Singapore Arrival Card for Chinese travellers

Chinese passport holders are not visa-exempt for Singapore. Before you can board your flight, you need a valid Singapore visa issued by the Singapore Embassy or Consulate in China, processed through one of Singapore's authorised Chinese travel agencies. Then, separately, before you arrive, you need to file the Singapore Arrival Card (SGAC) with Singapore's Immigration & Checkpoints Authority.

Both are mandatory. Skip the visa and you don't board. Skip the SGAC and you board but get turned back at Changi immigration. The visa is permission to enter Singapore. The SGAC is the pre-arrival declaration that lets ICA pre-process your details. Confused about the two? See SGAC vs visa for a side-by-side comparison.

Chinese passport holders cannot apply directly with the Singapore Embassy in Beijing or the Consulate-General in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, or Xiamen. All visa applications go through Singapore-authorised travel agencies in China. Most major cities have multiple authorised agencies. Here's what you need to know.

The two main types covering most leisure and short-term business travel:

• Single-entry tourist visa for one entry, up to 30 days stay. The default for first-time visitors.
• Multi-entry visit visa for multiple entries within the validity period (typically 1 or 2 years). Often issued to applicants with a clean travel history or family ties to Singapore.

Group tour visas are common for organised tour groups travelling together. These are processed through the tour operator and have streamlined requirements.

Standard processing is 4 to 7 business days for tourist visas. Apply 4 to 6 weeks before travel during peak seasons (Chinese New Year in late January or February, October Golden Week, July to August summer holidays) to avoid delays. Last-minute submissions during peak seasons sometimes don't get processed in time.

Visa fees and travel agency service fees vary. Confirm current rates with your chosen authorised travel agency in China. Fees are typically paid in RMB at the agency.

Once your Singapore visa is approved, the SGAC is the second mandatory step. The SGAC is a pre-arrival declaration that tells Singapore ICA who you are, when you're arriving, and where you're staying. Separate from the visa, with its own 72 hour window.

See required documents for the full list before you apply.

File the SGAC up to 72 hours before your arrival date in Singapore, not earlier. Earlier submissions are rejected by ICA. The 72 hour window starts from your arrival date, so if you arrive on the 15th, you can file from the 12th onward.

If you're applying through SGAC Online, you can submit your details to us anytime. We'll hold the application and file it inside the 72 hour window automatically. Read when to submit for the full window rules.

Our team checks every form for the common mistakes that delay or reject SGAC submissions: Pinyin spelling that doesn't match the visa, accommodation address that's incomplete, dates that don't align with the flight booking. We file the corrected form with ICA and email you the official approval. See how it works if you'd rather we handle the form for you.

If your visa is approved late and you're now inside the 72 hour SGAC window, file the SGAC immediately. Approval is usually within hours. If your flight is the next day and you don't have your SGAC by the time you head to the airport, contact us, we can flag your application as urgent.