KUALA LUMPUR: After a five year wait, the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) will finally be implemented on all foreign-registered vehicles entering Johor from Singapore on Oct 1.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke had said yesterday that the government will not U-Turn on its implementation, which will help facilitate with the enforcement related to foreign vehicles entering the country.
The VEP regulation applies to foreign motorists entering at both the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) complex at the Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI) at the Causeway and the CIQ Complex at the Sultan Abu Bakar building at the Second Link.
Loke had also said the process to obtain a VEP will be simplified, with the VEP RFID tag delivered to applicants' homes instead of a previous requirement for them to collect the tag in Johor.
WHAT IS THE VEP?
The Vehicle Entry Permit is issued by the Road Transport Department under Section 66H of the Road Transport Act 1987 to allow entry of foreign-registered vehicles into Malaysia.
Foreign vehicle owners or their representatives entering Peninsular Malaysia must register for the VEP via the RTD website.
An applicant will be issued radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag which costs RM10 per VEP tag and it would be valid for five years.
The RFID tag is non-transferrable and uniquely identifies each vehicle.
The VEP is being implemented on top of a RM20 road charge imposed on all vehicles entering from Singapore.
TIMELINE OF THE VEP
October 2017 - Malaysia's former Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai announces that all foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia would soon require a VEP, on top of being subject to the RM20 road charge.
July 28, 2018 - Testing on the VEP system for foreign vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore via the Causeway and the Second Link concludes. The Malaysian Road Transport Department (RTD) said at the time that the ystem was being put through the paces before its launch.
Sept 23, 2019 - The Transport Ministry agrees to defer enforcement of VEP. The decision was made after several issues related to its implementation were made known to the ministry including difficulties in getting appointments for VEP RFID Tag installation.
May 28, 2024 - Loke said Malaysia will begin enforcing the VEP for all foreign vehicles entering from Singapore starting Oct 1, 2024.