Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has announced on Thursday that eligible Thai passport holders will be able to clear immigration faster when they land in Singapore's Changi International Airport.
The authority stated that Thai passport holders, who have visited Singapore at least twice in the past two years, aged six and above can apply to use the automated clearance facilities, which are now in testing process. The similar process is already available in Thailand for eligible Singapore passport holders.
The Frequent Traveller Programme allows eligible Thai travellers to clear the immigration process via automated clearance facilities, which is known as the enhanced immigration automated clearance system or eIACS.
ICA clearly stated that the decision was made because such mutual extension of immigration clearance facilities will help to boost the trade and business as well as tourism links between both the south-east Asian countries.
The enrolment is voluntary and the procedure doesn't require any additional charges. Eligible passport holders in Thailand can apply for Frequent Traveller Programme at the enrolment centres, which are located at the Changi Airports Terminal 3, the visitor services centre at the ICA building. People can also visit Woodlands and Tuas Checkpoints to apply for the same process.
As announced earlier, the in October 2017 second-busiest international airport of Asia, Changi has opened its Terminal 4 with an idea to develop and test its brand new automation technology. Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and government-controlled companies such as Caterers Company SATS Ltd have come together to make Changi world's first technologically superior airport and this move will help Singapore's airport to stay way to ahead of its other competitors, who are now focusing on extending and developing their facilities.
Jeffrey Lowe, managing director at Asian Sky Group in Hong Kong previously stated, "Airports are getting bigger and bigger and need to process higher and higher volumes of passengers. Given the need to provide quick and efficient — seamless — service to passengers, automation is the only way to do this on a large scale."
