Coronavirus: Singapore cuts quarantine to two weeks for most travellers; India declares ‘Delta-plus’ variant of concern

Singapore’s health ministry imposed the three-week isolation period at the end of April as a precaution amid emerging variants of concern

Elsewhere, New Zealand was on high alert after an infected traveller’s visit from Australia, and Thailand reported a record number of daily deaths from Covid-19

Reading Time:6 minutes

A young child flanked by his parents is seen at the Rain Vortex in Singapore’s Jewel Changi Airport shopping centre earlier this month. Photo: EPA

Published: 11:33am, 23 Jun 2021Updated: 9:26pm, 23 Jun 2021

Singapore is reducing the quarantine period for most inbound travellers from 21 days to two weeks after it found that new variants of concern did not have a longer incubation period.

The health ministry imposed the three-week isolation period for all inbound travellers – except those from Australia, Brunei, mainland China, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Macau – in May as a precaution amid emerging variants of concern.

“We have since reviewed the international evidence and local case data,” the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. “While there is increased transmissibility with the new variants of concern, we have found no evidence – from both overseas and local data – that these variants come with longer incubation periods.”

Residents of a public housing estate queue for mandatory Covid-19 swab tests in Singapore. Photo: Reuters

It cited the 270 imported cases Singapore has seen since it introduced harsher quarantine rules, all of which had incubation periods within the 14-day window.

The new rule will take effect from Thursday for all travellers with a recent travel history to higher-risk countries over the past 21 days, who will still be required to quarantine at dedicated facilities and hotels. Different quarantine arrangements are already in place for lower risk places, such as those mentioned above.

Given the high transmissibility of the new variants, however, the ministry said travellers would be required to test themselves three times – on days three, seven and 11 following their arrival – while in quarantine.