- Singapore asks for one vaccination certificate, yellow fever, from travellers who were in a risk country in the past six days.
- Travellers from those countries without a valid certificate are liable to six days’ quarantine at a government facility.
- Most travellers submit an electronic health declaration with the SG Arrival Card, within three days before arrival.
Singapore asks for one vaccination certificate, yellow fever, as at October 2026, and the rule follows the route, not the traveller. The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) requires it from travellers who were in a country with yellow fever transmission risk in the six days before arrival. The same goes for more than 12 hours in airport transit there. Separately, nearly every arriving traveller submits an electronic health declaration as part of the SG Arrival Card.
The jab goes in eight days before the flight out of Brazil, a country on ICA’s list. The eight days are an assumption for this example. The certificate becomes valid 10 days after vaccination, so on arrival in Singapore it is two days short. ICA says a traveller in that position is liable to six days’ quarantine, counted from the date of leaving the risk country. The quarantine runs its full length, including when the certificate becomes valid partway through.
ICA’s rule counts in sixes: six days before arrival decide whether a certificate is needed, and six days of quarantine follow without one. Those six days are meant to cover the incubation period.
Do you need vaccinations to enter Singapore?
Of every line in a vaccination record, ICA asks about one. ICA lists yellow fever as its only public health requirement for entry, as at October 2026. Its reason is that Singapore is free from yellow fever, and the rule protects against importation and transmission.
Travellers who meet the requirement avoid tests and quarantine. Travellers who cannot meet it and refuse any test or quarantine risk being turned away from Singapore. The page makes no mention of COVID-19.
Visa rules are separate from health rules, and the Singapore tourist visa requirements set out which passports need a visa.
Who needs a yellow fever certificate for Singapore?
Count back six days from the landing date. A country on ICA’s list inside that window brings the certificate into play. So does a layover of more than 12 hours in one of them.
The rule covers all travellers, Singapore residents included. The whole country counts, regardless of area, city or region. The traveller produces the International Certificate of Vaccination for yellow fever to the ICA officer on arrival, and the certificate has to be valid.
It becomes valid 10 days after vaccination and lasts for the life of the person vaccinated.
ICA’s list has 42 countries, 29 in Africa and 13 in Latin America. Kenya and Brazil are both on it. The list is marked correct as of 18 November 2022, so a traveller should check it on ICA’s page before travel.
What happens if you arrive without a yellow fever certificate?
Two days short of the tenth day, the certificate does not yet count. Travellers without a valid certificate are liable to six days’ quarantine at a designated vector-free government quarantine facility. The six days are counted from the date they left the risk country.
ICA names three groups:
- unvaccinated travellers;
- travellers who cannot be vaccinated, including children aged one year and below and people with contraindications;
- travellers whose certificate has yet to become valid.
The third group serves the full quarantine, including when the certificate becomes valid partway through. ICA says the six days cover the incubation period. Non-residents who refuse quarantine are denied entry.
What is the Singapore health declaration?
ICA’s own example sets the window: arriving on 30 June, a traveller submits from 28 June. The electronic health declaration is part of the SG Arrival Card. It is free to submit through the SGAC e-service or the MyICA app, within three days before arrival with the day of arrival counted. ICA collects it for disease control, to guard against importing diseases of concern.
Travellers transiting or transferring without seeking immigration clearance do not submit it. Nor do residents, meaning citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders, entering through the Woodlands and Tuas land checkpoints. A traveller whose health status changes after submitting updates it through the Update SGAC feature.
A false declaration is an offence and is open to prosecution under the Infectious Diseases Act. A traveller who fails to submit risks being denied entry.
The passport has a rule of its own, a minimum validity of six months for every traveller except Singapore passport holders.
Frequently asked questions about Singapore vaccination requirements
Do you need vaccinations to enter Singapore?
ICA lists yellow fever as its only public health requirement for entry, as at October 2026. A traveller needs a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate after being in a country with yellow fever transmission risk in the six days before arrival. The same goes for more than 12 hours in airport transit there. Residents are included. Most travellers also submit an electronic health declaration with the SG Arrival Card, which is a declaration and not a vaccination.
Do you need a yellow fever certificate to enter Singapore?
Yes, when the traveller was in a country with yellow fever transmission risk in the six days before arrival, as at October 2026. The rule covers the whole country, regardless of area, city or region. It also covers more than 12 hours of airport transit there. It applies to all travellers, Singapore residents included. The certificate is produced to the ICA officer on arrival.
How long is a yellow fever certificate valid for Singapore?
The International Certificate of Vaccination for yellow fever becomes valid 10 days after vaccination. It lasts for the life of the person vaccinated, as at October 2026. A traveller whose certificate has yet to become valid on arrival is liable to six days’ quarantine. That traveller still serves the full quarantine when the certificate becomes valid partway through, and the certificate is produced to the ICA officer on arrival.
Is there quarantine to enter Singapore?
Quarantine applies to travellers liable under ICA’s yellow fever rule, as at October 2026. Those are travellers without a valid certificate after time in a country with yellow fever transmission risk. The quarantine lasts six days, counted from the date of leaving the risk country, at a designated vector-free government quarantine facility. ICA says the six days cover the incubation period. Non-residents who refuse quarantine are denied entry.
Is a COVID-19 vaccine required to enter Singapore?
ICA’s public health requirements for entry list yellow fever alone and make no mention of COVID-19, as at October 2026. The one vaccination certificate ICA asks for is yellow fever. Travellers who cannot meet the listed requirement and refuse any test or quarantine risk being turned away from Singapore. The health declaration on the SG Arrival Card is a separate step.
Sources
- Immigration and Checkpoints Authority: Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate
- Immigration and Checkpoints Authority: Entering Singapore
- Immigration and Checkpoints Authority: SG Arrival Card with Electronic Health Declaration
