GOMBAK: The increase in visa fees for new international students is reasonable and is comparable to the fees charged in other countries, said Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
He said the current fee of RM1,000 for new visa applications was needed to better manage the processing of student passes.
“The Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) has taken over the whole visa application process for private higher education institutions since February.
“Previously, these student passes were processed by the (then) Higher Education Ministry at no charge but some institutions still charged the students RM100 or more," he said during a question-and-answer session during his visit to International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) on Tuesday.
Muhyiddin said the collection of the new fees went to the setting up of a portal, a customer contact centre for students, a walk-in service centre and the marketing of Malaysia as an international education destination.
Muhyiddin was responding to a question by a student who claimed that many foreign students faced delays in getting their visas approved.
EMGS is a one-stop centre for foreign student enrolment set up by the then Higher Education Ministry last year. It provides for a single interface for foreign student pass application, processing and issuance.
Many IPTS operators have since claimed that a large number of foreign students have not been able to start their courses here due to the delay in the issuance of student visas.
Muhyiddin added that the waiting time for the processing of student visas had reduced to an average of 16 working days for new applications and 12 working days for renewals. Previously, it was between eight and 12 weeks.
Muhyiddin also called on Muslims to be united to stem the “spread of Western secular liberalism”.
“Under the pretext of human rights or gender rights, some have propagated that Muslims are allowed to deny Islam... and claim that Islam recognises gays, lesbians and same-sex marriages.
“What is worse is that some Muslims do not just believe this, but also actively propagate these false beliefs to other Muslims.
“We have to fight this onslaught with intellectual prowess such that provided by this institution... and enlighten society on the true teachings of Islam,” he said in his speech.
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