Singapore to lift restrictions for visitors from Taiwan

Instead of negotiating a travel bubble, the country will unilaterally open its borders with Taiwan on December 18.

Singapore.- Rather than arrange a travel bubble as initially expected, Singapore has decided to unilaterally open its border with Taiwan in an attempt to increase visitation.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAAS), entry restrictions will be lifted for visitors from Taiwan on December 18.

Travellers will be able to apply for a single-entry Air Travel Pass (ATP) to enter Singapore as long as they were in Taiwan for 14 consecutive days before departure.

In a release, the CAAS said: “Taiwan has a comprehensive public health surveillance system and has displayed successful control over the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Over the past 28 days, Taiwan has zero local COVID-19 cases. The risk of importation from Taiwan is low.”

Passengers will have to take a COVID-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test on arrival, and if the result is negative, they will be able to enter the country without a Stay-Home Notice (SHN).

The same measures will apply for Singapore residents returning from Taiwan as of December 18, the CAAS said.

Singapore has already lifted border restrictions for travellers from Australia, Brunei Darussalam, mainland China, New Zealand and Vietnam.

However, a proposed travel bubble between the country and Hong Kong has been delayed until 2021 due to a spike in Covid-19 cases in the Special Administrative Region.