THE Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) has expressed concern over the almost one-month-long service disruption of the eVISA portal, claiming that this has resulted in losses of more than RM20mil to RM30 mil.
The portal, which serves as the go-to site for anyone wishing to apply for a visa to enter Malaysia, has been offline since Sept 26 to facilitate maintenance work, raising the ire of prospective Indian travellers to the country.
As a result of the temporary service disruption, the Malaysian High Commission in New Delhi said last Tuesday (Oct 11) that those seeking single-entry visas to Malaysia must instead submit their applications in person at its consulates in New Delhi, Chennai or Mumbai.
Indian tourists who do not wish to do so, however, can apply for a visa-on-arrival but on the condition that they arrive in Malaysia via Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia or Brunei with a valid visa from either country.
To rub salt into the wound, the Malaysian High Commission added that only individual applications are being processed for now (instead of group applications or applications through agents), which require at least six working days, and no cash payments are accepted.
In a statement today, MATTA president Datuk Tan Kok Liang noted that apart from ASEAN, India is now the top contributor to foreign arrivals into Malaysia, with 71,481 Indian tourist arrivals recorded between January to June 2022 alone.
However, he said approximately 23,000 Indian tourists opted to travel to Bali, Indonesia, last month instead of Malaysia due to the difficulties in securing a visa to Malaysia.
Tan added that while three visa centres were set up in Chennai, New Delhi and Mumbai during the service disruption in an attempt to compensate for the situation, this is far from practical given the vastness of the Indian subcontinent.
“Practical long-term measures”
“If Malaysia is to remain competitive and attractive to such lucrative markets, we have to look at more practical long-term measures,” he said.
“As such, the Government must consider the immediate benefits of implementing a direct visa-on-arrival facility for Indian tourists.”
Tan added that doing so will complement a number of highly successful roadshows to India MATTA and Tourism Malaysia held over the last few months, including the recent Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) convention held in Kuching, Sarawak, to promote Borneo to the Indian tourist market.
He also noted that Thailand and Indonesia already provide visa-on-arrival facilities to Indian tourists in their respective countries.
Meanwhile, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud clarified that the eVISA system is not suspended but only facing technical glitches.
He also told The Star that his department is working closely with the eVISA portal vendor to rectify the problem, but did not provide a timeline for when the portal would be up and running again.
“In the meantime, foreign visitors are advised to refer to a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section on the Immigration Department portal and social media regarding manual applications,” he said.
He also pointed out that travellers from India and China on business trips and Government matters can obtain their visa-on-arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (meaning they do not need to fly in from other countries like other regular travellers). – Oct 18, 2022
Main photo credit: The Star
