Singapore is an island city-state which is located in the Southeast Asia. While Singapore is a developed city that is financially, industrially and commercially powerful, it is also a great place for tourism. Singapore is a blend of modernization and natural beauty as well as rich culture and practices. Apart from this, it is a great place for shopping too. Hence, you must travel to Singapore at least once. If you are an Emirati, you do not need a visa to travel to Singapore. On the other hand, you would be given visa on arrival. However, if you are an UAE expat, you may need a visa to visit Singapore. Moreover, you would have to apply for a Singapore visa at least a month before you plan to visit this city-state.
Countries that Require Singapore Visa
Citizens of USA and almost all European countries do not require a visa to travel to Singapore (even if they are residing in UAE). However, people of other countries do require a visa. The list of countries is divided into two: Level 1 and Level 2 countries.
Level 1 countries include India, Myanmar, Ukraine, Russia, China, Georgia, Commonwealth of Independent States, Liberia, Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) Travel Permit, Holders of Hong Kong Document of Identity, Turkmenistan and Sierra Leone.
Level 2 countries include Bangladesh, Morocco, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Lebanon, Pakistan, Algeria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Tunisia, Sudan, Morocco, Jordan, Egypt, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Temporary passport issued by the UAE, holders of Palestinian Authority Passport and refugee travel document issued by Middle-East countries.
Tourist and Business Visa
If you want to visit Singapore for tourist purposes, you need to apply for a tourist visa. Here are the things that you need to submit while applying for a Singapore tourist visa.
- You have to fill the 14A form completely, without making any mistakes. Do make sure to sign the form.
- You need to submit the photocopy of your passport. You need to ensure that your passport has at least six months’ validity. Your passport should have at least two blank pages.
- You have to submit a recent coloured passport photo (taken within 3 months). The background should be white. Your name should be written behind the photograph.
- Your application should also have letter of introduction from a local along with the photocopy of his or her identity card. In case of business visa, the local contact should be a business or company with Singapore registration.
- You also need to submit an NOC letter from your company in UAE which states your salary, position and purpose of travel.
- Along with the application form, you have to give visa fee and visa service fee.
- Do not forget to submit details of your hotel booking as well as photocopies of your flight tickets.
In case you fall in the first level category of nations, it would take 3-4 days for your visa to be processed. However, in case of the second level category of nations, the entire visa process would take at least 5-7 days. Once all the application form and documents are reviewed, your visa would be approved by the Visa Issuance Authority.
Things to Remember
Apart from the documents mentioned above, there are certain things that you must remember while applying for Singapore visit visa.
- Make sure that your application form is correctly filled. Even a small mistake or a discrepancy from the details in your passport can cause your visa application to be rejected.
- You also have to ensure that all the documents specified are submitted.
- The visa issuance authority has the right to change the documents required or any other rules related to the visa process, at any time.
- If your visa application gets rejected, the visa fee or the visa service fee would not be refunded to you.
- The visa issuance authority is not entitled to provide you with a reason for rejection of the visa.
- If you are among the level 1 country, you do not need to get the actual visa sticker to travel to Singapore. An e-visa is equally valid. However, the e-visa should be printed only by the authorized visa agent or local contact. In case of the level 2 countries, they need to get the actual (full) visa sticker.
- Once you have secured the visa, don’t make the mistake of
visiting the country without looking into a Singapore tour
packages or else, you will miss out the soul of the city.
Important Note
An extremely crucial thing that people traveling to Singapore need to remember is that getting a visa does not ensure that you would be able to enter the city when you land at the airport. At the Singapore airport, you would have to go through the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) who would decide whether you are allowed to enter the city. At the check-point, your passport would be checked by the authority. This authority also has the right to fix the tenure of your stay. In short, even if you receive a 60 days visa to stay in Singapore, the ICA has the authority to cut it into 30 days. In short, the validity of your visa does not guarantee the number of days you would get to stay in the city.
To apply for a Singapore visa from the UAE, you need to visit the Singapore Embassy in UAE. Likewise, you can apply for a visa online too. The visa application form is available online. If you do not have the time to apply for the visa on your own, seek the help of a travel agent who has the knowledge of applying for Singapore visa.
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