How to get in Singapore
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Banned in Singapore
There's more to the list than just porn and drugs:
- Overhead wires
- Satellite dishes
- Freestanding billboards
- Handcuffs, even if pink and fuzzy
- Feeding pigeons or monkeys
- Malaysian newspapers
- Male Homosexual activity
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Most nationalities can enter Singapore without a visa. Refer to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority for current guidelines, including a list of the 30+ nationalities that are required to obtain a visa in advance. Entry permit duration depends on nationality and entry point: most people get 14 or 30 days, although EU, Norwegian, Swiss and US passport holders get 90 days. Citizens of some CIS countries (Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan) can transit 4 days without visa, if having tickets to a third country.
Singapore has very strict drug laws, and drug trafficking carries a mandatory death penalty ? which is also applied to foreigners. Even if you technically haven't entered Singapore and are merely transiting (i.e. changing flights without the need to clear passport control and customs) while in possession of drugs, you would still be subject to capital punishment. The paranoid might also like to note that in Singapore, it is an offence even to have any drug metabolites in your system, even if they were consumed outside Singapore, and Customs occasionally does spot urine tests at the airport! In addition, bringing in explosives or firearms without a permit is also a capital offence in Singapore.
Bring prescriptions for any medicines you may have with you, and obtain prior permission from the Health Sciences Authority before bringing in any sedatives (eg. Valium/diazepam) or strong painkillers (eg. codeine). Hippie types may expect a little extra attention from Customs, but getting a shave and a haircut is no longer a condition for entry.
Duty free allowances for alcohol are 1 L of spirits and up to 2 L of wine or beer per person. Alcohol may not be brought in by persons under the age of 18. There is no duty free allowance for cigarettes: all cigarettes legally sold in Singapore are stamped "SDPC", and smokers caught with unmarked cigarettes may be fined $500 per pack. (In practice, though, bringing in one opened pack is usually tolerated.) If you declare your cigarettes or excess booze at customs, you can opt to pay the tax or let the customs officers keep the cigarettes until your departure. The import of chewing gum/tobacco is illegal, but a few sticks for personal consumption are permitted.
Pornography, pirated goods and publications by the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Unification Church may not be imported to Singapore, and baggage is scanned at land and sea entry points. In theory, all entertainment media including movies and video games must be sent to the Board of Censors for approval before they can be brought into Singapore, but that is rarely if ever enforced for original (non-pirated) goods. Pirated CDs or DVDs, on the other hand, can land you fines of up to $1000 per disc.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Singapore
