Cheapest pre-departure COVID-19 ART and PCR tests in Singapore

If you’re travelling overseas in the near future, you may be required to take a pre-departure COVID-19 test (PDT).

The good news is that whether you’re looking at an ART or PCR, testing prices in Singapore have been falling every month. The price of a PCR test now starts from S$50, while a virtually-supervised ART can be done at S$9. 

In this post, we’ll look at your options including at-home swabbing, express tests, saliva tests, and more.

Which countries require a PDT?

Here’s a summary of the PDT requirements for selected destinations popular among Singapore travellers. 

If you intend to take a cruise on Resorts World Cruises or Royal Caribbean, you will need to take a supervised COVID-19 test within 1 day of departure (this can be an ART or PCR test). 

Testing Windows

Testing windows have been summarised in the table above, but pay particular attention to:

• Whether a shorter time frame applies if you wish to do an ART instead of PCR
• Whether the window is in relation to your time of departure or your time of arrival in the overseas country
• Whether the window is described in days or hours- there is a difference!
  • Example: South Korea requires a pre-departure ART to be taken within 1 day of departure. If you’re flying at 11 p.m on Wednesday, for example, you can take your test anytime from 12 a.m on Tuesday onwards. This means you could have as much as 48 hours to do your test in some cases

Testing windows shouldn’t be that much of a concern for those taking ART, since the quick turnaround time allows you to do it the day before you fly. You could even do it at Changi Airport just before check-in, thanks to the Raffles Medical Clinic at Terminal 3. Alternatively, you could do it from the comfort of your home via a tele-medicine provider (see below for options).

How much does a PDT cost?

Travelers can do their test at any MOH approved clinic. For those with children aged 12 and below, do check beforehand whether the clinic is able to provide testing, because not all do.

Clinic ART/PCR Tests

Here’s an idea of how much you can expect to pay for an ART, PCR or PCR(S) (Serology- for travel to China) at selected clinics across Singapore.

Do note that while South Korea and the Philippines accept ART results, these must be administered in-clinic. Tele-supervised ARTs will not be valid for travel to these two countries.

The promised turnaround time for most clinics is 24-48 hours, though in my experience it’s much closer to 24 hours. 

Saliva PCR Tests

For those who find nasal swabs too invasive, saliva PCR testing was recently made available in Singapore.

Sample prices are shown below.

Saliva PCR testing is currently accepted for travel to:

• Japan
• South Korea
• Taiwan

For other countries, do contact the respective authorities for clarification.

Express PCR Tests

Express service is available with the following providers:

At-home PCR Tests

For those seeking additional convenience, at-home swabbing is also available. This is understandably less cost-effective for a single individual, but if you’re travelling as a family, the prices tend to fall from the second person onwards.

At-home tele-ARTs

For those looking to do pre-departure ARTs, tele-supervised options are also available. You’ll need to add on the cost of your own HSA-approved ART kit, which will be ~S$3. 

Notarising PDT results

Travellers are required to digitally authenticate and notarise their test certificate via the Notarise website prior to travel.

However, in some cases the clinic or lab issuing your certificate may already have done it for you. This was the case for my PDT from Kingsway Medical, which was issued by Accredify.

Swab results issued by Accredify are automatically notarised. The notarised copy along with its QR code has been appended to your digital pre-departure memo. There are no further actions required from you.

You can check if the endorsement has been done by scanning the online verification QR code, which should bring you to Verify. Otherwise, it’s a simple matter of uploading the HealthCerts.oa file provided by the clinic for verification. 

The digitally authenticated and endorsed PDT HealthCert and QR code will be emailed to you within 15 minutes. If you presented your NRIC at the medical facility, the QR code will also be automatically uploaded onto your SingPass app.

There is no need to notarise your ART result, and in any case, not all ART results can be notarised. 

You can read the full set of FAQs regarding the notarisation process here.

What tests can’t be used for travel?

As a general guide, pre-departure test results must state the lab name, a negative result, and feature your: 

• Full name
• Date of birth
• Passport number

What card should you use for payment?

Swabs at private clinics should code as MCC 8011: Doctors or Physicians. So long as contactless payments are accepted, you can use the cards below to maximise the miles you earn. 

Card	Earn Rate	Remarks
UOB Pref. Plat Visa Apply	4.0 mpd	Max S$1,110 per c. month, must use mobile payments Review
UOB Visa Signature  Apply	4.0 mpd	S$1K-2K per s. month on contactless/ petrol
C. Month= Calendar Month, S. Month= Statement Month

Remember, UOB cards exclude rewards for MCC 8062: Hospitals, so if your swab takes place there you may not earn miles. 

If you’re prepaying for your swab online, then you can use the following cards. 

Card	Earn Rate	Remarks
Citi Rewards Apply	4.0 mpd	Max S$1K per s. month, excludes travel Review
DBS WWMC Apply	4.0 mpd	Max S$2K per c. month Review
C. Month= Calendar Month, S. Month= Statement Month

Do note that just because your credit card details are captured online doesn’t mean the transaction itself is processed online. The general rule is that if you receive an OTP, it’s definitely an online transaction. However, the absence of an OTP in itself does not mean an offline transaction. 

Conclusion

The cost of pre-departure COVID-19 PCR testing keeps falling, with the cheapest tests now starting at just S$50. There’s also various options available for in-home and express testing, providing additional flexibility. 

If you need an ART result, you best bet is to a tele-ART from the comfort of home, with prices starting from just S$9.