Singapore, here's how the Vaccinated Travel Lane works for Italians [Updated February 2022].
This article recounts my experience in Singapore in late 2021. Since that time there have been many changes to the [...]
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Singapore
This article recounts my experience in Singapore in late 2021. Since that time there have been many changes to the VTL protocol. At the end of the article is the most recent version Of the requirements to enter if traveling from Italy. Updated February 17.
I just returned from a trip to Singapore, the Asian city-state has reopened its borders in stages thanks to a protocol called VTL, Vaccinated Travel Lane, for Italians the go free was triggered on October 19.
In this article:
The first thing to understand is that the freeze or go-ahead does not depend on the passport ,but on the traveler's history. This means that it does not matter if the traveler has a passport from a nation that is not yet in the LTV corridors, rather it matters where he or she spent the last 14 days before leaving for Singapore. If you can prove that you have not left VTL nations, you will have a green light to get the pass.
The protocol involves a whole series of documents, declarations and forms to be filled out with precise deadlines. It is also important to consider that the flight on which you will be landing in Singapore. must be made by a company operating under LTV, while the one leaving from Singapore need not have any specific requirement.
As for Italy, the flights of Singapore Airlines from Milan (direct) and by Rome (via Copenhagen) both fall on the list, as do connections from major European HUBs. The list is constantly evolving and also reflects the presence, or absence, of the nation to which the carrier belongs.
For Italian passport holders. it is not necessary to apply for a visa; in fact, a VOA (visa on arrival) is granted which allows a maximum stay of 90 days. A small curiosity is no longer being stamped in the passport, but sent an email with all relevant information.
It is important to understand that different documents should be requested at different times Than the scheduled arrival date.
Among the requirements, in addition to an airline ticket from a LTV operator, the following are needed to initiate the VTP application: a vaccination certificate (the QR code on the Italian green pass will do) and a swab taken within 48 hours prior to the departure date of the flight, if direct, or the first flight if with a stopover. A quick swab is also accepted, and again the QR code on the green pass is sufficient.
Travel insurance is also required to cover any unforeseen events, thus including a positive swab with mandatory quarantine and/or health care in Singapore. I took advantage of the free insurance included in my annual American Express Platinum fee, I only had to send an email and received the certificate.
Documents to be requested
The first document to be get is the VTP, or the Vaccineted Travel Pass. Must be requested within 7 days from the date of arrival in Singapore.
It is possible book and pay for the PCR test upon arrival at the airport directly on the airport's official website, at a cost of 125SGD.
One must then download the TraceTogheter app and proceed with activation until the screen says to stop and activate the application as soon as you pass through customs at the airport.
The last document to be requested is the SG Arrival Card, which Is to be filled out in the last 72 hours before departure. The reason is simple: the QR of the swab made before takeoff will have to be attached. Some airline websites say the opposite, i.e., that it must be filled out within 72 hours, but I assure you that is not the case, partly because the system is smart and does not allow you to select the arrival date outside the 3-day range.
Warning. As always there are dozens of SCAM sites that charge to obtain these documents, go only to the official sites found in the links.
Last but not least, my advice is to bring ALL printed documents for easier checking at the check-in counters, even if as in my case flying British Airways I had already uploaded everything on the airline's website and VeryFly app.
Important not to forget the PLF, if your flight is not direct from Italy and you have a stopover in a nation that requires filling in or when you return to Italy.
Test on arrival
Because of the concern generated by the Omicron variant For all passengers arriving after midnight of Dec. 6, it will be mandatory to undergo one control swab per day until the 7th day after arrival.
Unlike the one you are subjected to at the airport, it will not be a PCR swab but a rapid swab, with an approximate cost of 30 SGD and, of course, you will not need to undergo prior isolation while waiting for the outcome since the result is practically immediate.
How to behave in Singapore
The face mask is mandatory everywhere and every time you enter/exit an indoor place (even a cab) you have to scan with the TraceTogheter app the QR at the entrance/exit of the place.
I have seen a lot of checking and even giving fines to people who had not scanned.
Return to Italy
At present, a quick swab from Make within 3 days of arrival in Italy, mind you Italy asks that it be not from the moment of departure but from when you enter Italian territory, a few hours that however can make a difference, especially if it is not a direct flight but with a stopover with the risk of arriving in in Italian territory almost 24 hours after takeoff.
Update Feb. 17
Over the months and with the burst of variants there have been numerous changes now starting February 25, 2022 everything will be simplified:
- You will no longer undergo a PCR-RT test. at the airport upon arrival in Singapore, which is replaced with a rapid self-administered test under supervision. That is, one will perform a rapid swab on one's own
- No further scrutiny will be required covid regardless of the length of the trip, other than the return trip according to the regulations of the country to which you are flying.
- La Vaccinated Travel Pass travel history is reduced from 14 to 7 days. It means that you will only look at where the passenger has been in the last week and not the last two.
