When critical positions suddenly become vacant or urgent projects demand specialised expertise, your company can’t afford extended recruitment delays. Secondment services provide immediate access to qualified Professionals, Managers, Executives, and Technicians (PMETs) who can step into your urgent role openings and maintain business productivity from day one.

What is Secondment?

Secondment is a flexible staffing arrangement where experienced professionals are temporarily assigned to work within your organisation to fill critical roles or support specific projects, while still remaining under employment of their current employer. Unlike traditional hiring, these specialists come pre-vetted and ready to contribute immediately, allowing you to address urgent staffing needs without the long timelines of typical recruitment.

According to IRAS guidelines, when you engage secondment services, you’re essentially procuring human resource services from a staffing provider. The seconded employee remains employed by the secondment agency while working exclusively for your organization for the agreed period. 

In practice, secondment can address covering for situations where employees may be on extended/maternal leave, suddenly vacant senior positions and providing specialized expertise for time-critical projects without permanent hiring commitments.

Why Choose Secondment?

When you’re facing urgent role openings, traditional recruitment processes can take weeks or months, during which productivity suffers and business opportunities may be lost. Secondment services provide immediate access to qualified professionals who can start contributing within days. 

These professionals come with established track records and have already undergone comprehensive screening, eliminating the uncertainties associated with new hires. You also avoid the costly expenses associated with emergency recruitment, headhunting fees, and the hidden costs of prolonged vacancies. 

The knowledge transfer that occurs through secondment can also be invaluable during urgent situations, as experienced professionals bring best practices from other organizations, fresh perspectives on problem-solving, and specialized skills that may not exist within your current team.

How Secondment Differs from Traditional Temporary Staffing

Traditional temporary staffing typically focuses on filling operational gaps with workers who may require significant onboarding and supervision. Secondment on the other hand, provides senior-level professionals who can take immediate ownership of their roles and responsibilities. Key differences include:

Employment Stability: Seconded professionals remain employed by reputable staffing agencies, ensuring continuity of benefits and development opportunities

Assignment Duration: Longer-term arrangements (3 months – 2 years) versus short-term temporary placements

Skill Level: PMET level professionals versus general operational staff

Strategic Focus: Individuals selected for complex problem-solving, leadership, and strategic decision-making capabilities

Immediate Impact: Proven professionals who contribute from day one without extensive training

What About Team Dynamics?

Several employers have expressed concerns of loyalty and work culture, but such problems can be sidestepped with good onboarding and Human Resource practices. Successful integration of seconded professionals requires transparent communication with your existing team about the temporary nature of the arrangement and the specific objectives to be achieved. 

Secondment arrangements include clear performance metrics and regular review processes to ensure accountability, with the seconded professional’s ongoing employment with the staffing agency creating additional accountability layers.

Tax and Regulatory Considerations in Singapore

IRAS provides specific GST exemptions for internal corporate group secondments where companies within the same corporate group second staff to each other.

IRAS allows companies not to charge GST when all the following conditions are satisfied:

• • No markup or extra fees charged
  • Both companies are related (parent-subsidiary or similar corporate relationship)
  • Staff works for only one company at a time
  • Receiving company has full control over the staff
  • No GST input tax claimed on secondment expenses

If any of these conditions fail, the arrangement becomes subject to standard GST treatment. For external secondment arrangements through staffing agencies, GST applies to the service fees as these are commercial transactions rather than internal corporate transfers. 

The seconded employee working in Singapore must also comply with local employment regulations, including work pass requirements for foreign nationals and adherence to Employment Act provisions where applicable.

Balancing Value and Assurance with Seconded Staff

When your organization faces urgent PMET role openings, our secondment services provide immediate access to qualified professionals who can step into critical positions and maintain business continuity. We maintain ready-to-deploy specialists across senior management roles, specialized technical positions, financial and audit professionals, project managers for time-sensitive initiatives, and digital transformation experts.

We tailor our secondment solutions to your specific needs with:

• Flexible assignment durations (short-term crisis to long-term planning)
• Precise skill and experience matching
• Complete administrative support (contracts, payroll, work passes, monitoring)

Don’t let urgent role openings compromise your business performance. Our team at Verti Human Capital will help you discover how secondment services can provide the immediate PMET expertise you need to maintain momentum and achieve your objectives, regardless of staffing challenges.

Reach out to us at contactus@verti.sg or +65 6909 5691

All information accurate as of 4 September 2025