Cross-border trips to Johor push Singapore checkpoint traffic to record high in 2025

Nearly every Sunday, consultant Toh Jia Jie and his wife leave their new flat in Singapore and drive north across the border to Johor for a day of cheaper shopping, pickleball and massages before returning past midnight on Monday morning.Toh, 30, is among the close to 245 million travellers who passed through Singapore’s checkpoints last year, a record high.The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said on Monday that figure represented a 6.3 per cent increase – about 14 million more travellers – compared with 2024.About three-quarters of that volume moved through Singapore’s land checkpoints with Malaysia, reflecting the steady flow of cross-border commuting, leisure trips and everyday travel between the city state and Johor.Cars queue up at the Woodlands Checkpoint to cross the Singapore-Malaysia border. Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesICA said it cleared almost 84.8 million vehicles last year, an increase of 9.5 per cent, or about 7 million more than in 2024.