JB-Singapore RTS Link: Malaysian officers stationed in Singapore will not have powers of arrest under new Bill

Malaysian immigration officers stationed at the Woodlands North station of the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link will not have powers of arrest.

The same applies for Singaporean immigration officers stationed at the Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru.

This key feature is part of the Cross-Border Railways (Border Control Co-Location) Bill, which was tabled for First Reading in Parliament on Tuesday (April 7).

Should the Bill be passed, it will provide the legal basis for the co-location of border clearance in addition to the coordination of railway security and the management of cross-border incidents at the RTS Link.

This Bill also plays an important role in supporting the operation of the RTS Link.

Travellers will only need to clear immigration once, at the point of embarkation.

This is enabled by co-locating both countries' customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) facilities at both RTS Link stations in Woodlands North and Bukit Chagar. 

Provisions introduced in the Bill will demarcate Designated Areas (DA) at Woodlands North station and Bukit Changar to be Malaysia's and Singapore's CIQ zones respectively.

Malaysian border laws will apply at Woodlands North station, and their officers can perform border clearance and railway security checks on travellers and goods bound for Malaysia. 

However, Malaysian immigration officers will not be allowed to make an arrest in Singapore. Instead, they must transfer custody to Singapore authorities as soon as practicable.

The same applies for Singaporean immigration officers within the DA at Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru, who will have similar powers, rights and immunities under Singapore law as when they are performing the same duties in Singapore.

This Bill will also make significant amendments to other Acts, such as the Passports Act in order to enable Singapore to exercise criminal jurisdiction over passport offences detected at Singapore's DA at Bukit Chagar, and the Civil Defence Act and Police Force Act to provide for the SCDF and SPF officers to respond to cross-border railway incidents.

The RTS Link will have the capacity to serve up to 10,000 commuters per hour in each direction with a train journey of about five minutes between Woodlands North and Bukit Chagar stations.

It is slated for opening in January 2027 despite the ongoing global energy crisis.

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