Contact tracing

All permitted enterprises are subject to the following requirements for the implementation of SafeEntry, pursuant to Regulation 10(b) or otherwise of the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) (Control Order) Regulations 2020 (“Control Order”). Failure to comply with these requirements may result in a breach of the Control Order, for which upon conviction of a first offence the penalty is a fine of up to a maximum of $10,000, imprisonment of up to a maximum of 6 months, or both.

Please note that the methods for SafeEntry can and will change depending on the state of affairs in Singapore in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Permitted enterprises are advised to stand ready to adapt entry arrangements to their premises to new methods if they want to be confident in meeting statutory requirements.

1. SafeEntry

SafeEntry

SafeEntry is the name of the national digital visitor registration system that logs the details and contact information of individuals visiting hotspots, workplaces of permitted enterprises, as well as selected public venues to prevent and control the transmission of COVID-19.

To check-in to SafeEntry, visitors scan a QR code using their TraceTogether App, SingPass Mobile app, or other QR code apps, or present their TraceTogether Token or NRIC/FIN/other IDs to be scanned. By doing so, users give consent to share their name and contact information with the businesses, and make the necessary declaration required. Using this system allows businesses to verify user identity with data from Government sources to facilitate their contact tracing work should the need arise.

SafeEntry by any of the methods above is presently regarded as the appropriate procedure and control that enables or facilitates contact tracing for the purpose of meeting the safe management measures required by the law. However, certain circumstances will require more or particular methods to be adopted in order to meet the legal standards.

All businesses and services that are in operation (including offices, factories, etc) must institute SafeEntry for their employees, associates, visitors and vendors. For large office buildings that have multiple floors and/or house different business entities, check-in is required for each business entity and at each floor. Businesses and building owners who wish to find out more can click here.

Of the businesses/services that are allowed to be in operation, the following list of facilities/places are required to deploy the SafeEntry system to log the check-in of customers, clients, students and visitors entering their premises in order to meet the safe management measures required by the law.¹

Solemnisations and weddings
Funeral events
Funerary memorial events
Funeral parlours with wake halls
Healthcare facilities e.g. hospitals, clinics, TCM clinics, complementary healthcare facilities
Retail, personal and food & beverage (F&B) services
- Malls
- Supermarkets
- Selected popular wet markets (Geylang Serai Market, Block 104 / 105 Yishun Ring Road (Chong Pang Market), Block 20/21 Marsiling Lane, and Block 505 Jurong West Street 52)
- F&B outlets for dine-in customers
- Large retail outlets (> 930 sqm or 10,000 sqft)
- Personal care services e.g. hairdressers / barbers, spas, beauty and wellness centres
- Facilities providing basic pet services (that do not function on a drop-off, pick-up basis)
- Showrooms
Cultural and entertainment venues
- Libraries
- Museums, exhibitions
- Cinemas
- Ticketed attractions
- Other entertainment venues: amusement centres, computer game centres, board game centres, billiard saloons, paintball game centres, axe-throwing centres
Event venues e.g. function halls/ rooms, event lawns
Places of worship
Construction and marine process worksites
Hotels and hostels
Schools and educational institutes
Preschools and student care centres
Tuition and enrichment, training centres, and other training/ class venues
- Outdoor exercise classes
- Sports and fitness centres, including gyms, studios
Residential and community-based care facilities e.g. nursing homes, Senior Activity Centres, Senior Care Centres, Day Activity Centres for Persons with Disabilities
Country and recreation clubs
Registered premises of other member clubs/societies
Banks and financial institutions

To better support contact tracing efforts involving street-hail trips, all taxi commuters should scan the SafeEntry QR codes deployed in taxis when taking street-hail trips.

Smaller retail outlets (i.e. ≤ 930sqm or 10,000sqft) where customers are unlikely to be in close proximity for a prolonged period of time, such as pharmacies, convenience stores and heartland provision shops, are encouraged, but not required, to implement SafeEntry for customers.

For avoidance of doubt, all permitted enterprises, including retail outlets, must still implement SafeEntry for employees, associates and vendors as per all workplaces, and adhere strictly to the other safe management measures, e.g. safe distancing.

¹ This list will be updated as more activities and services are resumed.

2. SafeEntry Gateway

SafeEntry Gateway will be progressively introduced as an additional mode of SafeEntry check-in. This follows a 5-month trial at selected locations, including Downtown East.

The SafeEntry Gateway enables contactless detection of both the TraceTogether App and Token, and serves as an additional means of SE check-in that is quicker and more seamless. It also allows users to check if their Token has run out of battery or is not working.

The SafeEntry Gateway is available both as a physical device and as an app function in the existing SafeEntry (Business) App. Both the device and app function by detecting Bluetooth signals from the TraceTogether App and TraceTogether Token for SafeEntry check-in. Visitors may bring their mobile phone with the TraceTogether App in the foreground or the TraceTogether Token close to the Gateway to check in. If the check-in is successful, the SafeEntry Gateway device will emit a green light and a beep sound to indicate a successful check-in, while the SafeEntry (Business) App will have a pop-out screen for a successful check-in.

From 19 April 2021, the following public-facing venues are required to deploy SafeEntry Gateway at their main entrances as an additional check-in mode to log the check-in of customers, clients and visitors:

Malls
Large retail outlets (> 930 sqm or 10,000 sqft)²
Selected popular wet markets (Geylang Serai Market, Block 104 / 105 Yishun Ring Road (Chong Pang Market), Block 20/21 Marsiling Lane, and Block 505 Jurong West Street 52)
Supermarkets²
Public libraries
Selected museums, heritage institutions, and galleries³
Cinemas (Golden Village, Cathay Cineplexes, Shaw Theatres, Filmgarde, WE Cinemas, The Projector, Eaglewing Cinematics, Carnival Cinemas and Salt Media@Capital Tower)
Gated tourist attractions
MICE event venues (hotels/convention centres with events for >100pax)
Places of worship (worship services for >100pax)
Public and Private Hospitals, National Specialty Centres, Community Hospitals and Polyclinics
Funeral parlours with wake halls

Businesses may deploy either the SafeEntry Gateway device or the SafeEntry (Business) App based on their business needs.

² Supermarkets and large retail outlets located inside buildings already covered by SafeEntry Gateway (e.g. malls or commercial buildings), with the same operating hours, will not be required to deploy SafeEntry Gateways. Please note that all supermarkets and large retail outlets must continue to implement SafeEntry, regardless of whether they are located inside buildings covered by SafeEntry Gateways.

³ Selected public museums, heritage institutions, and galleries will be informed by National Heritage Board.

3. TraceTogether

TraceTogether

The TraceTogether programme is a programme to enhance Singapore’s efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 through community-driven contact tracing.

Both the TraceTogether App and the TraceTogether Token work by exchanging short-distance Bluetooth signals between other nearby TraceTogether devices. The TraceTogether devices estimate the distance between users, and the duration of such encounters. Records of these encounters are stored locally in the user’s TraceTogether App or Token in encrypted form, for 25 days (covering the incubation period of the virus as well as time taken for individuals to seek treatment and to be tested for COVID-19), after which it is automatically deleted.

If a user is interviewed by a contact tracer for activity mapping, he can authorise the uploading of his TraceTogether data to Ministry of Health (MOH). MOH will then decipher the data and get the mobile numbers of the user’s close contacts within a period of time. This facilitates the contact tracing process, and enables contact tracers to inform close contacts of confirmed cases more expeditiously.

To learn more about the TraceTogether programme, visit here.

4. TraceTogether-only SafeEntry

TraceTogether-only SafeEntry is a protocol where SafeEntry check-in can only be completed using the TraceTogether App or Token, and is being planned for nationwide roll-out soon.

TraceTogether-only SafeEntry consists of a protocol where visitors scan a QR code using their TraceTogether App or present their TraceTogether Token to be scanned in order to register a SafeEntry check-in. When TraceTogether-only SafeEntry is implemented, check-in using SingPass Mobile and QR code reader mobile applications will no longer be accepted. For individuals entering premises where TraceTogether-only SafeEntry is implemented as a safe management measure, the individuals have to use either their TraceTogether App or TraceTogether Token, and not any other method, to check in to the venue’s SafeEntry system.

Permitted enterprises should make the necessary preparations to accept TraceTogether Token check-ins. To learn more, please visit here.