes were valid at the point when he sublet the unit to them, he had committed an offence of harbouring immigration offenders under the Immigration Act.”

As a result, Xu was sentenced to a jail term of seven months for harbouring an overstayer, with a second charge of harbouring another overstayer taken into consideration.

Huang and He, on the other hand, were issued warnings for staying in Singapore despite their immigration passes being expired.

What Can I, As A Landlord, Do To Protect Myself?

If you’re a landlord and you’re looking to rent out a room or a flat, please ensure that you conduct three mandatory checks as noted by the ICA.

• Check the tenant’s original immigration/work pass
• Ensure that the particulars on their immigration/work pass match the particulars on their original passport
• Check with the relevant authorities regarding the validity of their immigration/work pass
  • For work passes, you can check with the Ministry of Manpower (MOM)
  • For other immigration passes like student’s pass or long-term visit pass, you can check with ICA

If you are found to have only carried out one of the three mandatory checks or if you are found to knowingly harbouring overstayers, you will be jailed a minimum of six months and a maximum of two years, as well as fined up to S$6,000.

If you are found to have only carried out two of the three mandatory checks, you will be jailed for up to a year and fined up to S$6,000.

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