Employers employing undocumented foreign workers are reminded to expedite registering them under the E-Kad (Enforcement Card) programme by June 30 or risk facing caning punishment.

Immigration Department director-general Mustafar Ali said the caning punishment could be meted out to employers found still to be having at least five illegal foreign workers in their employment or fined RM10,000 per illegal worker after the deadline.

"Despite ample warnings to register such workers under the E-Kad programme since it was launched on Feb 15, there are still employers who have yet to do so. We will be coming after them come July 1.

"We also advise them not to come at the last minute and cause massive congestion at the registration counters," he told reporters after attending a Ramadan function here tonight.

Mustafar said that as of June 7, at total of 104,507 E-Kad had been issued by the department as compared to the 400,000 to 600,000 illegal foreign workers targeted.

Asked why the employers were "taking it easy", he said it was because they believed the deadline would be extended, or could get away with it or the Malaysian syndrome of putting away things till the last minute.

- Bernama