Malaysia records over 250,000 travellers arriving, leaving country since April 1

PUTRAJAYA: A total of 252,730 travellers were recorded to have entered and left Malaysia through the main entry points over a four-day period since the re-opening of the country's border on April 1, said Immigration Director-General Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud.

Of the total recorded, he said, 126,392 were arrivals and 28,301 departures involving Malaysians, while 55,121 arrivals and 42,916 departures involved foreign travellers.

He said the country's gateway at the Sultan Iskandar Building in Johor recorded the highest movement involving foreigners, at 160,818, followed by Kuala Lumpur International Airport - KLIA (38,407), Sultan Abu Bakar Complex, Johor (53,113), Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 - klia2 (11,712) and Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah (6,980).

The highest number of travellers were from Singapore (65,165), Thailand (7,841), Indonesia (5,173), India (2,477) and the United Kingdom (1,485), he said in a statement today.

On March 8, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that the country's borders would be reopened on April 1 in line with the country's plan to enter the transition to endemic phase.

On the issuance of the International Malaysian Passport, Khairul Dzaimee said the Immigration Department had issued 12,923 copies during the same period.

"The number is expected to continue to increase as more people are taking advantage of the opening of the border to travel abroad as well to perform the umrah," he said.

Khairul Dzaimee said the reopening of the country's borders saw an increase in the movement of foreign travelers into the country by 76.4 per cent, while the issuance of International Malaysian Passports increased by 38.2 per cent.

He reminded locals and international travellers to always adhere to the general travel protocol set by the Ministry of Health, and also the Immigration Regulations.

"For Malaysians, there are advised to check the blacklist records at the Immigration Department's portal or kiosks at KLIA," he said.

-- BERNAMA