Hundreds of Thousands Stranded by Immigration Gate Malfunction, Causing Chaos in Malaysia

Due to an error in the immigration gate system, both foreigners and locals are forming long lines. SNS

A malfunction in Malaysia's border control computer system caused the immigration gates at major airports and land crossings to stop operating for two days, resulting in hundreds of thousands of people experiencing long delays.

On July 20, Yonhap News, citing AFP and local media outlet The Star, reported that since midday on July 18, for more than a full day, automated immigration gates at both terminals of Kuala Lumpur International Airport and at two land border checkpoints connecting Singapore and Malaysia had ceased to function normally. As a result, many travelers were forced to wait for extended periods at a limited number of manual gates for immigration clearance. The Star reported that about 200 gates in these areas stopped working, affecting more than 380,000 people, and described the incident as "the worst breakdown ever."

Despite the disruption, Malaysian passport holders were still able to pass through the automated gates without significant issues, but foreigners were only able to use the manual gates for immigration procedures. This led to severe congestion, with thousands of people at each terminal and checkpoint having to wait for at least several hours.

Malaysian authorities expressed deep regret over the incident, explaining that the disruption was caused by a data integration issue, which delayed the immigration verification process. The authorities deployed additional personnel, opened all manual gates, and worked to restore the system, resuming normal operation of the automated gates the previous night.

Since June of last year, Malaysia has operated automated gates allowing travelers from 63 countries to complete immigration procedures quickly through self-service. Among the affected locations, the Woodlands checkpoint, which connects Singapore and Johor in southern Peninsular Malaysia, is considered one of the busiest border checkpoints in the world, with about 300,000 people crossing daily. Singapore and Johor, which are adjacent to each other, are effectively a single living area, with large numbers of citizens from both countries crossing the border frequently.