In addition, from December 6, 2021, travelers can look forward to VTLs with Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Singapore intends to launch Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTLs) with five other countries in the coming weeks, the Multi-Ministry Taskforce (MTF) announced on Monday (November 15th, 2021).

In particular, these VTLs will initially be extended to India and Indonesia from November 29, 2021 (Monday), followed by Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from December 6, 2021 (Monday).

To facilitate preparations, VTP applications for short-term and long-term passport holders will begin on November 22nd for travelers from India and Indonesia; November 29th and 29th for travelers from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Returning Singapore citizens and Singapore permanent residents who are fully vaccinated are not required to submit a VTP application to use the VTLs for travel.

In one LinkedIn post, said Singapore’s Minister of Transport, S. Iswaran, that the VTL will be unilateral with Indonesia as the country remains closed to general tourist traffic but has started opening its borders. Regarding the VTL with India, he noted that Singapore and India are discussing resuming commercial passenger services, as only aid flights chartered by the government are allowed to carry passengers to India today.

Meanwhile, he added, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are open to already fully vaccinated travelers from Singapore, while Qatar is requiring travelers to self-isolate until they get a negative PCR test result on arrival.

Singapore still has VTLs to this day Australia, Brunei, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Republic of Korea, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and USA; and will start VTLs with Malaysia, Finland and Sweden from November 29, 2021.

Travelers under the VTLs are not subject to the Stay-Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival. Instead, they must present a negative pre-departure test within two days of departure and undergo a PCR test on arrival, the MTF said.

Travelers intending to travel from Singapore to all VTL countries / regions are also advised to check the destination’s applicable entry requirements.

In related news, the Singapore Civil Aviation Authority announced over the weekend that Singapore will expand its recognized credentials for travel from the US, while adding to the list of US certificates that can be digitally verified. More on this here.

What steps are required to travel under the VTL program?

1. First things first: Check the entry requirements of the VTL country you want to visit. For example, the VTL with Australia is only open to Singaporean citizens as a pilot. Check whether you are authorized to enter the respective VTL country.

2. Check whether there are still VTL flights available for the period in which you plan to enter Singapore. Please note that travelers are not required to take designated VTL flights to depart from Singapore. The VTL is intended for travelers wishing to enter Singapore. For travelers flying from Singapore, it depends on the inbound requirements of the destination country / region.

3a. If you are a Singapore citizen or a permanent Singapore resident, the next step is: Download your vaccination record and have it ready for use again.

3b. If you are a foreign visitor either living in Singapore or looking to visit Singapore (i.e. either a short term visitor or a long term pass holder) then the next step is to apply for a vaccinated passport as well as Check the entry requirements for the Singapore visa.

For a full set of frequently asked questions, including application requirements, relevant schedules, and procedures, check out our updates at the link below and share them 🙂

• Singapore’s Vaccinated Routes of Travel (VTL) FAQ: Who Eligible, How to Apply for a VTP, and More

On November 15, Singapore also announced the calibrated relaxation of selected measures for safe management as part of the mid-term review of the extended stabilization phase. Visit our Story here for the full updates.

Image / 123RF

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