Covid-19: 14-day SHN for travellers cut to 10 days; arriving long-term pass holders must be vaccinated from Nov 1

• The stay-home-notice periods for travellers who must now serve 14 days in isolation will be shortened to 10 days from Oct 6
• This accounts for the shorter incubation period of the Delta strain of Covid-19
• From Nov 1, all work-pass holders and their dependants as well as student’s pass holders must be fully vaccinated before coming to Singapore

SINGAPORE — From 11.59pm next Wednesday (Oct 6), the stay-home-notice period for travellers entering Singapore who must now serve 14 days in isolation will be shortened to 10 days.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Saturday that this was in line with the shortening of the quarantine period, which accounts for the shorter incubation period of the Delta variant of the coronavirus, which has been behind the latest surge in infections in Singapore.  

Border controls for travellers will also, from 11.59pm next Wednesday, be determined based on travellers’ recent travel history in the previous 14 days, instead of 21 days at present. 

To allow workers and students to enter Singapore safely and minimise public health risks, all work-pass holders and their dependants as well as student’s pass holders must also be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 before arriving in Singapore.

This rule will take effect from Nov 1.

Travellers applying to enter the country via the familial-ties lane from Nov 1 will also be given priority if they are fully immunised. 

At a press conference by the national Covid-19 task force on Saturday, Associate Professor Kenneth Mak, MOH’s director of medical services, said that the authorities here would recognise all vaccines under the World Health Organization’s Emergency Use Listing as meeting the immunisation requirement. 

The requirement will not apply to those below 18.

Unvaccinated persons between 12 and less than 18 years of age may enter without proof of immunisation, on the condition that they complete their full vaccination regimen within two months of their arrival in Singapore. 

“Pass holders who are medically ineligible for vaccination may appeal for exemption from the vaccination requirement, supported by a doctor’s memo, before applying for entry approval,” said MOH. 

Separately, the Ministry of Manpower will also resume entry approvals for foreign domestic workers as well as S Pass and work-permit holders from the construction, marine shipyard and process sectors who enter Singapore from higher-risk countries or regions.

This is provided that they are fully vaccinated before arrival. 

These groups may start applying for approvals from Oct 15. 

MOH said that entry approvals would be limited in light of the evolving coronavirus situation here and abroad as well as the need to minimise the risk of coronaviral importation. 

Pass holders may have to wait about three to six months before they can enter Singapore.

Here is a closer look at the updated stay-home-notice periods for travellers from various countries:

All travellers who were in Category 3 and 4 countries or regions in the 14 days immediately before arriving in Singapore 

• Countries in these categories include the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US)
• They will serve 10 days in isolation at dedicated stay-home-notice facilities
• They will take a Covid-19 polymerase chain reaction swab test on arrival as well as on the 10th day, and antigen rapid self-tests on the third and seventh days
• Their isolation period will end so long as they get a negative polymerase chain reaction swab test result on the 10th day

Fully vaccinated travellers who were in Category 3 countries or regions in the 14 days immediately before arriving in Singapore 

• They may apply to be isolated at their place of residence or at other suitable accommodation, including hotels or serviced apartments. This is provided that they occupy these spaces alone or with household members who are also inoculated and serving a stay-home order with the same travel history

CHANGES TO CLASSIFICATION OF COUNTRIES BASED ON COVID-19 SITUATION

Based on the coronavirus situation, the following countries will be placed in Category 2 from 11.59pm next Wednesday. 

This means that travellers from these places will have to serve a seven-day isolation period at their declared places of accommodation or dedicated facilities. 

• The Czech Republic
• Denmark
• France
• Finland
• Italy
• Japan
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• The Netherlands
• Portugal
• Spain
• Sweden

Separately, the following places will be placed in the higher-risk Category 3, which entails a 10-day isolation period:

• Bahrain
• Bhutan
• Cyprus
• Fiji
• Greece
• Iceland
• Ireland
• Liechtenstein
• Maldives
• Slovakia
• Turkey
• The UK
• The US