PUTRAJAYA: The Immigration Department has never issued special approvals under the Recalibration Programme (RTK) 2.0 to foreigners with illegal status after Dec 31, 2022, says Immigration director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh (pic).
In a statement on Wednesday (Sept 6), he said such approvals violated the policy set by the government when it introduced the RTK 2.0 programme on Jan 27 this year.
"The policy is clear that only foreign nationals who were illegals until Dec 31, 2022 are eligible and will be considered for RTK 2.0 approval," he said, while advising the people not to spread misinformation that could confusion or uneasiness among the public.
The statement follows a viral WhatsApp voice note message claiming that the Immigration Department was issuing an RTK 2.0 special approval for foreigners with illegal status after Dec 31, 2022.
The voice note also claimed that the special approval would be given to only 5,000 applicants who entered the country in 2023.
"The department is strongly denying this claim and urged the public not to be hoodwinked by agents' and middlemen's tactics," Ruslin said. - Bernama
