Mustafar (centre) visiting the EMGS office. — Bernama photo
CYBERJAYA: The backlog on 3,861 student passes for foreigners by Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS), outstanding since June last year, has been settled, according to Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali.
He said the problem was resolved in just eight days after a Special Task Force was set up on Jan 23 to handle the matter, way ahead of the 14-day deadline given by the government.
According to him, apart from a breakdown in the Malaysian Immigration System (myIMMs) lasting 12 days in June last year which delayed processing of the applications to more than 14 days, the situation was compounded by the attitude of the educational institutions that were to receive them.
“The applications by right should have been submitted at least six weeks before the date of registration of the students with complete details to facilitate the vetting process by EMGS and also the Immigration Department before the passes are issued but it was not always the case,” he told a press conference after visiting EMGS’ office here yesterday. – Bernama