KUALA LUMPUR — Singapore motorists can soon collect the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) to enter Malaysia from two new locations in Johor state, including popular shopping destination Paradigm Mall Johor Bahru, while two existing permit centres in Larkin and Taman Daya are set to close.
A spokesman for TCSens, the private vendor appointed by Malaysia's Road Transport Department (JPJ) to handle VEP matters, said one of the two new permit centres will open on Oct 30 at Paradigm Mall in Skudai town, about 15 minutes away from the Causeway checkpoint in Johor Bahru.
The second VEP centre will be at a mall in the Iskandar Puteri area, near the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link that connects Tuas in Singapore to south-west Johor, but details have yet to be finalised, he said.
Meanwhile, the two permit centres at JPJ Academy in Larkin and JPJ in Taman Daya will cease VEP operations on Oct 30, JPJ said in a statement on Oct 29.
The TCSens spokesman said the VEP Collection Centre at Paradigm Mall will be located on the seventh floor of the mall's carpark and will operate until Jan 31, 2025.
On Oct 30 and 31, the Paradigm Mall centre will be open from 10am to midnight. After that, it will be open daily from 10am to 10pm.
The TCSens spokesman reminded motorists to book an appointment via Malaysia's JPJ website and to bring along their appointment slips when visiting the permit centres to collect the VEP radio frequency identification (RFID) tags.
In May, it was announced that all foreign-registered vehicles entering the country by land from Singapore - via the Causeway or Second Link - would be required to have VEPs from Oct 1.
The VEP, which comes with an RFID tag, allows the Malaysian authorities to identify foreign-registered vehicles using the country's roads.
The VEP centres at Paradigm Mall and Danga Bay in Johor and Woodlands in Singapore are where RFID tags are to be collected, installed and activated, a JPJ official said on Oct 29.
Malaysia said that for now, Singapore-registered cars can still enter Johor without a permit. But those who have not applied for a VEP will be issued a written warning.
When asked why the centres in Larkin and Taman Daya will cease VEP operations, the spokesman said this was due to space limitations, which resulted in overcrowding and traffic congestion.
"A location with greater parking capacity and room for smoother vehicle flow would significantly ease these issues," he said.
Those with queries can call the TCSens hotline on +603-7941-2888.
Since the roll-out on Oct 1, VEP applications and collection processes have been marred by delays and snags.
Singapore motorists told The Straits Times about the long queues to collect the RFID tags from the collection centres, as well as technical issues when motorists are unable to change personal details such as their e-mail to complete the application.
On Oct 3, Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke announced that 112,658 VEP tags have been issued, of which 75,412 have been installed and activated.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
