Deputy Home Minister Ismail Mohamed Said also said JPN had rejected 1,430 applications from 2015 to July 2020.

He was responding to Natrah Ismail (PH-Sekijang) who asked about the number of applications that had been accepted and rejected since 2015 as well as those being processed.

She also asked about the SOPs for applications, saying many had been rejected.

Ismail said couples applying for entry permits for their children would need to produce their marriage certificates.

He added that applicants would need valid entry permits as well as valid passports.

He said the status of applicants’ spouses as well as children would be scrutinised, adding that the process is based on the merit system.

“Some applicants were rejected as they were blacklisted or objected to by the police,” he said.

Other grounds for rejection included deaths and divorce.