Malaysia border agency advises foreign travellers to use NIISe app following autogate crash
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Foreigners at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex had to wait up to two hours to clear immigration on Jan 10.
PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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JOHOR BAHRU – Foreign travellers in Malaysia are advised to use the new National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe) while going through immigration at a main checkpoint following a system failure involving its autogates, says the Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) on Jan 10.
AKPS said, besides NIIse, foreigners could also use the manual counters to clear immigration.
AKPS, in a statement on Facebook, said that the e-gates at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (BSI) were experiencing technical problems involving those holding foreign passports.
However, Malaysians can use the system without any issues.
AKPS said that at press time, the movement of people at all zones was smooth, and the Immigration Department and AKPS were carrying out monitoring and rectifying works.
Tens of thousands of foreigners were reported earlier to be stuck in long queues at Malaysia’s two land checkpoints with Singapore following a major technical glitch which knocked out most of the immigration autogates on Jan 10.
The worst affected is the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (BSI), where foreigners have been forced to wait up to two hours to clear immigration.
It was learnt that at least 39 autogates at the entry and 29 machines at the exit areas of the bus halls at BSI had experienced problems for a few days, but the system crashed totally on Jan 10 due to the huge influx of foreigners during the weekend.
The Sultan Abu Bakar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (KSAB) has 12 autogates.
Malaysians using their local passports are still able to use the autogates, while the system for motorcycles and cars was also functioning properly.
“Even the autogates at the KTM (Keretapi Tanah Melayu) train station at BSI were knocked offline,” a security official said, adding that efforts were being made to restore the system in stages.
“This is the first major disruption this year, and the timing is bad, especially when we are getting a lot of foreign visitors in conjunction with Visit Malaysia
The official added that the Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) has been directed to open up all the manual counters to handle the influx of people.
The official said that so far, the situation at KSAB was still manageable.
Facebook user Joy Ce said that it took about three hours to get her passport stamped.
In July 2025, a similar incident
At press time, AKPS was in the midst of issuing an official notification about the disruption to urge visitors to be prepared for delays.
Since June 1, 2024, visitors from 63 countries, as well as diplomats serving in Malaysia and their family members, have been eligible to use the autogates for faster clearance. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
