Singapore's checkpoints record over 192 mln travelers in 2023

A total of 192.8 million travelers cleared Singapore's checkpoints in 2023, an increase of more than 80 percent compared to 2022, according to a report issued by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) Tuesday.

The ICA detained 587 immigration offenders last year, an increase of 42 percent compared to 2022. However, the number of arrested immigration offenders was still lower than pre-COVID-19 years, the report showed.

A total of 327 people were arrested for harboring or employing immigration offenders in 2023, an increase of 45 percent compared to 2022, said the ICA.

Most immigration offenders employed by errant employers were found to be working as freelance house cleaners, domestic workers, kitchen assistants, or dishwashers, the ICA added.

In order to improve clearance efficiency, the ICA aims to allow all foreign visitors, regardless of nationality, to clear immigration through automated lanes with the introduction of the next-generation Automated Border Control System this year.

Despite growth in traveler volume, the number of containers, consignments, and parcels cleared through Singapore's checkpoints decreased by 8 percent, and the volume of low-value goods cleared saw a 23 percent decline.