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Fully vaccinated travellers will soon be able to travel between Changi Airport in Singapore and Incheon International Airport in South Korea without serving a Stay-Home Notice (SHN) under the joint launch of Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTLs).

Instead, they will be required to take Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests.

This kicks in from Nov. 15, the Ministry of Transport (MOT) announced on Oct. 8 in a press release.

There will be no restrictions on the purpose of travel or requirements for a controlled itinerary or sponsorship.

The jointly-launched VTLs will be the first of its kind between two major aviation hubs in Asia and build on longstanding relations to safely revive cross-border air travel and people-to-people flows.

The agreement was marked by a video conference on Oct. 8 between the Minister for Transport of Singapore, S Iswaran, and the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of the Republic of Korea, Noh Hyeong Ouk.

Mutual recognition of vaccination certificates

To support the VTLs, Singapore and the Republic of Korea have also agreed on the mutual recognition of Covid-19 vaccination certificates, from Nov. 15 onwards.

This will allow fully vaccinated travellers with proof of vaccination issued in either Singapore or the Republic of Korea to enjoy vaccination-differentiated safe management measures in both countries.

Under the VTLs, travellers must meet the eligibility criteria and adhere to the prevailing border control measures and public health requirements for travel into the respective countries. More details of the VTLs will be announced in due course.

“Both Singapore and the Republic of Korea have made excellent progress in vaccinating our populations and the VTLs reflect the trust both countries have in each other’s ability to manage the Covid-19 situation. This is another milestone as we re-open Singapore’s borders, and resume air travel in a careful and calibrated manner,” Iswaran said.

Singapore and the Republic of Korea share strong and multi-faceted ties, especially in the sectors of trade and investment, infrastructure, and tourism.

The two countries commemorated 45 years of diplomatic relations in 2020.

Before Covid-19, Singapore and the Republic of Korea were among each other’s top travel destinations, with a total of 64 weekly passenger services connecting the two countries and carrying 1.6 million passengers annually.

The jointly-launched VTLs with the Republic of Korea follows the VTLs with Germany and Brunei that were announced on Aug. 19.

Top image by Cait Ellis via Unsplash.

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