Tuesday, 31/03/2020 09:57 (GMT+7)
The Vietnamese Embassy in Singapore has contacted with Singapore’s relevant agencies to ask for help in visa extension and residence procedures for Vietnamese citizens who have been stranded in the country and wish to return home.
A street in Singapore amid COVID-19 epidemic (Photo: thanhnien.vn)
According to the Vietnam News Agency, the embassy noted that as of the end of March 27th, about 130 Vietnamese citizens, including mostly short-term labourers, aside from students and some coming to Singapore for medical treatment, had contacted the embassy to express their aspirations to return to the home country.
According to the embassy, it has been reporting the citizens’ aspirations to Vietnamese authorities and updating information about airlines’ flight cancellation, adding that it will notify the citizens of solutions as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the Singaporean side has affirmed that its Immigration and Checkpoints Authority will assist the consideration of extending short-term visas for the Vietnamese nationals.
The embassy also called on the citizens to sympathize with domestic efforts in the fight against COVID-19, noting concentrated quarantine facilities in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have become overloaded.
It also asked the Vietnamese citizens in Singapore to stay calm, refrain from travelling, stay away from crowded places, practice personal hygiene, and comply with the host country’s regulations on epidemic prevention and control.
Since March 23rd, the Singaporean Government has banned short-term visitors from entering or transiting this nation and cancelled a number of flights to countries that had issued similar entry bans.
The embassy has also informed Vietnamese people about Singapore’s tightening of such disease control measures so that they can make preparations./.
BTA