Woodlands Train Checkpoint is a railway station and border checkpoint in Woodlands, Singapore. The railway is operated by the Malaysian railway operator Keretapi Tanah Melayu. Constructed from 1992 to 1997, Woodlands Train Checkpoint was opened on 1 August 1998 as the Singapore border control facility for rail passengers. At that time there were no boarding facilities, as northbound passengers heading towards Malaysia were required to clear Malaysian Customs and Immigration at Tanjong Pagar railway station in central Singapore, and northbound trains stopped at Woodlands Train Checkpoint for Singapore exit immigration checks only. However, southbound passengers could disembark after clearing Singapore Customs and Immigration at Woodlands Train Checkpoint, as they had already cleared Malaysian Immigration at Johor Bahru railway station. Since 1 July 2011, Woodlands Train Checkpoint has been the southern terminus of the KTM Intercity service. This followed an agreement between Malaysia and Singapore to close Tanjong Pagar railway station. Northbound passengers clear Singapore Immigration and Malaysian Customs and Immigration at Woodlands Train Checkpoint before boarding the train for Malaysia, while southbound passengers clear Malaysian Immigration at Johor Bahru Sentral railway station, and Singapore Customs and Immigration at Woodlands Train Checkpoint. The planned Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System will replace shuttle train services to Woodlands Train Checkpoint by 2026.
Train services
A shuttle train service, known as the Shuttle Tebrau, links Woodlands Train Checkpoint with Johor Bahru Sentral. There are 31 trips daily: 17 trips from Johor Bahru and 14 trips from Woodlands. KTM Intercity train services that previously linked Woodlands Train Checkpoint with various destinations in Malaysia were truncated to terminate at Johor Bahru Sentral following the introduction of the shuttle train service on 1 July 2015. The Eastern and Oriental Expressluxury train has its terminus at Woodlands Train Checkpoint.
Until 1998, both Malaysia and Singapore had their customs and immigration facilities for rail passengers at Tanjong Pagar railway station. Singapore decided to relocate its customs and immigration facilities to Woodlands despite Malaysia's unwillingness to vacate the Tanjong Pagar railway station according to the Malaysia–Singapore Points of Agreement of 1990. The ICA ceased operations at Tanjong Pagar and moved into Woodlands Train Checkpoint on 1 August 1998. While providing immigration facilities for southbound passengers at Johor Bahru, Malaysian Customs and Immigration for northbound passengers remained at Tanjong Pagar, refusing to relocate to either Woodlands or Johor Bahru. This peculiarity resulted in passengers travelling to Malaysia being granted entry to Malaysia before being granted exit from Singapore, which is contrary to international practice. To circumvent the problem, Malaysian Immigration officers in Tanjong Pagar did not stamp passports, instead scanning them into a computer system and providing a stamped embarkation/disembarkation card, to be retained until leaving Malaysia. This still posed problems for some visitors when leaving Malaysia due to the lack of a physical endorsement in their passports, especially for those who lost the card while in Malaysia. The border control issues were resolved in 2010 following an agreement to close the Tanjong Pagar railway station. KTM together with Malaysian Customs and Immigration relocated their operations to Woodlands Train Checkpoint on 1 July 2011.
