Population and Population Structure

Age Dependency Ratio

Old-age dependency ratio is the number of persons aged 65 years and over per hundred persons aged 15 - 64 years; or the number of persons aged 65 years and over per hundred persons aged 20 - 64 years. The child dependency ratio is defined as the number of persons aged below 15 years per hundred persons aged 15-64 years; or the number of persons aged below 20 years per hundred persons aged 20-64 years.

Citizenship by Descent

Citizenship by Descent refers to citizenships granted to children born overseas to at least one Singaporean parent.

Ethnic Group

Ethnic group is obtained from administrative sources and as declared by the person. The population is classified into the following four categories, namely Chinese, Malays, Indians and Other Ethnic Groups. Chinese refers to persons of Chinese origin such as Hokkiens, Teochews, Cantonese, Hakkas, Hainanese, Foochows, Henghuas, Shanghainese, Hockchias, etc. Malays include persons of Malay or Indonesian origin, such as Javanese, Boyanese, etc. Indians include persons of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi or Sri Lankan origin such as Tamils, Malayalees, Hindis, Sikhs, etc. Other Ethnic Groups comprise all persons other than Chinese, Malays and Indians. They include Eurasians, Caucasians, Fillipinos, Burmese, Arabs, Thais etc. 

Natural Increase

Natural increase refers to the number of live-births in excess of the number of deaths.  

Non-Resident Population

Non-resident population comprises foreigners who were working, studying or living in Singapore but not granted permanent residence. It excludes tourists and short-term visitors. 

Old-Age Support Ratio

Old-age support ratio is the number of persons aged 15 - 64 years per person aged 65 years and over; or the number of persons aged 20 - 64 years per person aged 65 years and over.

Overseas Citizens

Overseas Singaporeans are defined as Singapore citizens with a registered foreign address or who are away for a cumulative period of at least 6 months in the past 12 months prior to the reference date (i.e. end-June each year). This would include frequent travellers who have their usual residence in Singapore but travel overseas for the greater part of the reference period. 

Rate of Natural Increase

Rate of natural increase is natural increase divided by the mid-year population of the reference year, expressed as per thousand population. 

Resident Population

Resident population comprises Singapore citizens and permanent residents. The latter group refers to non-citizens who have been granted permanent residence in Singapore.

Residential Status

Singapore citizens and permanent residents are classified as Singapore residents or the resident population. Permanent residents refer to non-citizens who have been granted permanent residence in Singapore. The non-resident population comprised foreigners who were working, studying or living in Singapore but not granted permanent residence, excluding tourists and short-term visitors.

Sex Ratio

Sex ratio refers to the number of males per thousand females in the population.

Singapore Residents

Singapore residents comprises Singapore citizens and permanent residents. The latter group refers to non-citizens who have been granted permanent residence in Singapore. 

Total Population

Total population comprises Singapore residents (i.e Singapore citizens and permanent residents) and non-residents.

Type of Dwelling

A dwelling refers to a building or part of a building used or intended to be used by one or more persons as living quarters. Each dwelling has its own separate entrance with direct access to a public road or pathway. A dwelling may be a residential building by itself, or a unit in a residential building, or part of a non-residential building such as a shop or factory with space used as living quarters. Dwellings are broadly classified into the three categories: Housing and Development Board (HDB) properties, condominiums and other apartments, and landed properties. For data from 2012, the Singapore Standard Classification of Type of Dwelling (Jan 2012) is used to classify the type of dwelling.