What happens if you don’t complete the e-Census 2020?

Complete the e-Census 2020 questionnaire online by Oct 6. — Bernama

Today is the last day for members of the public to pre-register to receive their Invitation Code (IC) for the e-Census 2020.

To do so, visit the e-Census website, click on First Time user or go here for the pre-registration page.

The public are advised to check their Spam or Junk folder to see if the e-Census email may have ended up there.

Example of the e-Census 2020 invitation code via postcard (top) and email (bottom). — MyCensus2020 Facebook

After receiving the 11-digit IC which is meant to represent their household, Malaysians can then use it to login on the e-Census website to fill in the questionnaire.

Then, they have until Oct 6 to complete and submit the questionnaire.

According to an FAQ, the Statistics Department encourages more people to participate in the Census 2020 online as a way of maintaining physical distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The FAQ stated for those who missed the e-Census questionnaire online submission period, a surveyor will visit their homes for a face-to-face interview using a tablet, smartphone or questionnaire from Oct 7 onwards.

Chief statistician and Census 2020 commissioner Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin in a Sept 27 report said only about one in 10 Malaysians had completed the e-Census 2020.

"The first phase is being implemented through the e-Census, while the second phase, via face-to-face interview, will be from Oct 7 to Oct 24 where we hope to be able to achieve 100% completion," he said.

The Census Act 1960, Section 9(2) makes it mandatory for members of the public to answer all questions in the census form and Section 17(1) states that failure to comply may result in a fine of no more than RM100 or prison term of no more than six months or both.

In other news, users also have until 11:59pm tonight (Sept 30) to utilise the ePenjana credit in their eWallets before it expires. Any unused balance will be removed from the eWallet.

Users may still be able to spend or use some of the additional incentives introduced by eWallet providers beyond the Sept 30 ePenjana deadline. They just need to reload enough cash into the eWallet and check the campaign announcements in the app for more information.