Remarks by Minister for Transport Mr S Iswaran on Expansion of Vaccinated Travel Lanes

1.     Thank you for your time today. I would like to share two updates to our Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme.

Extending the VTLs to 6 more countries 

2.     Today, we have announced VTLs to 21 countries – 2 in North America, 10 in Europe, 3 in the Middle East, and 6 in the Asia-Pacific.    

3.     We will next extend the VTL to six more countries – namely, Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Turkey and Fiji. 

a.     Five of these countries have already reopened their borders to vaccinated travellers from Singapore.  Fiji will do so from 1 December. 

b.     The VTLs will therefore restore two-way quarantine-free travel between Singapore and these countries. 

4.     With the addition of these six new countries, we will also increase the daily quota for our VTLs from 10,000 to 15,000. 

a.     Pre-COVID, these 27 countries contributed about 60% of the total daily arrivals at Changi.  

b.     Our VTL quotas amount to about one-third of the total pre-COVID flows from these countries. 

c.     This is a further calibrated expansion of the VTL scheme, to reconnect Singapore with the world while managing the public health risk. 

5.     We will commence the VTL with Thailand on 14 December, and the other VTLs on 16 December. Applications will open one week before the start of the respective VTLs.  CAAS will provide further details. 

Enhancing the criteria on proof of vaccination

6.     Let me also touch on the recent equivalence decision by the European Commission (EC).

7.     Earlier this week, the EC announced that digital COVID-19 vaccination and test certificates issued by Singapore would be treated as equivalent to that issued by EU Member States. 

8.     We welcome the EC’s decision, and note that Singapore is the first Southeast Asian country to have been accorded such equivalence status. 

a.     Our agencies are finalising the technical link-up, and will issue EU DCC compatible vaccination and test certificates from 7 December.

b.     Holders of these certificates will be able to use them under the same conditions as holders of an EU DCC certificate.  So this will facilitate travel as well as access to vaccination-differentiated measures or schemes within the EU.

9.     From 7 December 2021, travellers from VTL countries with EU Digital COVID Certificates, even if these are issued in non-VTL countries, will be able to travel to Singapore on the VTLs. 

Conclusion

10.    So if I may put all these together, even as we continue to reopen our borders to secure our position as a global business and aviation hub, we will closely monitor the global public health situation, especially for the emergence of any new variants of concern, and impose additional safeguards as necessary. 

11.    This is integral to our careful and calibrated approach to reopening our borders, and tightening our safeguards when warranted by the latest public health risk assessment. 

12.    I would also urge all Singaporeans and residents to closely track the situation in the countries they are visiting, to be well-informed and updated on their latest public health and border measures, and plan well ahead for contingencies.  Thank you.