PETALING JAYA: Travellers entering Malaysia may soon undergo enhanced biometric identity checks under a new system aimed at strengthening border security, says the Home Ministry.
It said the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), scheduled for introduction in the third quarter of next year, will match travellers’ facial and other biometric data against immigration databases and watch lists in real time.
“ABIS also allows inspection processes to be carried out swiftly, orderly and safely in line with strengthening safety networks at Malaysia’s borders,” it said in a written parliamentary reply yesterday.
The ministry also said it will progressively begin expanding the use of auto gates to foreign travellers leaving Malaysia starting this December.
“Each transaction will be recorded and verified electronically through biometric verification without having to pass through manual counters.
“This will curb and reduce the risk of weaknesses in the immigration system, specifically corruption and abuse of power including counter setting and manipulating traveller records, among others,” said the ministry in response to Datuk Khlir Mohd Nor (PN-Ketereh), who asked about the ministry’s short- and long-term plans to address the influx of foreign nationals.
It also said more than 37,000 undocumented foreign nationals were nabbed for various offences from January to September this year.
This was carried out by the Immigration Department across 10,419 operations, it said.
During the same period, almost 33.5 million arrivals of foreign nationals were recorded in Malaysia.
The ministry said various measures have been taken to implement immigration control strategies comprehensively, covering the phases of before entry to Malaysia, during entry, and after entry.
These include the development of the National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe), the rollout of the Foreign Digital Identification system under NIISe for long-term pass holders from Nov 1, and the expansion of the Advanced Passenger Screening System to cover 10 more airlines this year.
The ministry said these measures are integrated to strengthen policy controls, along with technological digital profiling using biometrics to curb the misuse of immigration passes and address the entry and presence of undocumented foreign nationals.
