Singapore further restricts entry criteria

Under new entry requirements most work pass holders who had earlier gained approval to enter Singapore are no longer be allowed to do so.

There are exceptions for holders of work passes who enter Singapore from lower-risk countries or regions under the Periodic Commuting Arrangement (PCA), or users of the Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL).

There are also exceptions for workers in the construction, marine shipyard and process (CMP) industries and migrant domestic workers, a report said.

Approved CMP work pass holders are allowed to enter Singapore as planned, except for those who were scheduled to arrive in June, whose entries will be rescheduled to later weeks.

Last Friday Singapore started to reduce entry approval for work pass holders and stopped accepting new entry applications for work pass holders from higher-risk countries or regions due to resurgence of Covid-19 cases in several countries and emergence of new virus variants, except for workers needed for certain strategic projects and infrastructural works.

Mayumi Soh of Pinsent Masons MPillay, the Singapore joint law venture between MPillay and Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law, said: “The new restrictions on entry of work pass holders are part of efforts by the authorities to manage the risk of Covid-19 transmission in Singapore by ensuring the inflow of workers into the country are controlled. ”