Singapore to bar short-term visitors from Guangdong due to rising Covid-19 infections

SINGAPORE will tighten its border control measures for travellers from Guangdong amid increasing Covid-19 infections in the Chinese province, the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Friday.

From 11.59pm on Saturday night, Singapore citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders entering Singapore who have a travel history to Guangdong within the last 21 days before departure will have to take a Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test on arrival,

They must also undergo a seven-day stay-home notice (SHN) at their place of residence, and go for another PCR test before their SHN period is up. Also, short-term travellers holding an Air Travel Pass with a travel history to Guangdong within the last 21 days before departure for Singapore will not be allowed to enter the Republic, MOH added.

All other travellers departing mainland China - excluding Guangdong province - in the last 21 days prior to travel, will continue to be required to undergo a PCR test upon arrival at the airport, in lieu of their SHN.

Before Friday's announcement, travellers from mainland China were required to undergo a PCR test upon arrival in Singapore. If the result was negative, they were allowed to go about their activities in Singapore without the need to serve an SHN.

Over the past week, Guangdong - China's biggest province by economic output - has stepped up coronavirus prevention and control efforts following a latest wave of infections in the manufacturing and export hub.

In the city of Guangzhou, the latest outbreak has led to residents without advance vaccination appointments to head to inoculation centres in droves. Guangzhou reported 41 locally confirmed cases between May 21 and June 1, while the nearby city of Foshan recorded six such cases over the same period.

Residents in certain neighbourhoods in both cities were ordered to be quarantined at home. People leaving the cities by plane, train or bus were required to produce proof of a negative Covid-19 test within three days of their departure.

MOH added that Singapore's border measures will continue to be adjusted accordingly as the global Covid-19 situation evolves to manage "the risk of importation and transmission into the country".