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Malaysia · biometric border control · ID documents · e-visa

National Integrated Immigration System original IRIS contract

Disputed Status as of 28 July 2025 · Funding type: State budget

IRIS disclosed a January 2021 award for Malaysia's immigration-system replacement, later adjusted to MYR 1.127 billion 1. NEC announced an identification and e-gate subcontract in October 2022 2. Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said in March 2023 that progress was below the required level, and stated that cancellation had not yet been decided 3. IRIS later disclosed an August 2023 termination and its subsidiary's arbitration challenge 4. The 2025 accounts scheduled a December hearing but do not establish its outcome. This entry concerns the original IRIS contract, not any successor award.

Key terms

Read the guide to API and PNR passenger data.

Buyer
Ministry of Home Affairs, for the Immigration Department of Malaysia 1,2
Vendor
IRIS Information Technology Systems Sdn Bhd, subsidiary of IRIS Corporation Berhad 1
Vendor based in
Malaysia 1
Signed
Not published. Letter of award received on 29 January 2021, supplementary award on 2 June 2021 1.
Duration
Not confirmed in the opened award disclosure
Value
Original award MYR 1,159,428,000 including tax, reduced by supplementary award to MYR 1,126,864,097.89 following a change in applicable sales and service tax 1.
Funding
state budget
Fee model
No applicant charge or private passenger-fee allocation published in these sources.
Procurement route
Letter of award disclosed by IRIS. Selection procedure not established by the opened award disclosure 1.
System ownership
Not published
Data terms
NEC described a biometric identification system and e-gates in its subcontract scope. Contractual controller, retention and onward-access terms are not published 2.

Timeline

  1. 11 March 2023: Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail told Bernama that project progress had not reached the desired level. He said Cabinet had requested a ministry assessment and no cancellation decision had yet been made. This was the minister's stated position at that date, not a court finding 3.
  2. 10 August 2023: The ministry issued a termination letter, according to IRIS's 2025 financial statements 4.
  3. 24 November 2023: IITS filed a notice of arbitration referring its dispute with the ministry over the NIISe contract to the Asian International Arbitration Centre. IRIS's financial statements authorised on 28 July 2025 describe a hearing scheduled for 1 to 18 December 2025. The hearing's occurrence or outcome was not verified 4.
  4. 13 May 2024: IRIS reports that the High Court rejected both its parent's striking-out application and supplier Tec D's summary-judgment application in a separate MYR 30,139,099 supply-payment claim. IITS and IRIS had filed defences. The annual report gives January 2028 trial dates. These are reported procedural decisions, not a merits determination of the debt 4.
  5. 21 May 2024: IRIS reports Datamicron began arbitration over services and software licence fees for NIISe. Its 2025 report describes procedural discussions, not an award 4.
  6. 28 July 2025: Recorded status is Disputed.

Sources

  1. IRIS, company statement: Annual Report 2021 financial statements, award and supplementary award disclosure
  2. NEC, company statement: Biometric subcontract for NIISe (18 October 2022)
  3. Bernama: Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail on NIISe progress and review (11 March 2023)
  4. IRIS, company statement: Annual Report 2025 financial statements, notes 14(e), 28 and 32(ii)-(iv), authorised 28 July 2025

Fields marked "Not published" or "Not confirmed" could not be established from an official or reliable source. If you hold a document that fills a gap or corrects an entry, write to editor@bordercontracts.org. Last checked 19 October 2026.

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