Myeg Falls 24% In Morning Trade On News It May Lose Immigration Work

MyEG Services Bhd saw a noteworthy fall of 24% in the first half of Tuesday’s trade, dropping 22.5 sen to 73 sen after hitting the intra-day low of 65.5 sen. It follows a Monday report by the New Straits Times that all immigration services and processes will come under the control of the Immigration Department by 2025, including those being managed by third parties such as MyEG.

Not long after the morning trading began, Bursa Malaysia suspended short-selling of the stock for the rest of the day under PDT and IDSS, after the stock dropped over 15% of its reference price. Nevertheless, MyEG is expected to still have an important role in immigration-related services.

The implementation of the National Integrated Immigration System or NIISe will converge all immigration transactions, including passport renewals, visa applications, and applications and renewals of foreign worker and maid permits, the New Straits Times quoted Director-General of the Immigration Department Datuk Khairul Dzaimee Daud.

NIISe, currently developed by Iris Corp Bhd, is expected to be a “game changer” that would improve customer experience and the department’s efficiency, in addition to helping the department achieve its goal of becoming one of the best immigration authorities in the world, the report cited Khairul as saying.

The Home Ministry has set aside RM900 million for the roll-out of the new system in two years, he added.

The country’s immigration department has frequently been subjected to intense criticism over its inability to provide a smooth processing experience for travellers, extended waiting periods at international gateways, and system glitches as well. The new system is expected to make such problems a thing of the past.

Moreover, in addition to easing the travel documentation procedure, NIISe is also expected to help the authorities with preventing criminals from entering the country, Khairul mentioned.