Malaysia to ease visa application process for students

Malaysia is planning to do away with student pass application forms in a bid to make it easier for foreign students to apply for visas online. Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh, the Malaysian Higher Education Minister, stated that henceforth students could apply directly to the EMGS (Education Malaysia Global Services) through the government website for education, educationmalaysia.gov.my.

“In addition, students can now also apply for a visa, known as iKad, which would be valid until they complete their entire course,” added Idris while addressing a press conference, following his visit to the EMGS which is located in Cyberjaya.

Earlier, students had to renew their visas once a year. This initiative will now allow students to hold a visa for the entire duration of their course.

However, students intending to pursue another educational course would have to apply again for a new visa.

The EMGS’s new online visa system will need universities or institutions to continue to submit reports of each student annually. Also, it was the responsibility of the university or institution to inform the EMGS in case a student abandoned a course or was not attending classes frequently.

In the past, students wanting to go home to their countries had to face problems due to the annual visa renewal requirement. This new system is said to be connected directly to the Immigration Department, allowing Malaysian authorities to identify students who are no longer eligible for visas.

The EMGS would also be housing officers belonging to the Immigration Department’s Student Pass Unit, helping hasten visa process of overseas students.

This unit would discharge the duty of processing applications, besides issuing Visa Approval Letters (VAL), a document that all new students entering Malaysia need to have. It is subject to issuance only if an application meets all the requirements needed by the EMGS for the academic and security screenings of the Immigration Department.

EMGS is responsible for managing and processing of student applications and renewals received by Malaysia from across the globe in order to issue passes and visas at all higher education institutions in the country.

This step will reportedly help Malaysia in achieving its target of enrolling 200,000 students from abroad by the year 2020.

In the year 2015, Malaysia was home to more than 150,000 students from different countries, 80 percent of whom were pursuing studies in higher education.

The Southeast Asian country had managed to register an increase of intake of foreign students by 12 percent as against the year 2014.

Malaysia offers good prospects for Indian students wishing to pursue higher studies. A major advantage with that country is that it is home to lot of Indians who have settled there decades ago. In fact, 7.3 percent of the citizens in Malaysia are of Indian origin. This will help Indian students feel at home there.