Hi ERSG,
Can you describe your experience with immigration at Changi airport arriving and leaving Spore? For example, do you get questioned on why you are flying back to a high CV country
Reader Mel commented on the previous post and I think it would be interesting for readers to know more about the process, since not many people would have this experience.
I'll do this post as a Singaporean, I don't know about foreigners or work pass holders, and I didn't do any research on it.
Entering Singapore
So when we decided to return to Singapore, there wasn't much that needed to be done. Cos we're Singaporeans returning home. SG doesn't have restrictions on us going back to SG. We did have to complete a health declaration stating that we understood the SHN requirements, blah blah blah, 3 days before flying into SG.
It's really quite simple, except that finding a flight back into SG wasn't so easy, cos not many flights are flying these days.
In the plane, Qatar Airways, we are supposed to wear a face mask and face shield at all times unless eating. The plane is pretty much only 20% full. Each passenger is able to get 3 empty seats to lie across to sleep, and even then, there is still rows of empty seats, so there's really a lot of space.
Landing in SG is also a simple process. When we got out of the plane, it's the typical Singaporean efficiency. I think the Government/ICA has really hired a lot of redundant workers as ushers/guides to shepherd the travelers from the airplane to immigration. There's really A LOT of staff to usher passengers.
At immigration, the officer will check our passports and talk to us about our health declaration and that we understand that we need to serve 14 days SHN and we need to take a swab test, etc...
Then we are ushered to collect baggage, then through customs and to a gathering area.
At the gathering area, we wait for other passengers to gather and we are guided onto a bus to bring us to the hotel for SHN.
Checking into the hotel is the usual check in process.
The 14 day SHN is free for us, as we left SG before March 2020.
For travelers who left SG after March 2020, and return to SG, they will have to pay for their own SHN. Cos it's like, "YOU ALREADY KNOW THERE'S COVID, WHO ASK YOU TO GO AND TRAVEL!!!"
So if we return to SG next year and there's still SHN requirements, we will have to pay for ourselves.
For us, it's quite a simple process of just follow the ushers and we will end up at the hotel.
Then we just stay in the hotel for 14 days.
Regularly, ICA representatives will call us to make sure that we are still at the hotel, or they will knock our hotel doors and ask us questions or ask us to show our IC to determine that we have not left the SHN facility.
On the 11th day, we go to take a swab test. For us, we just needed to go to the hotel lobby where there is a bunch of medical staff who will perform the swabs for us. We have to pay for our own swab tests, S$186 per pax.
2 days later, someone called us to give us our test results.
Even if the test is negative, we still have to serve our full 14 day SHN.
Total time for SHN is 14 nights, 15 days.
Then we call our own cab/Grab and leave the SHN hotel.
Then life goes on as normal.
Leaving Singapore
This is pretty easy, it's as though we are just traveling.
No further questions asked.
Since we didn't buy a return ticket, they do ask a bit more questions.
Like why we are traveling to the US, what is our address in the US, do we have a long term visa in the US, etc.
This is the same as when we left for France without a return ticket. So there's no change in procedure due to COVID.
End
I think there won't be any tourists who would be coming to SG or SG tourists going overseas. There's really no point during this period.
Most people who are traveling are either people traveling due to work, or students, or they are going/coming home from work/study.
OH and people who are looking to relocate. Which I classify under work related travelers.
I think for new opportunities, people are willing to travel even during COVID conditions. Although for me, I would really wonder why anyone would want to relocate during this period.
I likely would not return to SG anytime soon.
Unless the SHN notice is lifted. Cos it really isn't worth staying 14 days at a facility. It's really no fun for me.
I WILL still make at least one trip back to SG next year, regardless of SHN requirements.
So, if SHN is still required near end of 2021, I'll still return to SG to visit my family and friends.
Else, if SHN is lifted earlier, then I will return maybe once every 6 months.
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