Singapore, Nov 21 (IANS): The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) announced on Saturday that all travellers arriving from Hong Kong as part of the Air Travel Bubble (ATB) will be required to take an on-arrival Covid-19 PCR test at the Changi Airport here.

The new requirement came as new Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong have been rising over the past few days, reports Xinhua news agency.

The CAAS said the health authorities of both sides are in close contact and monitoring the situation, and the ATB arrangement will be launched as scheduled on Sunday.

According to the previous rules, travellers under the ATB from Hong Kong will only be required to take a pre-departure Covid-19 PCR test and obtain a negative test result before departing for Singapore.

The CAAS also said that the newly-added on-arrival PCR test will cost S$196 per travelLer, but Singapore will exempt passengers arriving in the first week from paying for the test, so as to give them time to adjust to this change.

The authority added that after the test, travellers must self-isolate in their place of residence, while waiting for the results, which will take about six to eight hours.

They are to take private transportation, taxi, or private hire car from the airport to their declared place of accommodation.

As of Saturday, Hong Kong has reported a total of 5,518 coronavirus cases and 108 deaths.