Singapore-Malaysia Border May Reopen Soon, Expect Early Aug Verdict

Singapore-Malaysia Border Verdict By Early Aug, Shares M’sia’s Foreign Minister

Travelling to Malaysia has become a rite of passage for most Singaporeans.

While both Singapore and Malaysia have eased restrictions – namely our ‘Circuit Breaker’ measures & Movement Control Order (MCO) respectively – many are still anticipating the reopening of neighbouring borders.

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Fortunately, there may be some good news as plans to reopen the Singapore-Malaysia border are expected to be announced “early next month” — aka early August, reports MalayMail.

Malaysia’s Foreign Minister also shared that returning home to Malaysia “periodically for short holiday purposes” is also on the cards.

Plans to reopen Singapore & Malaysia’s borders

Negotiations for reopening borders between Singapore & Malaysia’s governments are expected to be finalised “in the near future”, confirmed Malaysian Foreign Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein on Facebook yesterday (6 Jul).

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4 travelling categories for crossing SG-MY border

Details regarding 4 travelling categories for cross-border travel are being discussed with our neighbouring country, according to Malay Mail.

These include:

• Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL)
• Periodic Commuting Arrangement (PCA)
• Daily commutes for both countries’ citizens
• Full border reopening

Border travel focuses primarily on businesses

However, Singapore-Malaysia border will open primarily to support our homegrown businesses.

This means that standard operating procedures (SOPs) for Malaysians commuting daily to Singapore & Malaysians working locally for more than 3 months, need to be examined closely.

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Malaysia’s Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has also called for Singapore to ease certain Covid-19 measures for border entries, shares The Star Online.

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This includes removing swab tests for Malaysian lorry drivers entering Singapore.

Important not to rush negotiations

This tentative reopening of the Singapore-Malaysia border will certainly be amazing news to most of us.

However, with community cases on the rise, it is important that we recognise real risks of the ongoing pandemic.

Let us hope both nations will come to an agreement that will minimise the spread of Covid-19 infections, ensure businesses continue to thrive & allow our Malaysian colleagues to visit their loved ones back home.

Featured image adapted from Google Maps.