SEPANG, Feb 1 — The Immigration Department (JIM) has activated its newly-created Quick Response Team (QRT) as a proactive measure to overcome congestion at the country’s entry points, particularly at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and KLIA 2, as well as the Johor Causeway.

Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud said the move was taken following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s directive last Monday, asking JIM and the Royal Malaysian Customs Department to increase the number of officers on duty at the Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI) and the Sultan Abu Bakar Complex (KSAB) to ease congestion at the Johor Causeway.

“Today, we activated the QRT at KLIA, which comprises 30 JIM officers who will be on duty at 26 counters at the international arrival hall during peak hours between 2pm and 8pm every day.

“A total of 12 officers have started work today to man the previously empty counters,” he told a press conference after checking on the implementation of the QRT at KLIA, here today.

In addition, he said, QRT will also be stationed at BSI and KSAB involving 40 immigration officers from the enforcement and general duties division, who will start duty on February 6.

Khairul Dzaimee said through the assignment of QRT, JIM is committed to opening all check-in counters for foreign visitors and reducing passenger queueing time during peak hours.

According to the department’s records, Khairul Dzaimee said a total of 495,210 foreign visitors, or 665 people per hour entered the country through KLIA last month.

He said with QRT, JIM can handle a faster entry rate of 780 foreign visitors per hour or 13 entries in one minute compared to 495 entries in 47 minutes previously.

In another development, Khairul Dzaimee said a total of 1,033 passports have been issued from the KLIA Passport Issuing Office since it started operating on January 19.

“I read comments on social media that applicants at the KLIA Passport Issuing Office were satisfied because they got their passports in less than an hour.

“This was the situation before Covid-19. Passport renewals used to take less than an hour, but during the post-pandemic period, there was a threefold increase, that has resulted in a longer application process,” he said. — Bernama