SINGAPORE: Close to 245 million travellers passed through Singapore’s checkpoints in 2025, surpassing the 230 million figure seen the previous year and the 217.3 million recorded in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) on Feb 23 said around three in four travellers had entered the country through the land checkpoints.
The highest number recorded in a single day was on Dec 19, 2025, when close to 589,000 travellers made the journey into Singapore through its land checkpoints.
There was a 9.5 per cent increase in vehicles cleared at the land checkpoints in 2025, with cars and motorcycles accounting for about 94 per cent of the total vehicle volume.
ICA said the passport-less clearance initiatives it introduced have made immigration clearance at the checkpoints “faster, and more efficient and seamless for travellers”.
It noted that about 127 million travellers cleared immigration without being required to present their passport in 2025.
“Following the full implementation of QR code clearance at the land checkpoints in January 2025 and the progressive roll-out of token-less clearance at the air and sea checkpoints, clearance times have been reduced.
“This has also enabled ICA to better manage the increasing volume of travellers, especially at the land checkpoints,” ICA said.
The agency added that those looking to travel from Singapore to Johor Bahru through the Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link will likely go through the immigration process with the QR code clearance system.
The RTS Link, which will transport up to 10,000 travellers per hour in each direction, is targeted to become operational by the end of 2026.
The announcement comes in the wake of figures showing an increasing take-up for QR code immigration clearances at the land checkpoints.
Some 134 million travellers have used the system at the Tuas and Woodlands checkpoints since it was rolled out in March 2024.
ICA figures showed 60 per cent of bus passengers used QR code clearances by Dec 2025, up from 28 per cent in Jan 2025.
Motorcyclists have also continued to adopt the system - 57 per cent used QR code clearances by Dec 2025, compared to 32 per cent in Jan 2025.
ICA said the take-up rate by those travelling in cars has remained consistently higher with 69 per cent using the QR code in Dec 2025, compared with 68 per cent in Jan 2025.
“To encourage greater adoption, ICA has stepped up public education through videos, digital signages and posters, with step-by-step guides.
“Officers are also deployed on-site to assist travellers who require guidance on using QR code for clearance,” said ICA, adding that it will roll out more initiatives in 2026 for those travelling through Singapore’s land checkpoints.
These include the automated systems for those travellings in cars, motorcycles and cargo vehicles, which will be rolled out from the end of 2026.
For motorcycles, ICA will use facial recognition for both riders and pillions, replacing the current process of using fingerprints.
Selected manual car lanes at Woodlands Checkpoint will be retrofitted so they can work as automated motorcycle clearance lanes, depending on operational needs.
Singapore residents and departing foreign visitors can also clear immigration by simply using facial and iris biometrics without the need to present their passport or a QR code.
The system was implemented at Changi Airport and Marina Bay Cruise Centre in 2024.
ICA said the passport-less clearance initiatives rolled out has allowed its officers to focus more on profiling and investigations, which has led to a spike in the number of foreigners being turned away.
The agency conducts pre-arrival risk assessment by leveraging advance information and data analytics to identify high-risk travellers, vehicles and cargo for enhanced checks upon arrival at the checkpoints.
Foreigners denied entry into Singapore jumped 38 per cent in 2025 to 45,700 cases.
They were refused entry after being assessed to pose immigration threats, including those working illegally or have the potential to overstay their visits, to individuals who pose security risks to the nation.
Said ICA: “Through this upstream targeting and enhanced frontline detection, more foreigners were picked up for enhanced screening in 2025, and subsequently refused entry.
“More contraband smuggling cases were also detected compared to 2024.”
The number of contraband cases grew from 43,900 cases in 2024 to 57,400 cases in 2025.
“Through the Integrated Targeting Centre’s (ITC) targeting capabilities and the improved profiling skills of checkpoint officers, coupled with close collaboration with other enforcement agencies, there was a 30.6 per cent increase in foiled contraband smuggling attempts,” said ICA.
ICA officers also detected 223 cases of travellers using multiple identities upon their arrival, compared to 233 cases in 2024.
It added that these travellers could have been persons-of-interest to authorities as they could have previously committed crimes in Singapore and are banned from re-entering.
In 2025, ICA arrested a total of 538 immigration offenders, two more than in the previous year. The number of harbourers and employers of immigration offenders arrested by ICA fell to 277 in 2025, compared to 389 in 2024.
There was a sharp dip in the number of people arrested for marriage-of-convenience related offences in 2025, with 15 individuals arrested across 2025 compared to 41 in 2024.
On the vaping front, ICA said its officers detected 667 cases in 2025 and seized more than 350,000 vapes and related components across its checkpoints.
“In line with Singapore’s zero-tolerance stance against vaping, ICA stepped up publicity and enforcement against vape smuggling at the checkpoints, in close cooperation and through joint operations and information sharing with other enforcement agencies,” the agency said. - The Straits Times/ANN
