Visa policy of Singapore explained

The visa policy of Singapore deals with the requirements a traveller must meet to enter Singapore. A foreign national, depending on their country of origin, must meet certain requirements to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel, to enter and remain in the country. A visa may also entitle the visa holder to other privileges, such as a right to work, study, etc. and may be subject to conditions.

Citizens of most countries and territories can enter Singapore without a visa. A citizen of one of the visa waiver eligible countries and territories can temporarily enter the country for a period of 30 or 90 days without a visa depending on their nationality. However, nationals of some countries must first obtain a visa in advance before being allowed to enter Singapore.[1]

In recent years, applications of work permits, study permits and certain types of permanent residency are submitted online. However, such applicants must provide their biometrics (photograph and fingerprints) as a part of their application process. Depending on the country by which the passport was issued, a visa application may have to be submitted at a visa application centre at a Singaporean diplomatic mission.

Entry requirements

All visitors to Singapore must:

SG Arrival Card

Before entering Singapore, all travellers, except

are required to submit an SG Arrival Card[3] online, which provides personal information, trip details and health declaration, to Singapore immigration.[4] Singapore citizens are exempt from the requirement to submit an SG Arrival Card if entering Singapore by land.

The electronic SG Arrival Card must be submitted within three days before the date of arrival in Singapore, to avoid unnecessary delays during immigration clearance.Travellers can submit their personal information and trip details via an official link or via the "SG Arrival Card" mobile application from either the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android).[4]

The Electronic Arrival Card is free of charge. The Electronic Arrival Card is not a visa,[4] so travellers may have different requirements, according to their nationality.[5]

The paper-based Disembarkation Card (colloquially known as the “White Card”) has been discontinued since 2020.[6]

Visa exemption

Citizens of the following 162 jurisdictions may enter Singapore without a visa for stays up to the duration listed below, depending on nationality:

Indefinite stay (1)

90 days (34)

1 - Visa-free entry for British passport holders without proof of right of abode in the United Kingdom is shortened to 30 days.

30 days (127)

1 - For Chinese citizens with People's Republic of China passports, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passports or Macao Special Administrative Region passports only.
2 - Holders of Taiwan passports who do not have the right of abode in Taiwan must hold a valid Taiwan re-entry permit.
3 - Holders of United Arab Emirates temporary passports are not eligible for visa exemption and must obtain a visa.

APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC)

Holders of passports issued by the following jurisdictions who also possess an APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) containing the "SGP" code on the reverse, which indicates that it is valid for travel to Singapore, can enter Singapore without a visa for business trips of up to 60 days.

ABTC holders are eligible to use automated immigration clearance lanes upon arrival and departure.

ABTCs are issued to nationals of:[7] [8]

Visa required in advance

Singapore categorises countries whose citizens require a visa to enter into two groups – Assessment Level I and Assessment Level II countries.

Assessment Level I Countries

Holders of normal passports or travel documents issued by Assessment Level I countries and territories may obtain an e-visa from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA)'s online portal through a local Singaporean contact or a strategic partner in Singapore; if successful, the applicant can enter Singapore with a printout of the e-visa. Applicants may alternatively obtain a visa at the nearest Singaporean diplomatic mission or from one of its authorized visa agents outside Singapore, in which case a local Singaporean contact is not required.[1]

Expedited processing

e-Visa and regular visa applications lodged by holders of the following three travel documents are processed in 1 working day, excluding the day the application was submitted.[1]

Regular processing

e-Visa and regular visa applications lodged by nationals of the following countries are processed in 3 working days, excluding the day the application was submitted. Visa requirement does not apply to holders of non-ordinary passports of these countries, with the exception of North Korea.[1]

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Assessment Level II Countries

Holders of all passports or travel documents issued by Assessment Level II countries and territories may obtain an e-visa from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA)'s online portal through a local Singaporean contact or a strategic partner in Singapore; if successful, the applicant can enter Singapore with a printout of the e-visa. Applicants may alternatively obtain a visa at the nearest Singaporean diplomatic mission or from one of its authorized visa agents outside Singapore – however, a "Letter of Introduction for Visa Application" to support the visa application is required, which can be issued by a local Singaporean contact or a Singaporean diplomatic mission. e-Visa and regular visa applications lodged by nationals of the following countries and territories are processed in 3 working days, excluding the day the application was submitted.[1]

Visa requirements also apply to non-ordinary passport holders of these countries, unless otherwise noted.

DOS - Holders of diplomatic, official and service passports are exempt from visa requirements.
D - Holders of diplomatic passports are exempt from visa requirements.

Automated Clearance Initiative (ACI)

Under the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA)’s Automated Clearance Initiative (ACI), eligible foreign visitors, including those visiting Singapore for the first time, can use automated lanes for both arrival and departure immigration clearance without the need for prior enrolment.[10] As of April 2023, the ACI was deployed to 130 automated lanes at Changi Airport and 40 automated lanes at the land checkpoints.

Travellers are required to provide a valid email address within their SG Arrival card submissions in order to receive their Electronic Visit Pass (e-Pass) when using the automated lanes; travellers will not be issued an arrival immigration endorsement in their passports.[11]

Under the ACI, eligible arriving foreign visitors are directed to the automated lanes for immigration clearance.

a) Their biometrics (iris, facial and fingerprint images) are automatically enrolled during the arrival clearance process (if not already enrolled during a previous trip to Singapore).

b) Information on their enrolment is included in the electronic visit pass (e-Pass) which is emailed to them after immigration clearance.

c) Enrolled foreign visitors will then be able to use designated automated lanes during departure and on subsequent visits to Singapore.

ACI is a critical component of ICA’s New Clearance Concept (NCC), which aimed to make automated immigration clearance the norm at the checkpoints. Automated immigration lanes leverage multi-modal biometric scanning technology to provide travellers with a more secure, efficient, and seamless immigration clearance experience.

Through the use of automated lanes which take up less physical space and require less manpower than manual counters, ICA would be able to increase its clearance throughput and meet the growing traveller volume, which was expected to reach 300 million travellers per year by 2025.

Eligibility

All biometric passport holders, regardless of nationality, can utilise the Automated Clearance Initiative (ACI) to enter and leave Singapore through Changi Airport.[12]

In addition, biometric passport holders of the following 60 jurisdictions (aged 6 and above), as well as APEC Business Travel Card holders, can utilise the Automated Clearance Initiative (ACI) to enter and leave Singapore through Woodlands Checkpoint, Tuas Checkpoint and Marina Bay Cruise Centre:[13]

1 - For British passport holders, only British citizens are eligible.

Transit without visa

Transit through Changi Airport

Nationals of Assessment Level I and II countries do not require a visa to transit through Changi Airport as long as they fulfill the following requirements:[14]

Nationals of certain Assessment Level I countries may clear immigration to enter Singapore under the Visa Free Transit Facility.

Visa-Free Transit Facility (VFTF)

Nationals of China and India

Nationals of 1 and may enter Singapore without a visa for 96 hours if they are in transit to or from any third country by air, and possess a valid visa or long-term residence permit with validity of at least one month issued by Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom or United States.[15] Schengen visas are also accepted if the visa allows entry into Germany or Switzerland.[15]

Single-journey visas issued by these eight countries are also acceptable for transit, but if using the VFTF on the return journey (i.e. after the single journey visa has been used) the traveller must travel directly from the visa-issuing country and directly back to the home country, and the traveller must have not returned to their home country since the single journey visa was last used.

They may enter Singapore by any mode of transport but must depart by air or sea.[15] They must have a valid onward air/ferry/cruise ticket departing Singapore within 96 hours.[15]

1- Chinese citizens who hold Chinese passports are visa exempt in general, while holders of other travel documents who require a visa may use this policy.

Nationals of the Commonwealth of Independent States, Georgia, Moldova, Turkmenistan and Ukraine

Nationals of the following countries may enter Singapore without a visa for 96 hours if they are in transit to or from any third country. These nationals may use the VFTF on both the forward and the return journey. They may enter Singapore by any mode of transport but must depart by air.[15]

Admission restrictions

Mandatory yellow fever vaccination

All travellers, including Singapore residents, who arrive in Singapore from countries with risk of yellow fever transmission (listed below) require an International Certificate of Vaccination in order to enter Singapore.[16] Failure to provide a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate, would result in the traveller being quarantined under Section 31 of the Infectious Disease Act, for a maximum of six days upon arrival in Singapore. Non-residents who object to the quarantine, will be denied entry and returned to his/her place of origin or last port of embarkation. The vaccination requirement is imposed by this country for protection against yellow fever since the principal mosquito vector Aedes aegypti is present in its territory.[17] [18]

North Korea

According to Timatic, nationals of North Korea are required to be escorted to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority upon entering or transiting Singapore.

History

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all short-term visitors were not allowed to enter or transit through Singapore effective 23 March 2020, 2359 hours.[1] [19]

From 29 March 2020, 2359 hours, all Singapore long-term pass holders, as well as those granted in-principle approval for long-term passes, were required to obtain an entry approval from the relevant government agency (Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, Ministry of Education or Ministry of Manpower) before commencing their journey to Singapore. All travellers will need to submit a health and travel declaration online before arrival, and will be issued a 14-day stay home notice upon arrival.[20]

All COVID-19 related border measures were lifted starting 13 February 2023.[21]

Visitor statistics

Most visitors arriving to Singapore on short-term basis were from the following countries of nationality:

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: ICA Check if You Need an Entry Visa . www.ica.gov.sg . . 2 January 2024 . en . 1 June 2023.
  2. Web site: Entry Requirements. 27 September 2019. Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Singapore. 15 January 2020.
  3. Web site: ICA SG Arrival Card (SGAC) with Electronic Health Declaration . 2024-05-06 . ICA . en.
  4. Web site: SG Arrival Card. 23 March 2020. Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Singapore. 25 March 2020.
  5. Web site: ICA Visiting Singapore . 2024-05-06 . ICA . en.
  6. Web site: Coronavirus: All travellers arriving in Singapore must submit health declaration from Friday. 2020-03-23. The Straits Times. en. 2020-03-25.
  7. Web site: ABTC Summary . . 20 January 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161019010749/http://travel.apec.org/abtc-summary.html . 19 October 2016 . dead . dmy-all.
  8. Web site: ABTC Economy Entry Information . www.apec.org . 2022-10-18.
  9. Web site: CNA . CNA (news channel) . No visa required for Hong Kong passport holders to enter Singapore, ICA clarifies . CNA . 23 January 2023 . en . 21 November 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191122133352/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/hong-kong-passport-holders-visa-enter-singapore-ica-12114318. dead. 22 November 2019.
  10. Web site: More Foreign Visitors Able to Clear Immigration Through Automated Lanes . 2023-04-25 . ICA . en.
  11. Web site: Automated Clearance Initiative . 2022-05-19 . ICA . en.
  12. Web site: New Clearance Concept - Changi Airport ACI brochure . ica.gov.sg . . 2 July 2024 . en . 6 June 2024.
  13. Web site: Automated Clearance Initiative . 2 July 2024 . ICA . en.
  14. Web site: Singapore Changi Airport Transit Guide | Changi Airport Group.
  15. Web site: Visa-Free Transit Facility. 3 February 2019.
  16. Web site: ICA Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate. www.ica.gov.sg. 2020-03-28.
  17. Web site: Countries with risk of yellow fever transmission and countries requiring yellow fever vaccination. June 17, 2014. World Health Organization, International Travel and Health. March 29, 2020.
  18. Web site: Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate. 2017-10-31.
  19. News: Tang . See Kit . Tjendro . Johannes . No entry or transit through Singapore for all short-term visitors amid heightened risk of imported COVID-19 cases: MOH . Channel NewsAsia. 22 March 2020 . 9 May 2020.
  20. News: COVID-19: Entry approval required for all long-term pass holders entering Singapore . Channel NewsAsia. 28 March 2020 . 9 May 2020.
  21. Web site: Error. www.mfa.gov.sg.

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