VTL travellers to Singapore can do a self-swab ART on arrival from 15 March

From 15 March 2022, travellers arriving in Singapore under the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme will be able to perform a self-administered ART in lieu of a supervised ART swab.

We will now further rationalise our travel protocols by switching to an unsupervised self-swab Antigen Rapid Test (ART) within 24 hours of entry for General Category (Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL)) and Category I travellers entering Singapore from 14 March 2022, 2359 hours. This will replace the previous requirement for a supervised self-swab ART. 

-MOH

This will save travellers S$15 (the price they’d pay for a supervised swab at a QTC/CTC), but more importantly, offers greater convenience by scratching yet another thing off the to-do list. 

My sources tell me that it’s more or less a done deal that Singapore will scrap the VTL scheme altogether from 1 April 2022, and this latest simplification only lends further credence to the theories. 

VTL travellers can now take self-administered ARTs

From 15 March 2022, all VTL travellers to Singapore will need to take two COVID-19 tests:

1. A professionally-administered ART or PCR test within two days of departure to Singapore
2. A self-administered ART within 24 hours of arrival, with an approved test kit

With regards to (2), travellers will be required to report their results via sync.gov.sg before proceeding with their activities in Singapore:

• Singapore Citizens, Permanent Residents and Long-Term Pass Holders (LTPHs) with SingPass accounts should login to Sync with SingPass to submit results 
• LTPHs and short-term visitors without SingPass accounts should login to Sync with their passport number, date of birth and nationality to submit results

As before, fully-vaccinated and recently recovered travellers will be exempt from the on-arrival testing process, although it’s now so straightforward that the real benefit of recent recovery is the ability to take non-VTL flights to Singapore without SHN. 

Which ART kits can I use?

Travellers can use any HSA-approved ART kit to carry out their self-administered swab. There are currently 16 approved kits on the list. 

Unlike certain countries, I don’t see Singapore providing free ART kits on arrival, so travellers should make it a point to bring their own along. In case you forget, it’s possible to get ART kits delivered to your home or hotel via a service like GrabMart. 

Revised VTL process to Singapore

With these changes, here’s a summary of the requirements for VTL travel to Singapore, effective 15 March 2022.

✔️ VTL Eligibility Criteria (From 15 Mar 2022)
All	7-day travel history only includes Singapore and/or VTL countries and/or Category I countries Fully vaccinated with any vaccine on the WHO EUL^ Complete SG Arrival Card Present negative pre-departure ART/PCR test taken within 2 days of flight to Singapore* Take designated VTL flight to Singapore Take self-administered ART on arrival and report results
Short-term visitors & Work permit holders	Apply for Vaccinated Travel Pass Purchase travel insurance with min. S$30K coverage (short-term visitors only)
*Children aged 2 or under in the current calendar year are exempt ^Exception for children aged 12 and below, if they are accompanied by vaccinated traveller

The MOH has also provided a list of updated border measures, which can be found here. 

Conclusion

VTL travellers to Singapore arriving from 15 March 2022 will be allowed to take a self-administered ART instead of a supervised ART.

Personally, I would have preferred if they did away with the pre-departure test while keeping the supervised on-arrival ART, but I’ll take whatever they’re offering. 

This surely spells the imminent demise of the VTL concept in favour of a vaccinated/non-vaccinated system, so stay tuned for further updates very soon.