If you are arriving in Singapore from 30 September, there is one small piece of pre-trip admin worth doing before you leave home: update the MyICA app. The Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) is moving its enhanced SG Arrival Card experience into the mobile app, bringing the newer web features to the channel many travellers already use.
The change is practical rather than dramatic. The SG Arrival Card is still the same free, mandatory pre-arrival declaration for most people entering Singapore, it is still not a visa, and the submission window is still within three days before arrival, including the day you arrive. What changes is how conveniently travellers can complete it in MyICA.
01 · What changes on 30 September?
ICA announced on 16 September that the enhanced SG Arrival Card, which had already been introduced on the web, would become available through the MyICA mobile application from 30 September 2026.
The enhanced version is designed to reduce typing and make the form easier to use across more languages. Current Singapore reporting on the ICA announcement says the service adds seven languages — Bahasa Indonesia, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish, Russian, Filipino and Italian — bringing the total to 19.
It also expands passport-scanning autofill. Foreign visitors have already been able to scan their passport to populate relevant details; the enhanced service broadens that convenience to Singapore citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders as well, alongside existing Singpass information retrieval where applicable.
ICA’s message for travellers is straightforward: make sure the MyICA app is updated before you try to submit the enhanced card. If an older app version is sitting on your phone from a previous trip, do not assume it will expose all of the new functions.
02 · Who still needs to submit an SG Arrival Card?
ICA’s current guidance says all travellers must submit an SG Arrival Card with the electronic health declaration before arriving in Singapore, with two main exceptions:
- travellers who are transiting or transferring through Singapore without seeking immigration clearance; and
- Singapore citizens, permanent residents and long-term pass holders entering through Woodlands or Tuas by land.
That means ordinary foreign visitors arriving by air, sea or land generally need the SGAC. Singapore residents returning by air or sea also need to submit it. The land-checkpoint exemption applies to residents in the categories ICA specifies, not to every person crossing from Malaysia.
The SGAC includes arrival details and an electronic health declaration. ICA uses the information as part of its immigration and public-health processes, so it is not something to leave until you are standing at the checkpoint if you can avoid it.
03 · When should you submit it?
The official window is within three days before arrival, including your day of arrival. For example, if you enter Singapore on 30 September, you can submit from 28 September onwards.
That timing matters because some third-party sites encourage travellers to fill out “arrival card” forms much earlier, often for a fee. ICA says the official SG Arrival Card submission is free and should be completed through the ICA e-Service or MyICA Mobile.
A sensible routine is to update the app a few days before travel, then make the actual submission once your valid three-day window opens. That avoids an airport scramble without submitting too early.
04 · Land travellers using MyICA QR clearance should update too
The 30 September app update is not only relevant to people filling in an SGAC. ICA also says travellers who use MyICA to generate QR codes for immigration clearance at the land checkpoints should update the app before making their next submission.
For regular Singapore–Johor travellers, that is the practical reason not to ignore the update even if you fall into a resident exemption from the SG Arrival Card itself. The MyICA app is increasingly a shared front end for several checkpoint functions, so keeping it current reduces the chance of discovering a version mismatch in the queue.
As always, QR clearance does not erase the underlying immigration rules. Travellers still need to meet the entry requirements that apply to their passport, visa status and journey.
05 · The SG Arrival Card is not a visa
This is the distinction that causes the most avoidable confusion. ICA explicitly states that the SG Arrival Card is not a visa.
If your passport or travel document requires a Singapore visa, you still need to deal with that requirement separately. A successfully submitted SGAC does not grant permission to enter Singapore, and a visa does not replace the SGAC where the declaration is required.
Foreign visitors should also keep the email address in their SGAC accurate. After immigration clearance, Singapore issues an electronic Visit Pass (e-Pass) rather than stamping a conventional visit pass into the passport. The e-Pass records the period of stay actually granted and the last permitted day.
06 · Use the official free channels
ICA maintains a public advisory because commercial websites continue to offer paid help with SG Arrival Card submissions. The authority says it does not endorse those services and that the official SGAC is free.
The two official submission routes are the ICA SG Arrival Card e-Service and the MyICA Mobile application. If a website asks you to pay simply to submit the card, you are not on the standard ICA process.
Using the official app has another benefit for repeat travellers: saved profiles can populate relevant information on future trips, reducing how much you need to enter again.
07 · Practical checklist for arrivals from 30 September
- Update MyICA Mobile before you need it.
- Wait until you are inside the three-day SGAC submission window.
- Use the passport-scanning autofill where available, then check every populated field before submitting.
- Remember that the SGAC is free and separate from any visa requirement.
- If you use MyICA QR clearance at Woodlands or Tuas, update the app before generating your next QR code.
- Keep your acknowledgement email and, for foreign visitors, check the e-Pass issued after entry.
There is no need to panic about the change. It is an app rollout intended to make a familiar requirement easier. The useful action is simply to update before travel instead of discovering the new version while already in transit.
08 · Sources and verification
This report was checked against current ICA guidance and Singapore reporting on the 30 September rollout:
- Immigration & Checkpoints Authority — SG Arrival Card — current official submission channels, who must submit, the three-day window, exemptions and the rule that SGAC is not a visa.
- ICA — Visiting Singapore — current entry process, MyICA availability and e-Pass context.
- ICA — public advisory on SGAC — official channels are free and commercial paid submission services are not endorsed.
- The Straits Times, 16 September 2026 — ICA’s 30 September MyICA rollout announcement, expanded language support and passport-scan autofill details.
Details checked 18 September 2026. Immigration rules and app behaviour can change; use ICA’s current pages immediately before travel if your trip is later.