Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has issued a notice on penalties for non-compliance of prevailing immigration procedures.

Since January 2026, ICA has detected five instances in which shipping agents failed to submit departure applications (including crew manifests) via digital PORT@SGTM before vessels left Singapore waters, and one instance of sea crew exiting the port premises without an arrival entry record from ICA.

Failure to submit a complete and accurate manifest before a vessel’s arrival or departure contravenes Section 22 of the Immigration Act 1959. Likewise, any sea crew or passenger – including Singapore-resident travellers arriving on vessels from outside Singapore’s territorial waters – who fail to obtain arrival or departure immigration clearance at an ICA sea checkpoint or gazetted marina breaches Section 5 of the Immigration Act 1959.

Under the Immigration Act 1959, any master, operator, owner, agent or charterer who fails to provide a complete and accurate crew or passenger list commits a strict liability offence, punishable by a fine of up to $10,000. Likewise, any person convicted of illegal entry or departure is liable to a fine of up to $2,000, imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or both.

ICA takes a serious stance against any contravention of the Immigration Act 1959 and its subsidiary legislation. Enforcement actions are being taken against the sea crew and errant shipping agents. The errant shipping agents’ CREW accounts were terminated immediately to prevent them from carrying out any vessel/manifest related transactions with ICA.

For further details, please refer to ICA’s notice.