Singapore’s new S$20,000 cash declaration rules: What Malaysians need to know

KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 — It goes without saying that many Malaysians frequently travel to Singapore for both business and leisure due to longstanding ties between the two countries.

This March, for example, the number of Malaysian visitors to the island nation peaked, registering a figure of 120,256, according to data from the Department of Statistics Singapore.

What they might not know, however, is that since May, all travellers must declare if they are bringing S$20,000 (RM69,555) and more in cash into Singapore.

This declaration must be done online within 72 hours of arriving at or departing Singapore’s checkpoints.

Travellers face imprisonment of up to three years, fines up to S$50,000, or both, for not doing so.

Singapore authorities said these new rules are part of measures to combat terrorism financing, money laundering and tax evasion and has led to a crackdown on undeclared cash at airports.

Legitimate reasons to carry large amounts of cash include medical bills, emergencies, gifts, or business transactions.

For example, a June report in online news portal The Star said that during a week-long joint enforcement operation at Singapore Changi Airport, 87 travellers were caught carrying undeclared cash exceeding S$20,000 or failing to pay taxes on items like cigarettes and liquor.

The multi-agency operation, from June 17 to 23, involved scanning or searching over 18,000 bags and checking more than 10,000 travellers at the airport’s four terminals.

Director of the Centre for Banking and Finance Law at the National University of Singapore’s law faculty Associate Professor Sandra Booysen said these declarations help authorities to track suspicious money flows.

“The larger the sum of cash involved, objectively the more suspicious it is,” she was quoted as saying in a Channel News Asia (CNA) report today.

Booysen, however, highlighted the importance of balancing effectiveness and intrusiveness.

She said setting the threshold too high could allow illegal activities to go undetected, while too low could lead to unnecessary and excessive disclosures, as cash transactions for small amounts are quite common.

Singapore is not alone in requiring cash declarations. Many other countries, including Australia, the United States, and European nations, have similar rules.

Travellers entering or leaving Australia must declare cash amounts of A$10,000 or more.

In the United States, a declaration is required for cash amounts over US$10,000.

As for Malaysia, travellers entering or leaving the country with cash and and/or negotiable bearer instruments (i.e. traveller’s cheques, bearer cheques) amounting to or exceeding US$10,000 must declare it using Customs Form No. 7. This can be found at customs counters at all entry and exit points in Malaysia.