Singapore and Malaysia reopen shared land border today

Singapore and Malaysia are reopening their shared land border today, marking another move forward to return to normal. The border was one of the busiest in the world pre-pandemic times, with vaccinated travellers being allowed to cross as of today.

The border has been closed since March 2020, leaving tens of thousands of people stranded on either side. Families were separated, and jobs were lost, as many Malaysians (around 300,000) commuted daily to Singapore before the pandemic.

The reopening will allow 1,440 travellers from each side per day across the border, but they must meet certain requirements to skirt quarantine. They must be a citizen of either country, have permanent residency, or have a long-term visa in the country in which they are crossing into.

They must show proff of a negative Covid-19 test before departing, and both countries require travellers to pass a Covid test on arrival.

Besides the land travel border reopening, a vaccinated air travel lane has also started today. Singapore has reportedly vaccinated 85% of its population, while Malaysia has inoculated around 80%.

Singapore, relies heavily on Malaysians in the southern state of Johor, to staff businesses as its aging citizens account for 5.5 million people. On Sunday, Singapore reported 747 locally-acquired Covid infections, which marks the lowest daily amount since mid September. While Malaysia also reported its lowest amount of daily infections since early November at 4,239 on Sunday.

SOURCE: Thai PBS World