Singapore Airport FAQs
Here are some Singapore Airport FAQs sent in by users of eTour Singapore. They are compiled here because they are of importance to many visitors.
Singapore Customs Issues
Is it true that if I bring cigarettes into Singapore, I'll be heavily fined?
How much duty-free alcoholic drinks am I allowed to take into Singapore?
NEW! Will brand new electronics be taxed at the Singapore Airport?
NEW! Cigarette duties and taxes in Singapore?
Moving Around / Resting at Singapore Airport
How do I get from Terminal 1/2/3 to Singapore Budget Terminal?
I'm staying at the Airport Transit Hotel. Do I need to clear the customs to collect my luggage?
NEW! Transiting and resting at Singapore Budget Terminal
[Ask my question now...] [More questions by others]
Question:
Is it true that if I bring cigarettes into Singapore, I'll be heavily fined?
Answer:
It's true that you can't bring cigarettes (or tobacco in general) into Singapore
without being taxed. When the customs officer sees your cigarettes, he'll
ask that you pay duty on them. Just as if you're importing them for sale here.
Most smokers would have an opened pack with them any way. An opened pack is still technically liable for duty, but I haven't heard of anyone who's
been asked to pay duty on an opened pack. A pack of 20 sticks costs about
S$9-12 here.
Special Note:
(I've added this point because of the wrong advice many are giving in the forums about taking cigarettes into Singapore.)
The wrong advice is this:
- To avoid paying duties on your cigarettes, stash them in your checked-in luggage and keep the cigarette receipts.
- When the customs officer finds them in your checked-in luggage, just produce your cigarette receipts, show her/him your onward air ticket and tell him that you're going to take them out of the country.
The reality is this:
- Customs officers can and will probably inspect your checked-in luggage as you are leaving the arrival hall.
- When the custom officers find cigarettes in your checked-in luggage, showing that you've bought your cigarettes from another country and that you've got an onward flight out of Singapore soon will NOT exempt you from cigarette duties. As long as you are taking cigarettes through the Singapore customs (even if they're in your checked-in luggage), you'll still be asked to pay duties on these cigarettes.
- Spare yourself the hassle and get your duty-free cigarettes on your way out of Singapore Airport, and not when you are coming in.
Question:
How much duty-free alcoholic drinks am I allowed to take into Singapore?
Answer:
1 litre of spirits (e.g. rum, vodka, whisky, tequila, brandy, etc)
1 litre of wine
1 litre of beer or ale or stout (or a combination of these not exceeding 1 litre)
(must be over 18-years-old; must have spent more than 48 hours outside Singapore in a country apart from Malaysia)
Question:
I'm staying at the Airport Transit Hotel. Do I need to clear the customs to collect my luggage? If I clear the customs, can I still go back to the Transit Hotel? If not, how do I collect my luggage?
Answer:
Once you go through the customs, you may not go back to the Airport Transit Hotel, which is in the transit area.
If you are staying at the Singapore Airport Transit Hotel, do not clear customs. Go straight to the Hotel.
What happens to your checked-in luggage meanwhile? When the luggage is not collected from the luggage belt after 30 minutes, the airport team puts it with the Lost and Found counter at the Arrival Hall.
After your stay at the Transit Hotel, you may clear the customs and collect your luggage from the Lost & Found section. When I checked with the Airport Transit Hotel, they told me none of their customers has lost their luggage this way. Travellers using the Transit Hotel have also shared that they had no problem with lost luggage.
Question:
How do I get from Terminal 1/2/3 to Singapore Budget Terminal?
If you are in Terminals 1 or 3, take first the Skytrain to Terminal 2. At the basement of Terminal 2, there's a free shuttle bus that'll take you to the Budget Terminal. It leaves approximately every 15 minutes.
Related
Getting from Singapore Airport to Your Hotel
FAQs about Singapore Budget Terminal
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What Other Visitors Have Asked
Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...
Taking 2 Bottles of Wine Through Singapore Airport
I will be flying from Toronto to Hong Kong. and Hong Kong to Singapore..
I have 2 bottle of wine with me and some presents that i bought from Canada ...
Transit from Singapore Budget Terminal i'm flying via cebu pacific which will arrive almost midnight and i'll be travelling the following day to johor. can i possibly stay at the transit hotel ...
Cigarette Duties and Taxes in Singapore
do i pay tax for my cigarettes when i come to singapore or not?
Will brand new electronics be taxed in Singapore? Is it true that one will be taxed should he bring in brand new (unopened) electronics into Singapore? (Eg. Laptops) I've been asked to purchase a laptop ...
Nice Restaurant at Singapore Airport Could you recommend a nice restaurant at the Singapore Airport?
