Immigration and Checkpoints Authority Singapore going paperless, travellers to fill arrival card online

KUCHING: Travellers to Singapore can now fill out the arrival card online as the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority ( ICA) Singapore is conducting a three-month trial from Thursday, according to Channel News Asia.

The trial of the new electronic arrival card is being conducted not just at Changi Airport but also at Singapore’s four cruise/ferry terminals as well as Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints.

Foreigners are required to submit information such as flight numbers and their addresses while in Singapore online prior to their trip. They can do so through the ICA’s website or via a mobile application before arriving in Singapore, said the news agency quoting a statement issued by ICA.

The electronic arrival card which travellers have filled out in advance will be called up by ICA’s system during immigration clearance upon arrival.

With the electronic arrival card, foreigners are required to only produce their passports.

Foreign travellers who have yet to complete the electronic arrival card may be approached by ICA officers to take part in the trial, and to offer feedback.

A frequent traveler Yu Ji, who works at a property development firm, hails the policy as a good measure to reduce paper wastage with preservation of environment in mind.

“Electronic (arrival card) will definitely be easier and faster. I don’t always fly with a pen, so being able to do it electronically would be a nice convenience. Nonetheless, I should add that it is possible to fill up the forms at Changi’s arrival hall, and it was never that difficult, because there was so much space provided for form filling,” he said.

Yu stressed that going paperless is better for the environment especially given that Singapore is ‘such a highly visited island nation’. He believed that paper arrival cards would still be available at the Changi Airport’s arrival hall for foreign travellers who might have forgotten to fill out the card online. To him, electronic arrival card is certainly a plus point.

“Singapore Changi’s Terminal 4 is not only paperless but its checkin and immigration are automated as well with very little interaction with humans. Everything is computerised, convenient and fast,” lauded Yu.