Hitting the highways: Interstate travel allowed from Monday (Oct 11), says PM

PETALING JAYA: Interstate travel nationwide will resume starting Monday (Oct 11), says Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

The Prime Minister said this during a special address at 3pm on Sunday (Oct 10).

"With the achievement of almost 90% of the adult population fully vaccinated, therefore I would like to announce that interstate travel will be allowed. This will begin on Monday.

"Interstate travel is only allowed for those who are fully vaccinated.

"The lifting of the prohibition on interstate travel does not apply for visits to localities placed under enhanced movement control order," he added.

Ismail Sabri also said fully-vaccinated Malaysians can travel abroad without a MyTravelPass effective Monday.

He said that travellers, upon returning to Malaysia, must undergo mandatory quarantine.

"Travellers must also do a swab test three days before returning to Malaysia, and another swab test upon arriving.

"For Malaysians, self-quarantine at home is allowed. If there are cases, the Health Ministry will then place them at quarantine centres," he added.

At the same time, Ismail reminded Malaysians that Act 342 (Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases) will apply and individuals caught violating standard operating procedures (SOP) can be fined.

"We must not take this lightly. This is important in the government's efforts to reopen the economy and its preparation towards the endemic phase, also known as #ReopeningSafely," he added.

Ismail Sabri said Malaysians are advised to take a Covid-19 self-test before leaving the state.

"For those with symptoms such as fever, cough, runny nose and shortness of breath, I advise you to postpone your journey," he said, adding that those who test positive should seek help from their nearest Covid-19 Assessment Centre (CAC).

"It is not compulsory, but it is to protect your family members," he added.

The ban on interstate travel was briefly lifted last year but was reimplemented in January this year following a surge in Covid-19 cases.

Based on Health Ministry data on the CovidNow website Sunday morning, a total of 21,003,074 individuals or 89.7% of the adult population in the country have completed their Covid-19 vaccination, just 0.3 percentage points shy of the targeted 90%.

Ismail Sabri had previously announced that state borders would be reopened when the adult population vaccination rate reached 90%.