Singapore to reopen its borders to all fully vaccinated tourists on 1 April

The reopening will also coincide with Malaysia’s

On 31 March, 11:59 p.m., Singapore will be easing its cross-border travel restrictions. This means fully vaccinated visitors will be allowed to enter the country without the need to undergo quarantine, according to CNA. 

All existing vaccinated travel lanes (VTL) and unilateral opening arrangements will be replaced by a new travel framework. This will involve classifying countries and regions into two categories: general travel or restricted. Currently, there are no countries or regions under the restricted category.

This also means that vaccinated travel passes (VTP) and air travel passes (ATP) will no longer be required.

Moreover, there will no longer be limits for overland travellers, which used to 4,000 per day.

Data gathered by Traveloka revealed an influx in demand for flights and hotels following the announcement — a 152 percent increase in average search volume and a 227 percent in average booking volume.

Expedia also shared that flight searches on its platform have doubled compared to the day before the announcement was made.

Additionally, fully vaccinated travellers from Malaysia via private vehicles through the land borders will no longer be required to do pre-departure or on-arrival tests. The reopening will also coincide with Malaysia’s.

More: Malaysia to transition into endemic phase starting 1 April

“Singapore and Malaysia enjoy deep, warm, and multifaceted relations, as well as strong people-to-people ties. Today’s announcement is a significant milestone in our transition towards living with Covid-19,” said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. 

When Singapore gradually opened its borders in 2021, its economy grew by 7.2 percent. This was considered a significant growth from a 5.4 percent contraction in 2020, as reported by ASEAN Briefing. 

The government expects the country’s GDP to rise by three to five percent this year. However, this development will be uneven, particularly in the aviation and tourism industries.

With its borders fully reopening, Singapore can easily reclaim its status as a “business hub” in the Asia Pacific region, especially when multinational and international companies already use the city-state as a base for their Asia operations.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].