Key Points

  • Foreign nationals' overseas vaccinations against COVID-19 that are approved by the Singapore MOH can now be recorded onto Singapore's National Immunization Registry (NIR).
    • Foreign nationals must provide evidence of their vaccination at a Regional Medical Center or private healthcare provider.
    • They will be required to take a serology test. If results are positive, their vaccination records will be accepted and recorded onto the NIR. Processing of the tests could a few business days.
  • If the results of the serology test are negative, the overseas vaccination records will not be accepted and the foreign national will be considered unvaccinated.
  • The cost of verifying the vaccination records and serology test will be determined by the respective medical center or healthcare provider.

Overview

On Aug. 18, the Ministry of Manpower released a statement declaring that foreign national employees who are vaccinated outside of Singapore with the Ministry of Health's (MOH) approved list of COVID-19 vaccines can have their vaccination records recorded onto the National Immunization Registry (NIR) once they have provided evidence of their vaccination and taken a serology test at a local clinic that returns with a positive result.

What are the Changes?

Previously, the Ministry of Health was only accepting vaccinations against COVID-19 onto the National Immunization Registry that were provided in Singapore. Foreign workers can now have their overseas vaccination records approved and included onto the NIR if they follow the steps above.

Looking Ahead

Employers are strongly encouraged to have their foreign workers get their overseas vaccination records approved and included onto the NIR so that they are no longer considered to be unvaccinated workers. For questions regarding verifying overseas vaccination records and the NIR, employers and foreign nationals can visit the MOH's website here.

Originally published AUGUST 18, 2021

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