Singapore Singapore — entry & visa requirements
Many visitors can enter Singapore visa-free, but how long you get depends on your passport: the authority for this page gives a typical 30 days, ranging from 15 to 90. If you do need a visa, you apply before travelling, usually through a local contact with a Singpass or Corppass account. All travellers must file an SG Arrival Card with an electronic health declaration within three days before arrival. Visa fees are Not stated in our archive.
Who can enter Singapore visa-free
Singapore applies a visa-exemption regime rather than one single rule: many nationalities may enter without a visa, while others need one arranged before travel. The archived official sources describe exemptions by passport nationality and permitted length of stay, and repeat that the final length of stay is fixed by the immigration officer at the checkpoint.
- Holders of ordinary passports issued by the People's Republic of China have been exempt from visa requirements for stays of up to 30 days in Singapore since 9 February 2024.[1]
- The arrangement is reciprocal: Singapore ordinary passport holders are exempt for stays of up to 30 days in China, as announced at the 19th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation on 7 December 2023 and affirmed by exchange of diplomatic notes.[1]
- Anyone not covered by an exemption must hold a Singapore entry visa, which is only pre-entry permission to travel to and seek entry.[5]
- ICA's visa requirements page is the reference list to check against your own passport, including special cases such as Hong Kong SAR documents of identity.[5][10]
Visa-exempt stay length by passport
The archived table of stay tiers is very thin and covers only the Singapore–China arrangement. No archived list shows which nationalities receive 30 days and which receive up to 90, even though the authority for this page states maximum stays run from 15 to 90 days depending on passport.
- The archived tier table records a 30-day visa-free stay in Singapore for PRC ordinary passport holders from 9 February 2024.[1]
- A second, historical tier records a 15-day visa-free facility for Singapore ordinary passport holders travelling to China, suspended by the Chinese authorities from 1 July 2008; it concerns Singaporeans going to China, not visitors to Singapore.[4]
- Stay length varies with passport, but Our official archive does not itemise which nationalities fall into which band.[5]
How long you can stay and extending it
Your stay is set at the checkpoint, not by your visa: ICA issues an electronic Visit Pass on entry and that pass fixes your last day. If you need longer you can apply online for a Short-Term Visit Pass extension, and approval is not guaranteed.
- The period of stay is not tied to the validity of your visa; it is determined by the Visit Pass issued as an electronic pass (e-Pass) at the checkpoint.[5]
- Short-term travellers should carry sufficient cash and proof of onward travel, such as tickets and visas, and must not stay beyond the Visit Pass validity.[9]
- Visitors who want to stay longer may apply for a Short-Term Visit Pass (STVP) extension online, subject to approval.[5][9]
- An extension fee of S$40 applies if the extension takes your stay to 90 days or more from the date of entry or pass issuance, and again for every further 90-day block.[15]
Visa-free transit and general notes
The material in this slot is almost entirely about the 96-hour visa-free transit facility (VFTF), which sits alongside the normal exemption rules. Eligibility is limited to a defined list of nationalities, and the archived official sources give little other visitor-facing general information.
- The 96-hour visa-free transit facility (VFTF) may be available to nationals of the Commonwealth of Independent States, Georgia, India, Turkmenistan and Ukraine.[5][7]
- Selected PRC nationals who do not hold ordinary, diplomatic, public affairs or service PRC passports may also be eligible for the VFTF.[5][7]
- For VFTF purposes the CIS is listed as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.[7]
- Travellers holding a Single Journey Visa may still be granted the VFTF on the return leg of their journey, after the visa has been used and is no longer valid.[7]
Documents you need
For a visa application ICA expects a signed Form 14A, original documents with official English translations, and a compliant photograph, with further papers requested case by case. Health paperwork can also be demanded: a yellow fever vaccination certificate if you have recently been in a risk country.
- Submit a duly completed Form 14A signed by you; ICA decides the application on the information declared in that form and may ask for the form itself.[10]
- Provide original documents plus official translations for anything not in English, together with copies for ICA to retain.[10]
- Your photograph must meet ICA's requirements, which follow ISO and ICAO specifications, and must not be altered or enhanced, including changes to facial features.[8]
- Additional supporting documents, such as Form V39A (Letter of Introduction for Visa Application), may be required on a case-by-case basis.[10]
- Travellers who have been in a country with risk of yellow fever transmission in the six days before arrival, including more than 12 hours of airport transit there, must produce a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate to the ICA officer on arrival.[9]
Fees and payment
The archived material covers how to pay rather than how much. ICA processes an application only after successful payment, and it accepts PayNow QR, cards, and contactless payment at its counters. The visa fee amount itself is Not stated in our archive.
- Your application is processed only upon successful payment, and the visa fee figure is not given in the archived official sources.[16]
- ICA accepts PayNow QR generated with a unique reference code for each payment, and warns that paying to ICA's UEN number instead will make the application unsuccessful.[16]
- Refunds for Visa, Mastercard or American Express payments go back to the card used, while PayNow refunds go to the PayNow account linked to your NRIC or FIN.[16]
- Save the receipt that appears after a successful payment, as applicants are advised to keep a copy.[16]
- Contactless payment via Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay is accepted at ICA counters.[16]
How the application works
An entry visa is only permission to travel to Singapore and seek entry; the immigration pass and the length of stay are decided by the ICA officer at the checkpoint. Applications go through a local contact with a Singpass or Corppass account, and ICA does not take visa applications at immigration counters.
- A Singapore entry visa is not an immigration pass: it is pre-entry permission for the holder of a valid visa to travel to, and seek entry into, Singapore, with the grant of a pass decided by ICA officers at the point of entry.[5]
- Your period of stay is not tied to the validity of your visa.[5]
- ICA does not accept submission of visa applications over the immigration counters.[5]
- If you do not have a Local Contact with a Singpass or Corppass account, the archived page indicates other submission routes, but the extracted text is cut off at that point.[5]
- The SG Arrival Card can be filed through ICA's e-Service or the free mobile app, which can scan your passport biodata page and save your details for later trips.[20][22]
At the border
All travellers must submit an SG Arrival Card with an electronic health declaration within three days before arriving, with some categories excepted, and false declarations can be prosecuted. At the checkpoint short-term visitors should be ready to show funds and proof of onward travel, and cross-border cash movements must be reported.
- Submit the SG Arrival Card within three days, including the day of arrival, before reaching Singapore; certain categories of traveller are exempt.[22]
- The health declaration can be filed up to three days before arrival and must be re-submitted if your health condition or travel history changes before you arrive.[23]
- Those who make false declarations are liable for prosecution under the Infectious Diseases Act.[22][23]
- There is no limit on the type or amount of cross-border cash and negotiable instruments you may carry, but movements must be reported using Form NP 727, and from 13 May 2024 an online declaration no longer has to be physically submitted at the Red Channel or immigration counter.[24]
- Short-term travellers should have sufficient cash and proof of onward travel, such as tickets and visas, and must not stay beyond the Visit Pass validity.[9]
Official FAQ and other notes
The archived FAQ material is thin and mostly concerns residents, students and Singapore citizens rather than visitors. The genuinely visitor-relevant items are an anti-scam warning and a tool for checking your last day of stay; most other questions archived were only pointers to further FAQ pages.
- ICA states it will never ask for money or bank log-in details by phone; if you are suspicious, call the ScamShield 24/7 helpline at 1799.[31]
- ICA provides a Visit Pass validity tool for checking the last day of stay allowed in Singapore.[21]
- Other archived FAQ items deal with automated-lane enrolment for young Singapore citizens, Student's Pass timing and permit-holder matters, and do not apply to visitors.[31][33]
Official downloads
4 files as ZIP ≈263 KBAll four attachments are forms and checklists used in long-term residence, student or pre-marriage applications. None is needed for a short visitor visa or for a visa-exempt visit.
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PDFeform16-a-amended-20-dec-24A declaration/undertaking form (3 pages, English) from ICA's e-forms set, used in long-term residence, work or study applications rather than visitor visa applications.
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PDFeform16 amended-20-dec-24A second ICA declaration/undertaking form (2 pages, English), again belonging to long-term residence, work or study categories.
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PDFform-v36a application-for-stp info-on-schoolForm V36A, a school information form (1 page, English) submitted with a Student's Pass application.
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PDFltvp-document-checklistA Long-Term Visit Pass document checklist (2 pages, English) for long-term stay applications, not for visitor visas.
Official sources
The sources mix genuinely visitor-relevant ICA pages (visa requirements, visa-free transit, SG Arrival Card, stay extension) with large amounts of residence, student, citizenship and other countries' material, so the visitor outline is clear but incomplete.
Numbers match the markers in the text above; click a marker to jump here. Groups are collapsed by domain - click a heading to expand. A source cited more than once keeps a single number.
www.ica.gov.sg14 URLs · cited 46 times
- 1www.ica.gov.sg/news-and-publications/newsroom/media-release/mutual-30-day-visa-exemption-arrangement-between-singapore-and-the-people-s-republic-of-chinacited 4×
- 5www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singapore/visa_requirementscited 12×
- 7www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singapore/visa-free-transit-facilitycited 4×
- 8www.ica.gov.sg/photo-guidelines
- 9www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singaporecited 4×
- 10www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singapore/visa_requirements/document-of-identity-issued-by-hong-kong-special-administrative-regioncited 4×
- 15www.ica.gov.sg/enter-depart/extend_short_staycited 2×
- 16www.ica.gov.sg/payment-refundcited 5×
- 20www.ica.gov.sg/news-and-publications/newsroom/media-release/ica-to-trial-beta-version-of-sg-arrival-card-e-service-and-mobile-application-with-selected-transport-operators
- 21www.ica.gov.sg/visit_pass_validity_tool
- 22www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singapore/sg-arrival-cardcited 4×
- 23www.ica.gov.sg/news-and-publications/newsroom/media-release/all-travellers-arriving-in-singapore-from-27-march-2020-0900-hours-must-submit-health-declaration-via-the-sg-arrival-card-e-servicecited 2×
- 24www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/at-our-checkpoints/for-travellers/CBNI
- 33www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/at-our-checkpoints/for-travellers/automated-lanes
eservices.ica.gov.sg1 URL · cited 2 times
www.mfa.gov.sg1 URL · cited 1 time
Popularity rank #3 (score 75.66). This page was written by an AI from the official material listed above and adds no facts from outside it; visa rules change, so always confirm on the official portal before you apply.
Visa routes to Singapore · 34 routes · 34 verified · all corridors →
● Visa not required · 30-day
● Visa not required · 30-day
● e-Visa required · 90-day
● Visa required
● Visa not required · 90-day
● Visa not required · 90-day
● Visa not required · 90-day
● Visa not required · 90-day
● Visa not required · 90-day