I drove into Malaysia without a VEP tag on Day 1. This is what happened

SINGAPORE/JOHOR BAHRU: On the first day the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) policy kicked in for foreign-owned vehicles, I gave the system a test drive, quite literally.
The catch? The car I drove from Singapore to Malaysia was not VEP-registered. 
Earlier this year, it was announced that Malaysia would require all foreign-registered vehicles entering from Singapore to use VEPs from Oct 1, and motorists who failed to do so may be fined up to RM2,000 (S$620) or jailed for up to six months. 
Why, then, was I still driving into Malaysia sans VEP? 
To be fair, I had attempted to apply for the VEP tag online, but like many drivers, I could not get it in time for the Oct 1 deadline. 
But just four days ago, Malaysian authorities announced that VEP enforcement would be delayed and that Singapore vehicles could still enter without a VEP but would receive a warning. 
Instead, the VEP enforcement would be implemented in stages. 
So what did this mean for Singapore drivers, especially those who had yet to install their VEP tags? Would they be handed warnings, and if so, what would the warning entail? 
I drove into Malaysia via the Woodlands Checkpoint at about 8am on Tuesday (Oct 1). In the first of several surprises for the day, the Malaysian immigration officer did not ask if I had a VEP or if my vehicle had a VEP tag installed.
In fact, besides a sign reminding drivers of foreign vehicles to install the VEP tag, it felt like I was driving into Johor Bahru on a normal day. 
At a rest stop near the Malaysian checkpoint, I spotted several Singapore cars. Some drivers were there to buy groceries or have a meal, while others patronised a car wash. 
I asked the businesses there if they had noticed anything different about VEP Day 1 and all reported fewer Singapore cars than usual.
One staff member at an eatery observed a 40 per cent drop in customers, surmising that the new VEP measures had likely deterred many Singaporeans from visiting. 
A  worker from the car wash concurred and said the drop in traffic was probably due to Singapore drivers adopting a wait-and-see approach regarding the VEP situation.
I also observed an officer from the Road Transport Department Malaysia, or JPJ, walking around the car park of the rest area, taking photos of the cars there. 
When approached, he told CNA that he had spoken to some Singapore drivers, answering queries about VEP enforcement. But no warnings – verbal or otherwise – appeared to have been issued.  
In itself, this was not a surprise. Malaysian authorities had said last week that warnings, if needed, would be handed out to drivers before they left Malaysia, which I assumed would take place at the immigration checkpoint.
Preparing to depart the country, I handed my passport to the immigration officer, who made no mention of VEP. 
When I asked about a warning since the car I was driving lacked a VEP, she questioned how I had driven in without one. The officer also seemed to be unaware of any announcement regarding the delay in VEP enforcement, and for that matter, the warning itself. 
And with that, I was on the way back to Singapore.
Perhaps I got lucky in evading a warning. Emboldened, I decided to try again. Two U-turns later, I was back at Malaysian immigration, heading back to Singapore.
Again, I was issued no warning of any sort. I asked the immigration officer, who told me that VEP matters came under the road transport department (JPJ), a separate entity from the immigration team.
Tens of thousands of Singapore cars enter Malaysia daily, so my experience may not reflect the broader situation.  
It remains to be seen how a phased enforcement will play out and whether stricter rules will be put in place. 
Malaysia has also opened two new VEP tag centres in Johor, boosting installation capacity five-fold. 
So while it appears a non-VEP Singapore-registeed vehicle was able to smoothly enter and exit Malaysia on Oct 1, there is no certainty this will be the case in the coming weeks.