Border security enforcement is important for the country’s safety in which the Immigration Department is the front liner at the border entrance. The increasing number of illegal immigrants have become a security concern to the local society especially in Northern Malaysia-Thailand. This issue raises the concern of the effectiveness of the Immigration Department’s enforcement at the Northern Malaysia-Thailand border. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the Immigration enforcement at the Northern Malaysia-Thailand as well as to explore the contributing factors to the immigration enforcement. The study adopted a qualitative research method through in-depth interview in order to collect first-hand data. The respondents were fifteen Immigration enforcers from Kedah and Perlis from various positions. The findings of the study revealed that the contributing factors to the Immigration enforcement is Irregular Migrations, Non-Traditional Security Threat and Bilateral Agreement. Plus, the enforcement of the Immigration Department in the Northern Malaysia-Thailand is effective in handling their jobs scopes. The main limitations of the study are the systems and facilities of the Immigration Department. The findings revealed that the main challenges faced by the Immigration Department are the existence of the smugglers’ illegal routes and increased number of immigrants from Myanmar. Consequently, it is recommended that border patrol agencies declare the policies used to strengthen the border security enforcement. The outcome of the research is significant in providing valuable information to the Immigration Department in strengthening their enforcement at the border’s entrance.
Keywords: Border enforcement, Irregular Migrations, Non-Traditional Security Threat, Bilateral Agreement, Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (ATIPSOM)
