SG Arrival Card from Batam: Ferry Return Guide 2026

The SG Arrival Card (SGAC) is the electronic version of the old paper disembarkation/embarkation card, commonly known as the white card. ICA discontinued the paper card on 27 March 2020; all travellers now provide their arrival information online before reaching Singapore (ICA).

If you live in Batam or visit regularly, this matters most on the return leg: Singapore residents are exempt from the SGAC only when re-entering via the land checkpoints at Woodlands and Tuas. Residents arriving by sea or air must still submit it — and the Batam ferry docks at Harbourfront or Tanah Merah, both sea checkpoints (ICA).

Who Needs to Submit

All travellers are required to submit the SG Arrival Card with an electronic health declaration before arriving in Singapore. The only exceptions are:

• Travellers transiting or transferring through Singapore without seeking immigration clearance.
• Residents — Singapore citizens, Permanent Residents and Long-Term Pass holders (Student’s Pass, Dependant’s Pass, Long-Term Visit Pass and Work Pass) — entering via the Woodlands and Tuas land checkpoints.

Because ferry arrivals clear immigration at a sea checkpoint, the resident exemption does not apply to the Batam–Singapore ferry. A Singapore citizen or PR on the ferry submits the SGAC just like a foreign visitor (ICA).

The SGAC is not a visa. Visa requirements, passport validity and other entry rules are separate matters; check the ICA Entering Singapore page for those (ICA).

When to Submit

You must submit the SGAC within three (3) days, including the day of arrival, before arriving in Singapore. For example, if you are arriving on 30 June, you can submit from 28 June onwards (ICA).

For a ferry trip this is easy to time: submit the evening before or the morning of your departure from Batam. ICA asks for the declaration in advance to avoid unnecessary delays during immigration clearance, since your electronic card is already in ICA’s system when you arrive — you only need to produce your passport at clearance. If your health condition or travel history changes before arrival, you must re-submit the health declaration. False declarations may lead to prosecution under the Infectious Diseases Act (ICA).

How to Submit

Submission is free and done through one of two official channels: the SGAC e-Service on the ICA website, or the free MyICA Mobile app from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android). Travellers are encouraged to use the MyICA app, whose profile-saving function can auto-populate your details for subsequent trips to Singapore (ICA).

1. Open the SGAC e-Service or the MyICA app.
2. Choose your submission option: Singapore citizens, Permanent Residents & Long-Term Pass Holders, or Foreign Visitors.
3. Complete the arrival information together with the electronic health declaration — the health declaration is submitted as part of the SGAC, not separately.
4. Submit. You will receive an acknowledgement email at the email address declared in your SGAC.

ICA has said it takes under three minutes for Singapore residents and roughly five to seven minutes for foreigners to complete the submission. Travellers going together on one trip can use “Group Submission”, which is meant for a group travelling to Singapore together for a single trip (ICA).

The August 2026 Refresh: Bahasa Indonesia and Passport Scan Autofill

Reported by CNA, citing ICA: the SGAC was enhanced to offer 19 language options, up from 12, with the new options including Bahasa Indonesia, Dutch, Arabic, Spanish, Russian, Filipino and Italian. The improved form also adds passport-scan autofill for Singapore residents — on top of Singpass information retrieval — and a streamlined landing page where travellers select their objective and residency type together from the outset.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/singapore-arrival-card-sgac-update-7-language-passport-scan-6330076)).

This is welcome news for Batam-based travellers and ferry regulars: the Indonesian-language option removes the last excuse for paying someone else to fill the form in.

Fees and the Third-Party Website Warning

The SGAC is free of charge on ICA’s official channels. ICA does not support or endorse commercial entities that offer to submit the card for a fee, and those providers are not affiliated with ICA. ICA has published an advisory naming 63 such websites, including addresses such as sg-arrivalcard.com, sgarrivalcard.sg and mysgarrivalcard.sg (ICA).

A common pattern on the Batam route: a traveller searches for the arrival card on a phone at the ferry terminal and lands on a paid site that charges for what ICA provides free. Check the address before you type — the official submission is on the ICA website or in the MyICA app. ICA has stated it will not be held liable for any loss suffered from engaging such paid services (ICA).

What Happens If You Don’t Submit

Travellers who fail to submit the SGAC may be denied entry into Singapore. Even where entry is not refused, arriving without a submitted card means being asked to complete it on the spot and re-joining the immigration queue — a poor end to a ferry crossing, especially on a busy weekend (ICA).

Planning the Rest of Your Batam Trip

If you are still on the Batam side of the journey, these guides may help: the Singapore to Batam ferry guide covers terminals, fares and routes, and the All Indonesia Arrival Card for Batam explains the Indonesian entry form for the outbound leg. Day-trippers can see the Batam day trip itinerary, and anyone staying over can browse verified hotels by area or the top-rated restaurants.