Relief, frustration among Singaporean motorists on first day of VEP enforcement in Malaysia
Starting Tuesday (Jul 1), Singaporean drivers caught without a valid Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) in Malaysia will be fined RM300 (US$72). 鶹 looks at the first day of enforcement in Johor Bahru.
Singaporean drivers arrive as early as 7am at the TCSens enquiry centre in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru, to activate their VEP RFID tag on Jul 1, 2025. (Photo: 鶹/Zamzahuri Abas)
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JOHOR BAHRU: A quiet day followed an eventful night in Johor Bahru for Singaporean motorists, with the strict enforcement of the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) that began at 12am on Tuesday (Jul 1), the first day of the intensified regulation.
Several motorists who had not registered or activated their VEP told 鶹 they were relieved to avoid the anticipated RM300 (US$72) fine after not encountering enforcement action. Meanwhile, those rushing to get their VEP tags voiced frustration at the long waiting times at the main VEP centre in Danga Bay.
鶹 also did not observe any visible enforcement operations or roadblocks near the checkpoint as of 12pm on Tuesday, with many drivers who entered in the morning sharing that they did not encounter any checks, though they had anticipated they would.
Traffic at the Woodlands Causeway on Tuesday afternoon also appeared lighter than usual.
鶹 has reached out to Malaysia’s Road Transport Department (JPJ) to enquire about the total number of compound slips issued as of Tuesday.
Most of the fines were issued during a roadblock conducted near the checkpoint at midnight, which lasted until around 4am, with 55 officers mobilised.
According to a spokesperson from the JPJ-appointed vendor for VEPs, approximately 50 vehicles were issued with summons at the midnight roadblock.
鶹 understands that staff from the vendor, TCSens, were there to support the enforcement operation.
At the TCSens office in Danga Bay on Tuesday morning, 鶹 observed that there were more than 30 people waiting as of 9am, with a steady influx of arrivals. Within an hour, the estimated number of people had risen to over 50.
The majority were there to register and activate their VEP, as well as to settle issues about linking it with their Touch ‘n Go card, a contactless smartcard that can be used for cashless payments at toll highways.
The office also handles enquiries on the VEP.
None of the Singaporean motorists whom 鶹 spoke to had been fined and they had not encountered any roadblocks.
At least two of those interviewed were owners of a company-owned vehicle who claimed that the registration process was “much more troublesome” than for privately owned vehicles.
Ms Cheryl Lee, 29, who registered her company car as a private vehicle by mistake a few weeks ago, told 鶹 that she had faced multiple hurdles.
“Previously we registered as private individuals, we tried to deregister since last month … two to three times,” she said.
Ms Lee told 鶹 she was told to include her ACRA (Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority) registration number and although she included it, she got a notice saying that there were issues with the number.
However, she said that her entry to Johor Bahru on Tuesday morning was hassle-free.
“Traffic was okay, very smooth, I’ve never seen the customs so empty before. I think we reached the Singapore customs at around 8am and were here in less than an hour,” she added, noting that she had expected roadblocks upon seeing news of fines issued.
Mr Roy Low, 40, a realtor, who had no VEP registered, told 鶹 he had entered Johor Bahru on Monday morning and had not been issued any fine as of Tuesday.
“There’s a lot of issues with activation I heard,” he said, adding that there was not enough leeway in terms of time given to register before enforcement.
“I am self-employed so I don’t have to take a day off but for those working, it’s quite hard,” he added.
Another driver, who gave his name as Kenneth, 26, told 鶹 he also had no registered VEP though he has tried to register multiple times before.
“I had some difficulties with the system. It was quite difficult if I made a mistake as I had to deregister and register again so it was quite troublesome,” he said, admitting that after a while he “gave up”.
“I basically did not put too much thought into getting a VEP, at least until they said they will fully enforce it now.”
鶹 also visited another TCSens VEP centre located at Paradigm Mall, a popular mall approximately a 25-minute-drive from Johor Bahru Customs.
The centre, which only offers installation services and is situated in the mall’s car park, was empty when 鶹 arrived at around 1pm.
A staff member said that there had been no increase in the number of drivers since the ramped-up enforcement on Tuesday, describing the day as “like a normal day”.
Earlier, drivers at the TCSens centre in Danga Bay told 鶹 that they had previously visited the Paradigm Mall centre but were redirected to Danga Bay instead.
Among them was Mr Nicholas Jacob, 31, a fashion designer, who told 鶹 that despite having registered for the VEP, he was still facing challenges.
“The difficulty is it cannot be linked to my Touch ‘n Go so I’m here to ask what’s the issue,” he said.
“We went to Paradigm Mall, then they asked us to come here (for installation) … The process is very complicated.”
Even though he registered “months ago”, his application is still “in progress”, Mr Jacob told 鶹.
He said that when he arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday morning, he had been worried about the prospect of being fined.
“But we managed to enter safely and everything was smooth … Before we pay for the toll, they will show whether your vehicle is registered or not, there’s a digital label but we were not given any reminders (to resolve our VEP installation),” he said.
“We managed to go in smoothly but I don’t know if we get to go out smoothly too.”
鶹 understands the office in Danga Bay plans to continue opening for 24 hours for the rest of the month, depending on demand.
It was previously opened every day from 9am to 5pm.
A TCSens staff member earlier told 鶹 that the firm will increase manpower to work the extended hours that came into effect on Monday night.
This is as registrations and VEP tag distributions jumped by around 400 per cent compared to May and early June, before the ramped-up enforcement was announced by Transport Minister Anthony Loke.
In a statement on Tuesday early morning, Malaysia’s JPJ said that as of Jun 29, a total of 248,504 VEP tags have been issued to private individual vehicles, of which 206,088 have been installed and activated. It said 42,416 of the tags had not been activated.
“We see that Singaporeans generally comply with the rules. It’s just a small group, and we want to ensure they too comply with Malaysian regulations,” said JPJ’s director-general Aedy Fadli Ramli.
