From October 1, all foreign-registered vehicles entering Malaysia from Singapore will need to have a Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP). This requirement will probably be enforced at two checkpoints in Johor, namely the Sultan Iskandar Building and the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex.
Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke made the announcement at a press conference in Putrajaya on May 28. He said all foreign vehicle owners must register, install and activate their VEP RFID tags inside the following 4 months. The four-month period is geared toward stopping a surge in travel between the 2 countries.
With these tags, the Malaysian government will give you the option to trace foreign vehicles entering or leaving the country and in addition prevent vehicle thefts.
To obtain an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag, vehicles have to be registered and pay a fee of RM10. Owners who breach this requirement could face a advantageous of as much as MYR2000 or six months in prison.
Registered individuals can decide to either bring their vehicles to Malaysia for the plates to be fitted or send them in for self-fit.
Loke mentioned that over 200,000 vehicle owners applied for the sticker, but only 70,000 activated it.
Owners of motorcycles, business vehicles and government vehicles must also register for the VEP program, although installation of license plates for these kind of vehicles will happen later.
The VEP-RFID tag displays the unique serial variety of the registered vehicle and is provided with a chip and antenna. Once activated, it may be used to pay the RM20 Johor Bahru Congestion Charge and Malaysian Expressway Tolls. The tag is generally attached to the front lights of registered vehicles and loses its functionality when removed.
Currently, each foreign vehicle entering Malaysia must pay a toll of RM20, while motorcyclists are exempt from the fee.
In April 2019, the Malaysian government initially announced an identical plan but faced delays as a consequence of issues with installing VEP-RFID tags. In January 2020, the federal government again announced a brief delay while it searched for solutions to make it easier to register Singaporean vehicles with the tags.
This plan is now being reintroduced with the hope of successful implementation.
