Reprieve For Malaysian Restricted Passport Users.
A little bit of good news for those working in Singapore. At least for a couple of months anyway.
Singapore has agreed to extend the deadline to cease accepting the Malaysian Restricted Passport (MRP) as a valid travel document for four more months or up to October this year, after which only Malaysian international passports would be accepted as valid travel documents. The extension, which will no doubt bring relief to the thousands of Malaysian workers who commuted daily between the two countries, was reached during a discussion between Malaysian Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad and Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng who is also the Minister for Home Affairs, Friday.
"We have asked for a reprieve from Singapore authority for a period of four more months. They can still use the restricted passports up to October only," Radzi told reporters here after the meeting. In February, Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) announced that it will cease accepting the MRP as a travel document from July 1 this year.
The decision was following an announcement by the Malaysian Immigration Department that it would no longer issue the MRP from January 2005 and that the MRP would no longer be a valid document for travel after Dec 31 this year.The ICA had said then that the July 1 deadline was in line with the practice which required all travel documents to have a validity of at least six months. Radzi, who thanked the Singapore for the extension, said that the latest development would also allow a breathing space at the Immigration Department office in Johor Bahru where an average of 1,200 applications for passports were received daily as against the processing capacity of 750 applications. "I want to remind Malaysian workers who are still holding the MRPs not to wait till the last minute to renew them," said Radzi.
According to statistics, some 9.9 million MRPs had been issued since it was first introduced 37 years ago.Radzi said that todate, there were still about 20,000 MRP holders who had yet to renew their documents. During the meeting, Radzi and Wong also discussed about the documents to be used by some 100,000 Malaysian workers who commute daily between the two countries so that their passports need not be stamped each time they enter or leave Singapore.
"They have agreed that the Malaysian international passport will not be stamped so long as these workers produce their worker's card or what is known as the green card, which has already been issued by the Singapore authority," Radzi said.
Frequent travellers can also apply from the ICA for an Immigration Automated Clearance System (IACS) access card -- a smart card in which the holder's fingerprint data is stored.Those eligible for the IACS access card are Singapore citizens, permanent residents, holders of passes such as student's pass, long term social visit pass, employment pass, dependant's pass as well as work permit. The IACS applicants must be at least six years old.IACS access card holder can enter or exit the checkpoints via automated lanes where the card is inserted into a reader and the right thumb is scanned for verification.Presently, the IACS is available at Changi Airport, Singapore Cruise Centre, Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and the bus passenger halls of the Woodlands and Tuas Checkpoints.-- BERNAMA
Singapore has agreed to extend the deadline to cease accepting the Malaysian Restricted Passport (MRP) as a valid travel document for four more months or up to October this year, after which only Malaysian international passports would be accepted as valid travel documents. The extension, which will no doubt bring relief to the thousands of Malaysian workers who commuted daily between the two countries, was reached during a discussion between Malaysian Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad and Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng who is also the Minister for Home Affairs, Friday.
"We have asked for a reprieve from Singapore authority for a period of four more months. They can still use the restricted passports up to October only," Radzi told reporters here after the meeting. In February, Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) announced that it will cease accepting the MRP as a travel document from July 1 this year.
The decision was following an announcement by the Malaysian Immigration Department that it would no longer issue the MRP from January 2005 and that the MRP would no longer be a valid document for travel after Dec 31 this year.The ICA had said then that the July 1 deadline was in line with the practice which required all travel documents to have a validity of at least six months. Radzi, who thanked the Singapore for the extension, said that the latest development would also allow a breathing space at the Immigration Department office in Johor Bahru where an average of 1,200 applications for passports were received daily as against the processing capacity of 750 applications. "I want to remind Malaysian workers who are still holding the MRPs not to wait till the last minute to renew them," said Radzi.
According to statistics, some 9.9 million MRPs had been issued since it was first introduced 37 years ago.Radzi said that todate, there were still about 20,000 MRP holders who had yet to renew their documents. During the meeting, Radzi and Wong also discussed about the documents to be used by some 100,000 Malaysian workers who commute daily between the two countries so that their passports need not be stamped each time they enter or leave Singapore.
"They have agreed that the Malaysian international passport will not be stamped so long as these workers produce their worker's card or what is known as the green card, which has already been issued by the Singapore authority," Radzi said.
Frequent travellers can also apply from the ICA for an Immigration Automated Clearance System (IACS) access card -- a smart card in which the holder's fingerprint data is stored.Those eligible for the IACS access card are Singapore citizens, permanent residents, holders of passes such as student's pass, long term social visit pass, employment pass, dependant's pass as well as work permit. The IACS applicants must be at least six years old.IACS access card holder can enter or exit the checkpoints via automated lanes where the card is inserted into a reader and the right thumb is scanned for verification.Presently, the IACS is available at Changi Airport, Singapore Cruise Centre, Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and the bus passenger halls of the Woodlands and Tuas Checkpoints.-- BERNAMA
posted by The Malaysian. at 6/23/2006 03:10:00 PM
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