M'sia border laws will apply to designated area of Woodlands North MRT station under new RTS Link bill

A designated area within Woodlands North MRT station for the upcoming Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System will operate as Malaysia’s customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) zone under a new bill introduced in Parliament on Apr. 7.

Malaysian border laws for designated areas

Under the proposed Cross-Border Railways (Border Control Co-Location) Bill, Malaysian border laws will apply within designated areas at the station, or elsewhere, allowing Malaysian preclearance officers to carry out border clearance and railway security checks on travellers and goods bound for Malaysia.

These include checking travel documents, screening travellers, and refusing entry or the importation of goods not permitted into Malaysia.

However, Singapore law will continue to apply within these areas, and only Malaysian officers formally recognised by Singapore may perform official duties there.

The Minister for Home Affairs may refuse or withdraw such recognition without giving a reason.

Malaysian officers cannot make arrests

The Bill states that Malaysian preclearance officers will be allowed to exercise only specific powers necessary for CIQ operations.

They will not be allowed to make arrests in Singapore.

If they detain any person or item, custody must be transferred to a Singapore preclearance officer as soon as practicable.

Malaysian officers performing official duties in Singapore will also be treated as public servants under Singapore law, meaning offences committed against them while on duty will be treated in the same way as offences committed against Singapore public servants.

Travellers will clear immigration only once

The Bill supports the operationalisation of the RTS Link, which will connect Woodlands North station in Singapore with Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru.

A key feature of the RTS Link is that travellers will clear immigration only once, at the point of embarkation, through co-located CIQ facilities at both stations.

For passengers travelling from Singapore to Malaysia, they will first clear Singapore departure checks, followed by Malaysian arrival clearance at Woodlands North before boarding.

No further clearance will be required upon arrival in Johor Bahru.

The rail link is expected to have a journey time of about five minutes and capacity for up to 10,000 commuters per hour in each direction.

Reciprocal powers for Singapore officers in Malaysia

The powers and protections are reciprocal, with Singapore preclearance officers deployed at Bukit Chagar station enjoying equivalent powers and immunities under Malaysian law.

Malaysia has already enacted legislation allowing Singapore officers to perform official duties there.

The Bill also sets out how both countries will respond to incidents occurring on trains and railway tracks between Singapore and Malaysia.

For cross-border incidents, such as emergencies on trains in transit, Singapore incident management officers, including those from the police and civil defence force, may respond in Malaysia to prevent loss of life and reduce damage to property.

Malaysian officers may similarly respond in Singapore under the same conditions, although neither side’s officers may make arrests in the other country.

Both countries will also hold concurrent criminal jurisdiction for incidents on trains in transit and on railway tracks, with the country where the train journey ends having the primary right to exercise jurisdiction.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said the arrangement is similar to other major cross-border rail systems such as the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France.

Top image via RTSO/Facebook