Malaysia is negotiating with 12 countries for possible upcoming VTLs.
Good news if you’ve been itching to travel! It’s been recently announced that there may be a number of VTLs (Vaccinated Travel Lanes) with as many as 12 countries that Malaysians can utilize, and this includes popular travel hotspots United Kingdom, Japan, and Australia.
According to the Foreign Ministry, Malaysia is currently in negotiations with 12 countries to plan travel lanes that won’t require visitors to quarantine upon arrival.
These 12 countries are:
- Brunei
- India
- Indonesia
- South Korea
- Vietnam
- Australia
- China
- India
- Japan
- New Zealand
- United Kingdom
- Thailand
Why these 12 countries for VTL with Malaysia?
The ministry informed the Parliament in a reply to a question by Larry Sng (PBM-Julau) that these 12 countries were selected based on diplomatic relations and the need for cross-border travel. However, the Omicron wave has put a halt in some discussions thus far.
The ministry also said that three phases in the VTL negotiations, which are preliminary negotiations, comprehensive negotiations and implementation phases. Singapore is the only country that’s currently in the implementation phase with both VTL-Air and VTL-Land in place since last November. The Malaysia-Singapore VTL was briefly suspended due to the Omicron wave, and then resumed on Jan 21 with a reduced quota of ticket sales.
According to the ministry, “In conclusion, with the exception of VTL with Singapore, progress of negotiations over reopening of borders with the other identified countries are rather slow due to the spread of Omicron.
“Although each country has adopted a cautious approach, negotiations about targeted reopening of borders in stages are still ongoing, and the Foreign Ministry will continue to cooperate with all ministries and agencies to ensure the VTL coordination and negotiations can be implemented.”
Comprehensive negotiations with Brunei, Indonesia and South Korea are ongoing, while the other eight countries – Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Vietnam and Thailand – are in the preliminary negotiations phase.
Stay tuned for more updates regarding Malaysia VTLs.
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