No more white card required for entry into Johor Bahru.. Ever!

July 21st, 2012 admin

With the announcement by the Home Ministry Secretary General in May 2012 that white cards are no longer required (ever!) for entry into Johor Bahru, we are left pondering some of the questions below:

1. Usage of National Enforcement Registration System
How does the system helps at all? Whatever that is stored in our passports (Name, Nationality, ID, biometric details) are already available years back. What is being filled up in the white card goes beyond that (purpose of visit, place of visit, vehicle #, occupation) and is not captured in our passport. So, what has really changed that removes the requirement of the white card?

2. Usage of white card
In the first place, do they really use the information filled up in the white card at all??!

3. MACS
The value of MACS is now diminished. As late as Oct 2011, the government was setting up MACS booth (http://www.limsimi.com/johor-bahru-news-information/macs-booth-at-holiday-plaza). This scheme can now be entirely dropped.

White cards to Malaysia – Now a piece of history

In any case, we are not complaining. Custom queues seem to be improving.. as long as the immigration department does not turn on the usage of the biometric fingerprint scanning system again. What has happened to that system anyway??

The Star/Asia News Network
Friday, May 18, 2012
PUTRAJAYA – Beginning June 1, foreign visitors to Malaysia are no longer required to fill in the Immigration Disembarkation Card, commonly known as the IMM.26 Form.

They only need to produce their passports upon entering the country.

Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Mahmood Adam said the procedure was no longer required following the introduction of the biometric recording system by the Immigration Department.

The system records the data of foreigners through the National Enforcement Registration System (NERS).

Mahmood said NERS, which was introduced on June 1 last year, fulfilled the Tourism Ministry’s requirement to record the data of foreign tourists to Malaysia.

“The decision to abolish the use of the IMM.26 Form was made in a meeting between the Immigration Department and the Home and Tourism ministries,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Mahmood assured that the abolishment of the form would not compromise national security.

The new procedure would facilitate the arrival process of visitors and shorten the processing time at the country’s entry points, he added.

The public can call the Immigration Department at 1-800-22-6969 or e-mail pro@imi.gov.my for queries.

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Entry Filed under: New Johor Bahru Custom/CIQ Complex,News and Information