From 24 January 2021, All travellers, including Singapore citizens and permanent residents, will need to take a COVID-19 PCR test on arrival at Singapore.
The new rule has been announced by the Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH) to prevent the risk of the new Covid-19 virus.
According to the country, it has witnessed several new cases of Covid-19 by arriving international passengers.
The Ministry on Saturday confirmed 4 coronavirus cases from the community (or local), one from the dormitories for foreign workers here and 19 imported cases.
- The dormitory case is a 37-year-old Indian national who was detected through rostered routine testing on January 14.
- The work permit holder lives in Tuas South Dormitory and works at Chevron Oronite as a thermal insulator installer.
- His earlier tests from routine testing – the last being on December 17 – were negative for COVID-19 infection, said the Channel report.
As of now, non-Singaporean or permanent resident travelers who have recently traveled to high-risk countries or regions are required to have a PCR test within 72 hours of departure. They will then be retested at the end of their notice period.
The 29 import cases reported on Friday included 13 work permit holders arriving from Bangladesh, India and Myanmar, five of whom are foreign domestic workers.
In a media release, the Ministry noted the emergence of new COVID-19 variants and the worsening coronavirus situation around the world. “The multi-ministry task force regularly reviews Singapore’s border measures to manage the risk of importation and onward local transmission from travellers,” it said.
Another New Rule For Passengers From the UK And South Africa
The ministry also announced that all Singaporeans and permanent residents returning from the United Kingdom and South Africa will be subject to an additional 7 days of self-isolation at their place of residence, following their 14-day stay-home notice period at dedicated facilities.
This rule will take effect from 11.59 pm on January 18.
As per the MOH, they will be tested at the end of their stay-home notice, as with the current requirement, and again after they complete their 7-day self-isolation period, said the MOH.
“Given the resurgence of COVID-19 cases around the world, we will be putting in place more stringent measures for travellers to manage the risk of importation.”
Travel Insurance Mandatory With Air Travel Pass
With effect from 11.59 pm on January 31, visitors applying to enter Singapore under the Air Travel Pass (ATP) and Reciprocal Green Lanes (RGLs) will need to have travel insurance for their COVID-19-related medical treatment and hospitalization costs in Singapore, with a minimum coverage of SGD 30,000 ( ₹16,50,000 approx).
“The travel insurance will help them pay for the costs of their medical treatment in Singapore. The visitors can purchase the travel insurance from Singapore-based or overseas insurers,” said the Ministry.
Separately, the Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that the reciprocal Green Lane (RGL) between Singapore and Japan has been suspended pending the lifting of the state of emergency in Japan.
Singapore recorded 59,083 coronavirus cases on Saturday. A total of 58,784 have fully recovered from the infection and been discharged from hospitals or community care facilities, while 29 disease-related deaths have occurred.
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