Johor mulls waiving visa fee to woo Chinese tourists – Bernama

The Johor government has proposed waiving the visa-on-arrival (VOA) fee for tourists from China at the Sultan Abu Bakar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) Complex at the Second Link in Tuas to draw more Chinese tourists to the state.

State tourism, trade and consumerism committee chairman Datuk Tee Siew Kiong said the waiving of the fee of US$100 (RM360) would be in line with the federal government's recent decision to waive the visa fee for tourists from China.

“Since the VOA was implemented on Nov 1 last year, about 500 Chinese and Indian nationals have entered Malaysia at the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link," he told reporters at the Pulai Sebatang state constituency Chinese New Year open house in Pontian today.

The open house was also attended by Menteri Besar, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan.

Tee said waiving the VOA fee would encourage more tourists, especially from China and India, to make Johor their destination.

In a related development, Tee said the tourism industry in Johor would be given a boost with the Year of Festivals campaign by Tourism Malaysia this year.

“We have identified several events from Johor and these have been included in the federal government calendar.

"We also have the coronation of the Sultan of Johor, and the event is expected to attract tourists to the state," he said.

The coronation ceremony, comprising at least nine events, will take place from March 16 with the highlight, the coronation itself, on March 23.

The celebration is expected to go on for three months.

Tee also said that several areas in Pontian had the potential to become major tourist destinations, like the Tanjung Piai National Park and Pulau Kukup. – Bernama, February 19, 2015.