S’porean Couple Allegedly Banned From Entering M’sia After Questioning Immigration Officers’ Stamping SOP

Couple Tries To Complain About Immigration Officer, Allegedly Banned From Malaysia For 6 Months

Crossing the border into Malaysia and back can be a stressful experience, usually because of the traffic jams.

However, a Singaporean couple were apparently frazzled by the way an immigration officer stamped their passports.

Like many Singaporeans, they believed that making a complaint would solve the problem.

Instead, they allegedly ended up getting banned from entering Malaysia for six months.

Couple entered JB via Tuas Checkpoint on 20 May

In a Facebook post on Sunday (21 May), Mr Abdul Qayyuum Rahim detailed a negative experience he and his wife endured at the Tuas Checkpoint.

He said they entered Johor Bahru (JB) on Saturday (20 May), going in via the Tuas Checkpoint.

As there were just two counters open, he claimed, they waited for about one hour at customs — which probably caused them to be in a less-than-good mood.

To make matters worse, the female immigration officer asked them to remove their passport cover “with an impolite tone”, he said.

They did eventually get their passports stamped after doing so.

Officer allegedly leaves ‘blank page’ in passport, scratches off stamp

However, while this is usually the end of most travellers’ interactions with immigration officers, this wasn’t the case for Mr Abdul Qayyuum and his wife.

When he checked their passports, he found that the officer “left a blank page” on his passport, he said.

As for his wife’s passport, the officer allegedly stamped it, then scratched off the stamp with a pen for some reason.

She then stamped her passport on another page.

Couple attempts to make a complaint

This method of stamping their passport was unsatisfactory to the couple, so Mr Abdul Qayyuum went back and asked a male officer how to lodge a complaint against the officer who stamped their passports.

Unsurprisingly, he allegedly behaved in a hostile manner, raising his voice at them, the Singaporean said.

He told them to make a complaint online but didn’t explain how, and was visibly irritated when Mr Abdul Qayyuum’s wife asked him how to do it.

He added that the officer proceeded to bring the couple to an office on level 2.

Couple allegedly banned from Malaysia

There, they met a female officer with the rank of Assistant Superintendent, Mr Abdul Qayyuum said.

She allegedly issued them a letter titled “Notice of Refusal Of Entry”. It informed them that they were refused entry into West Malaysia for being a “prohibited immigrant”.

Upon further questioning, the Singaporean said that the officer also raised her voice. She also sarcastically asked them to choose whether they wanted to be banned for six months or one year.

Eventually, she allegedly told them they were banned from entering Malaysia for six months.

Another couple also allegedly banned from Malaysia for similar reason

Apparently, Mr Abdul Qayyuum’s case is not unique.

His friend was also issued the same letter at Malaysian immigration, he claimed.

This allegedly happened after her boyfriend questioned why the officer stamped his passport “on the centre of the page”.

Not all netizens were supportive

Mr Abdul Qayyuum’s post gained more than 2,500 shares and 1,300 comments. However, not all of them were supportive.

Some questioned the need to take issue with the way immigration officers stamp your passports, saying it’s good enough that you’re allowed to enter the country.

Another described his actions as making “a big fuss” like a “Karen”.

One commenter advised him that any issue shouldn’t be taken up on the spot or over social media, as there’s no point even if you think you’re in the right.

One netizen shared their experience of “improper” stamping on their passports and unsympathetic immigration officers.

Witness allegedly saw couple arguing with officer

There’s another twist to the tale, however.

One of the comments on the OP’s post — which appears to have been deleted — was from a person who allegedly saw what transpired. Other commenters shared a screenshot of the comment.

The witness said they were on level 2 at the same time as Mr Abdul Qayyuum and his wife.

She maintained that the couple was seen arguing with the female officer and allegedly “provoking” her till she had to raise her voice to silence them.

The netizen added that many people were waiting for their visas in the office, and everyone had to wait longer because the couple was making a scene.

MS News has contacted the OP for more info, and will update this article if and when he responds.

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Featured image adapted from Abdul Qayyuum Rahim on Facebook.