Following Singapore’s lead, the Malaysian government has announced a pilot initiative set to take place in June that will allow Malaysians riding on factory buses to pass immigration checks using QR codes.
The initiative is the brainchild of Malaysia’s Ministry of Home Affairs, and it follows a successful similar initiative by the Singapore Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA)’s move to introduce a QR code clearance for car travellers on their side of the border.
Since its introduction in March, Singapore’s QR code initiative has been met with positive feedback from travellers and workers who commute between Singapore and Johor, and also led to increased calls for the Malaysian government to introduce a similar initiative.
Only for Malaysians riding factory buses for now
When contacted by Channel News Asia, Johor’s Works, Transportation and Infrastructure committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh stated that the pilot QR code initiative will only apply to Malaysians entering Singapore on factory buses for the time being.
This means that for the time being, travellers with the Singaporean passport are not included in this initiative.
Fazli also added that the initiative will allow eligible travellers to use QR code clearance at both Bangunan Sultan Iskandar and Kompleks Sultan Abu Bakar, the two immigration complexes linked to the Johor-Singapore Causeway and Tuas Second Link highways.
According to Fazli, even with the new pilot programme, these travellers are still required to bring their passports. This is due to the fact that the QR code system for both Johor and Singapore borders are different, and not yet integrated.
How the QR code system works
Fazli also gave a brief description of how the pilot initiative will work.
According to him, the immigration officers will board the factory buses with handheld scanners at the checkpoints.
These officers will then scan the QR codes for each individual traveller. The QR codes for each individual traveller will be generated by an app on their mobile phones.
And finally, Fazli also said that further announcements on the pilot QR code initiative will be announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as the Immigration Department.
Read More: Singapore Launches QR Code Clearance At Tuas Checkpoint
Passport free international travel is not new
Although it might be new for Singapore and Malaysia, passport free international travel is not exactly new globally.
One popular example is the Schengen Agreement, which eliminates common borders among its 27 European member countries, including Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Switzerland, among others.
With the Schengen Agreement, travellers can travel between these participating countries freely, without their passport.
