Finland and Sweden joining VTL scheme from 29 November

Finland and Sweden will be added to Singapore’s Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme from 29 November 2021, joining the growing list of two-way quarantine-free travel options for fully vaccinated Singapore residents. 

While there is currently no non-stop flight to Stockholm, it’s possible to fly non-stop to Helsinki via Finnair’s 3x weekly service. 

Finland and Sweden join VTL

From 29 November 2021, fully vaccinated travellers from Finland or Sweden may travel to Singapore without quarantine, provided they satisfy the following conditions:

By the end of November, the total number of VTL countries will stand at 16, and so long as one’s 14-day travel history consists exclusively of these and/or Singapore/Category I countries, they may board designated VTL flights to Singapore and enter without quarantine. 

Entry restrictions & testing for Singapore residents

Fully-vaccinated Singapore residents may enter Finland with no quarantine or testing required.

With Sweden, it’s slightly tricker. Singapore is on the list of countries exempted from Sweden’s entry ban. However, it’s stated elsewhere that foreign nationals who are subject to the entry ban exception must present a certificate of vaccination, negative test or recovery. Singapore’s certificate should be recognised as it’s in Annex 1 of the Ordinance (2020:127) on a temporary entry ban to Sweden. If in doubt, you’d be best advised to check with the airline. 

In terms of testing, you’re looking at just two tests. 

Unfortunately, even though Singapore will soon accept the cheaper ART swabs as a valid pre-departure test, the cost is still pretty steep in both countries. 

Designated VTL flights

Finland

Details have yet to be released regarding designated VTL flights from Finland to Singapore. 

What we do know is that Finnair currently operates 3x weekly A350-900 flights between Helsinki and Singapore, which will likely be granted VTL status on certain days (but not all, since there still needs to be a non-VTL option for unvaccinated individuals)

Singapore Airlines has never flown to Finland, as far as I know, although there’s always the possibility of a fifth-freedom flight being added.

However, we shouldn’t expect that Singapore Airlines will offer service to all VTL destinations- as the scheme grows in size, there’ll obviously be destinations which Singapore Airlines does not find commercially feasible to serve. 

Sweden

Singapore Airlines used to serve Stockholm via Moscow, before the route was suspended and eventually terminated in late 2020. 

I’m not familiar with what the loads were like on this route, but management presumably didn’t see any hopes for a quick recovery. I believe it’s much more likely for SAS to start service between Stockholm and Singapore than to see a resurrection of the route on SIA. 

If non-stop service to Stockholm does not materialise, you would still be able to travel to/from Sweden via any other VTL country, with the same quarantine-free perks (do be careful on the outbound leg, however, as Sweden is restricting entry from certain countries).

Conclusion

The addition of Finland and Sweden to the VTL adds two more options for Singaporeans looking at year-end travel, and provides an even bigger “safe zone” in Europe where travellers can venture without jeopardising their eligibility for a quarantine-waiver on return to Singapore. 

While you might be tempted to book something ASAP, it’s best to wait until we have the details on designated VTL flights.