Immigration and Checkpoints Authority
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (abb.: ICA) is a statutory board of the Ministry of Home Affairs in Singapore. The organisation is in charge of immigration, Singapore passports, identity cards, permanent residents services, customs, issuing permits to foriegners such as social visit pass, professional visit pass, visas and student passes. The ICA is in charge of the security of the territory of the nation and goods entering the country as well as foreigners entering the country. It is in charge of birth and death registrations The organisation was formed on April 1 2003 after the merger of Singapore Immigration and Registration and the enforcement work of Customs and Excise Department.
History
Singapore Immigration and Registration
Before SIR, there were two departments, namely the Singapore Immigration and the National Registration Department. Both the organisations merged on 1 April 1998 to form Singapore Immigration and Registration. The National Registration Office existed during colonial times, with birth registration starting in 1872 which was used as a health and statistical value. However in 1938, registration of births became compulsory by law. After the World War II, the British colonial government issued paper identity cards in 1948. The purpose of those cards was to identify those born in the then colony. The independence of Singapore in 1965 brought it the National Registration Act. The NRO and the Registry of Births and Deaths came under the then Ministry of Labour. The Registry of Societies, Martial Arts Control Unit came under the Ministry of Home Affairs. On 16 October 1981, the NRO, RBD, ROC, MACU and ROS merged to form the National Registration Department. The Martial Arts Control Unit was transferred to the Criminal Investigations Deparment in April 1992. The National Registration Department was located at the Empress Place Building until the 1980s when the building was transformed into the now defunct Empress Place Museum.
Entering Singapore in the past was considered very free and not much control at the immigration checkpoint. It was only in 1919 when the colonial government enforced immigration control. The Passengers Restriction Ordinance was introduced newcomers other than those born in Singapore or Malaya. It was only in 1933 when the Immigration Department was established to control the number of alien immigrants. The headquarters of the Immigration Department was moved to the Chinese Protectorate Building at Havelock Road. It moved to a government building at Palmer Road in 1953. More immigration acts came in the 1950s with The Immigration Ordinance introduced in 1959 when Singapore had full internal self-government. The act allowed Singaporeans to have rights to enter the country. A new Immigration Depot was moved to Telok Ayer Basin (East Wharf) with the head office was moved to Empress Place Building. There was round the clock immigration clearence for vessels since June 1 1961. When Signapore joined Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak to form Malaysia in 1963, the Immigration Department became a Federal Department and the Immigration was under the control of the Immigration Headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. As Singapore seperated from Malaysia on August 9 1965, free travel existed for a short period of time. Two checkpoints were gazzetted for travel between the two countries. They were the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and the Woodlands Checkpoint. Malaysians had to produce identity cards to be able to enter Singapore, until passports were required on both sides in July 1967. To travel to Peninsular Malaysia, the Singapore restricted passport and the Singapore Certificate of Identity was needed. The Restricted passport Centre was at South Quay and was moved to Outram Road in 1976, but closed on 31 December 1994. Immigration control became stricter in the 1970s, with exit control implemented from 1978. Data on foreigners' movements within Singapore were processed by the Immigration Data Processing Centre with a task force set up in 1974 to deal with overstayers and illegal immigrants. The Last Port Clearence was introduced in 1980 to attract more passenger liners to Singapore. Computers were used at immigrations in 1981 which were used to screen travellers. A passport office was opened at Joo Chiat Complex in 1984. This office issued both international and restricted passports and was closed in 1999. The Immigration Department moved its head office to Pidemco Centre in June 1986. Immigration officers were deployed to places such as India and Hong Kong to open consulates and high commissions. All passports issued by the Singapore Immigration after 1990 were computerised and machine readable. The Entry and Exit Control Integrated System was implemented in the early 1990s, it was a computerised system that was used at checkpoints so it could speed up the proccess at the immigration. A hotline for information was set up in 1992, with restricted access to countries such as People's Republic of China, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia lifted. The access card system was introduced on December 15 1996 which uses the smart card technology, with the use of fingerprint data when passing through the checkpoint with an access card. The current ICA Building had a groundbreaking ceremony in February 1993, with an immigration checkpoint at Changi Ferry Terminal in May that year. There was a change in the passport application and collection in the 1990s, letting one to make fewer trips to the office. Several proccesses were introduced, including sending it by post or applying it through the internet. Rebates were given if one applied passport through this method. A new logo was launched by Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng at the foundation stone ceremony at the ICA Building. The West Coast Barter Trade Centre closed in June 1995. Singaporeans were sent renewal forms for passports nine months before their passports expired. The SI became an autonomous agency in 1996 as well as launching its first website. All the immigration facilities moved from Pidemco Centre to the new ICA Building at Kallang Road in 1997.
Customs and Excise Department
The Customs and Excise Department was established in 1910 and was where it collected tax from travellers who bring in restricted goods such as hard liquors and opium initially. Tobacco, liquor, motor vehicles and petroleum became restricted goods as well. The CED also assisted several other government departments such as the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority and the Central Narcotics Bureau. When the GST was introduced in 1994, the work of the CED was increased. The red and green channel customs system was implemented in 1991 at Singapore Changi Airport initially and was used at all custom checkpoints later on. The Customs and Excise Department was located first at Cecil Street from 1910 till 1932 and later the White House at Maxwell Road from 1932 until 1989 when it moved to World Trade Centre (now HarbourFront Centre). It moved again in 1996 to its current headquarters at Revenue House.
Checkpoints
- Land checkpoints
- Air checkpoints
- Singapore Changi Airport
- Seletar Airport
- Air Cargo Checkpoints of Singapore Changi Airport
- Costal checkpoints
- Port checkpoints