Singapore and Malaysia have reopened their borders to the world, allowing all fully vaccinated travellers to enter without quarantine.
While quarantine-free travel between the two countries had already resumed back in November 2021 with the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) agreement, the reopening is still good news for Singapore and Malaysia residents insofar as it means the scrapping of designated VTL flights, removal of travel history requirements, and no more testing.
With regards to testing, Malaysia will be scrapping all testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers from 1 May 2022. Until then, travellers from Singapore will be permitted to take a cheaper supervised antigen rapid test (ART) as their pre-departure test (PDT), and be exempt from on-arrival testing (OAT).
All fully vaccinated travellers can already travel to Singapore with no need for testing.
In this post, we’ll look at the process for round-trip air travel between Singapore and Malaysia.
Air travel to Malaysia
| ✔️ Quarantine-Free Travel to Malaysia (From 1 May 2022) | |
| All |
|
| #Children aged 17 and under are exempt | |
| MST Checklist | |
Malaysia has reopened its borders and resumed quarantine-free access for all fully vaccinated travellers.
There is no need to take designated VTL flights anymore; you may take any flight you wish.
Fully vaccinated
All travellers to Malaysia must be fully vaccinated, as defined by the following table:
| Vaccine | Doses | 18-59 y.o | ≥60 y.o |
| Sinovac Sinopharm | 2 | Partially Vax. | |
| 3 | Fully Vax. | ||
| Pfizer Moderna Astra Zeneca Covaxin Covishield Novavax Sputnik V | 2 | Fully Vax. | Partially Vax. |
| 3 | Fully Vax. | Fully Vax. | |
| CanSino Johnson & Johnson Sputnik Light | 1 | Fully Vax. | Partially Vax. |
| 2 | Fully Vax. | Fully Vax. | |
For example, someone with 2 doses of Pfizer would be considered fully vaccinated if he/she is aged 18-59 years old, but partially vaccinated if he/she is 60 years or older.
Children aged 17 and below are considered to meet the vaccination requirement, regardless of actual vaccination status.
MySejahtera app
Travellers to Malaysia must:
- download the MySejahtera app (Android | iOS)
- create an account (when registering, enter the Malaysia address you’ll be staying at)
- complete the digital pre-departure form via the “Traveller” icon on MySejahtera
- verify their COVID-19 vaccination certificate.
| ❓ Already Verified? |
| If you have previously verified your digital vaccination on the MySejahtera app (e.g. when you travelled on the VTL), you do not need to do it again |
Most of the steps are pretty self-explanatory, except perhaps the last one. Anyone who was vaccinated outside of Malaysia needs to upload and verify their digital vaccination certificate before departure.
This can be done via the MySafeTravel portal, and involves uploading the QR code of your vaccination certificate. Singapore travellers are only required to upload a single QR code; the instructions say to choose the last EUDCC one on your cert (i.e. Dose 2 for double dosed travellers, Dose 3 for triple dosed travellers).
But no matter what I did, my “offline QR verification (EU DCC-compatible)” code wasn’t accepted. In the end I used the one labelled “online QR verification” and it went through just fine.
Verification should be instant, if all your information is entered properly. Take note that every comma, every hyphen must be included! If the name on your vaccination certificate is:
Tan Ah-Kow, John
be sure to enter it exactly that way on MySafeTravel.
Those who were vaccinated in other countries can refer to this guide for the steps required.
COVID-19 tests
From 1 May 2022, Malaysia will scrap all COVID-19 testing for fully vaccinated travellers.
Prior to this, the following tests are required for travellers to Malaysia (except those aged 6 and below):
| Travellers from Singapore | Rest of the World | |
| Pre-Departure Test* | PCR or supervised ART within 2 days | PCR within 2 days^ |
| On-Arrival Test* | Exempt | Supervised ART within 24h |
| *Travellers aged 6 and below exempt ^Travellers who have recovered from COVID-19 within 6-60 days before departure may take a supervised ART instead, with adequate documentation | ||
You’ll notice that travellers from Singapore have the option to take a supervised ART instead of a PCR test, and are also exempt from the on-arrival test requirement.
This means significant cost savings and added convenience, given that you can do the pre-departure test from the comfort of your home via a tele-medicine service like DoctorAnywhere or Raffles Connect.
How is this different from VTL travel?
If you’ve travelled to Malaysia under the VTL previously, here’s the key differences of the new arrangement.
| VTL-Air | New Scheme | |
| Travel History | Last 14 days in SG or MY only | No restriction |
| Vaccine Exemption | <12 y.o | ≤17 y.o |
| Flights | VTL flights only | Any flight |
| C-19 Travel Insurance | RM100K | N/A |
| Pre-Departure Test | PCR within 2 days | Supervised ART within 2 days (scrapped from 1 May) |
| On-Arrival Test | PCR | N/A |
It’s an altogether positive development, with no more restrictions on flights or travel history, as well as simplified testing requirements.
Air travel to Singapore
| ✔️ Quarantine-Free Travel to Singapore | |
| All |
|
| #Children aged 12 and under exempt | |
| ICA Checklist | |
Singapore will commence its Vaccinated Travel Framework (VTF) from 1 April 2022, which basically means quarantine-free access for any fully vaccinated traveller.
There is no need to take designated VTL flights anymore; you may take any flight you wish.
Fully vaccinated
Fully vaccinated travellers are defined as the following:
| Vaccine | Doses Required | Min. Interval between Doses |
| Pfizer/ BioNTech | 2 | 17 days |
| Moderna | 2 | 24 days |
| Astrazeneca | 2 | 24 days |
| Covishield | 2 | 24 days |
| Janssen | 1 | N/A |
| Sinopharm | 2 | 17 days |
| Sinovac | 2 | 13 days |
| Covaxin | 2 | 24 days |
| Novavax | 2 | 17 days |
| Any WHO EUL vaccine (mixed) | 2 | 17 days |
Children aged 12 and under in the current calendar year are treated as fully vaccinated regardless of their actual status, provided they are accompanied by a fully vaccinated parent.
SG Arrival Card
Travellers to Singapore must complete an SG Arrival Card within 3 days of arrival, where information on the following will be requested:
- Personal particulars
- Vaccination status (not required for those vaccinated in Singapore)
- Health declaration
If you were vaccinated in Malaysia, you can upload the digital certificate for COVID-19 vaccination on the MySejahtera app.
Those who were vaccinated in other countries can refer to this guide for the steps required. If you feel anxious about whether your certificate will be accepted, ICA has a Vaccination Check Portal that allows you to perform a no obligation self-check ahead of travel.
Submissions via the official website are completely free of charge; beware of lookalike websites that charge a fee!
TraceTogether
All travellers to Singapore must download and register for TraceTogether (Android | iOS). This is required for checking into venues and displaying your vaccination status.
Travellers aged 6 or below in this calendar year, and individuals who are unable to use a mobile device due to a certified disability/special need can obtain a TraceTogether token after arrival in Singapore
Travellers who were vaccinated outside Singapore will be granted temporary vaccinated status lasting about 30 days if they successfully uploaded their digital vaccination certificates as part of their Singapore Arrival Card (SGAC) or manually presented their vaccination certificates and the manual immigration counters.
This is required to access restaurants, malls and other vaccinated-only venues in Singapore. Do note that if you’ve taken 2x Sinovac/Sinopharm doses outside of Singapore, you will still be granted temporary vaccinated status for 30 days, notwithstanding the domestic requirement for vaccination recognition is 3x doses.
COVID-19 tests
Pre-departure COVID-19 testing has been scrapped for all fully vaccinated travellers, effective 26 April 2022.
How is this different from VTL travel?
If you’ve travelled to Singapore under the VTL previously, here’s the key differences of the new arrangement.
| VTL-Air | VTF | |
| Travel History | Last 7 days in VTL, Cat. I or EEA countries only | No restriction |
| Vaccine Exemption | ≤12 y.o | |
| Flights | VTL flights only | Any flight |
| C-19 Travel Insurance | S$30K | None |
| Pre-Departure Test | Professional ART within 2 days | None |
| On-Arrival Test | Self-ART within 24h | None |
Again, it’s an altogether positive change, with no more restriction on flights or travel history, and the scrapping of on-arrival testing.
Conclusion
For details on crossing the land border between Singapore and Malaysia, check out the post below.
Singapore-Malaysia land border to reopen without testing or quarantine, for all modes of travel
Thank you for the clear guide! Hopefully the requirement for mandatory insurance will also drop eventually..
thanks! i doubt they’ll drop it, but everyone travelling during this period should have insurance coverage anyway…at most they make it a non-compulsory part of the MST submission, but reserve the right to check for it at immigration.
Even pre-covid, I would buy insurance for a weekend getaway. Its too important to not have.
Pls advice on the MYSJ status of PUS , how to settle this issue ?
You may reach out to representatives from “BP Healthclinics/medical officer in charged to do test at the airport” upon arrival at the airpot. They can update the status for you.
I wonder if we will need insurance for day trips to JB via land connection.. Sounds stupid but..
Current rule is yes. So maybe better to buy annual plan
Many are thinking of entering Malaysia via causeway to go Malacca, KL, Ipoh, Penang, you name it rather than take flight with more requirements. Loop hole, I was told. Hmmm……
Wouldnt really call that a loophole. Just a qn of whether you’re willing to incur all that extra driving time for the sake of saving money on a simple pre-departure art
Not just time. You could be asymptomatic positive too. That will put a spanner on your works
Taxis are expensive from KLIA. Is taking private transport from the airport to the accommodation a requirement?
Isn’t it stupid that “recovered” for Malaysia inbound means you’re COVID positive within last 60 days (30 days shorter than SG) AND must have negative ART (unlike SG that waives all tests). There are reports that recovered folks can continue to test positive for a long period after – so hypothetically, a recovered person can be indefinitely prevented from entering Malaysia?!
If you test positive if you are positive. Just wait that few more days man. Have some civic responsibility
Hi, notice in the article that travellers from Singapore to Msia can take supervised tele ART, but the Msia website says professional ART. Confirm supervised tele ART is accepted? Thanks
Never mind. I misread certain parts.
Any idea if I can travel to Malaysia via air under VTL-Air on 31 Mar and return to SG via land post 1 April?
This is by far (by a mile-lion!) the clearest and most helpful article on how to prepare for air travel to Malaysia. You guys are incredible- so precise, so prompt and so predictably good as usual. A shout out to my friend Matthew Chong!
I do have a question. Can tele-ART be done in Malaysia (with Singapore provider eg Dr Anywhere) before flight back to Singapore? Thanks
Nope, M’sia isn’t on the list of accepted countries for tele-ART from a SG provider.
https://milelion.com/2022/03/28/singapore-expands-eligible-countries-for-overseas-pre-departure-tele-supervised-arts/
Hi noted what Matthew has shared, but the last time (Feb 2022) I came back from Malaysia (via flight to Singapore), I did tele-ART through CLEA app. They allowed it for me and my wife. If it helps – it was an Air Asia flight.
We are leaving for Penang from Singapore this Sunday and your post was a great help so that I was successfully able to verify my vaccination status in the MySafeTravel portal. However, I noticed that my status in MySejahtera app indicates I am “Person Under Surveillance” and Home Surveillance Order as of now. My guess is that there could be some days’ time gap, hopefully, to update my status in MySejahtera App from MySafeTravel portal but just wonder if you saw your status update as vaccinated in your MySejahtera App right after completing verfication in MySafeTravel? My concern is that… Read more »
my status shows low risk, no symptom, but i dont see my vaccination status updated yet. they say it will take a couple of days to be updated.
Thanks. My fingers are cross that it is updated correctly before we take off. I also saw your reply to a prior question from other that we can ask for a help from “BP Healthclinics/medical officer in charged to do test at the airport” upon arrival. Hope it can be still the last resolution we can see if it is not updated. THANKS again for your help.
If I entered Singapore as a short term visitor under the vtl system and got vaccinated status in tracetogether through July, will reentry under the vtf framework reduce the vaccine validity to 30 days? Or do I keep the extended vaccinated status granted by the vtl system?
How about work permit holders want travel every day in and out..
Hi all, I tried to register my profile in MY Sejahtera but got stuck at the USER PROFILE when I cannot proceed since the system insist I choose a Malaysia State. How did you bypass this?
Just enter your Malaysia hotel address
Hi Aaron thanks.. will try your suggestion
Really don’t need to do PCR to fly to Malaysia? All the airlines (AirAsia, Malaysia Airlines) say that PCR is still needed leh. But I also know that they don’t update that regularly … lol. Don’t want to get my hopes up but I will be so happy if PCR really not needed. So expensive!
Can someone enlighten me about within 2 days before departure?
Let’s say my flight departure date and time are 16 May 2022 (Monday) at 1800.
Does it mean I should take the PCR test either on Sunday (anytime) or Monday (before 6pm)? Or
Saturday (6pm onwards)?
Thank you.
Any time the day before or the day of departure. The Saturday would be within 3 days of departure, not 2.
Thanks for the help! I am an American planning on travelling from Singapore to Malaysia on April 1 but one issue i have is with the Covid-19 QR code. When i received my vaccinations in the US I did not receive a QR Code. For Singapore all I needed was an “Attestation Letter” with my cdc card but I’m not sure what I should do Malaysia. I’m hoping the same will work. Have you heard anyone with this issue?
Hi
Just want to share that the tele ART cannot be used for pple who want to go in to msia for a weekend trip. It is only for people returning to Singapore. If u want to go into msia u need to do a supervised art at the clinic, tele ART not accepted. Remember!!!
Good Afternoon Sheena, where did you see this information that Tele ART is not allowed? I have been looking but haven’t found that information anywhere
She may be referring to clea. Which of course you can’t use to travel to Malaysia. You can however use a Singapore tele art provider for travel, there are many successful data points from vtl days
to add on to this topic, if i’m headed to malaysia for a trip on 12th apr but coming back on 14th, will one supervised tele-ART on the morning of the 12th suffice for the pre-departure requirements both to malaysia and back to singapore 🙂 ?
Table with required doses for accepted vaccinations in Malaysia is not updated as per their official website which is mentioned above it ( https://www.mysafetravel.gov.my/vaccine/status) – for Johnson & Johnson and that group of vaccines are 1 or 2 doses required, not 2 or 3 doses as it’s written above in this article.
thanks! i have updated the table. I thought it was strange at first that they wanted 2 doses for the 1 dose regime vaccines, but good they fixed it.
I booked VTL flight on 7th may 2022 way before they announced that the borders are reopening.
im just curious that, will the flight i booked will operate as per normal, or will there be any kind of changes?
also i booked under king of delay a.k.a AIRSIA
no changes. just that the vtl tag is now meaningless.
Hi I am flying to Penang but when there is no Penang International Airport on the list of Port of arrival and the app does not allow me to submit my declaration? Any solution?
Found it by chance it is Bayan Lepas..
before going penang, did you do tele art? is tele art allowed? or do you have to go to the clicnic
For singaporeans entering to malaysia for a short 1 week trip, we can take tele art, eg, Dr anywhere correct? When we arrive at malaysia will we be exempted from on arrival art? or required to, i saw that you put we are exempted, but there are afew speculations saying there is still a need, would be good to clarify this point. Thanks a bunch!
On arrival test not needed if from SG to MY by air. Don’t get scam by outdated health websites and private health operators at the airport. https://www.mysafetravel.gov.my/arrival-testing
Where to get an approved supervised ART test in Penang before flying back to Singapore? I read somewhere that it has to be non-handwritten english test result. So just have the paper test result when going to the airport and no need to upload anywhere, right?