Tan trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School before graduating from the University of Exeter with a degree in law and completed the Legal Practice Certificate in London.
2001
In 2001 Tan was cast in the lead role of Liat by Sir Trevor Nunn in his production of South Pacific at the Royal National Theatre, and sang the song "Happy Talk" as a duet with the character of Bloody Mary, which features on the musical soundtrack recorded at Abbey Road Studios.
2006
In 2006, she was nominated for Best Actress at the ECU European Independent Film Festival.
Her television credits include Nighty Night, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, EastEnders, 'Til Death, Boston Legal, Entourage, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and Hawaii Five-0.
She played Kelli Lin in Person of Interest, was Anne in Hand of God for Amazon, and 'Angeline Borgen' in the hit Norwegian crime drama Frikjent (Acquitted).
Tan played Lucy Chang in the HBO feature film Starter for 10, Sala Khan in the film Jewtopia, April in Gina Prince-Bythewood's Beyond the Lights, Xandra in Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice, and Elyse in Tully.