<![CDATA[Background: The Sebatik–Tawau borderland presents an integration paradox in which intensive social and economic interactions coexist with underdeveloped tourism governance and legal mobility facilitation. Objective: This study examines how tourism governance and regional security shape border integration and formulates an applicable governance framework for the Sebatik–Tawau borderland. Methods: An embedded qualitative case-study design was employed, covering five Indonesian subdistricts on Sebatik Island and Tawau District, Malaysia. Documentary evidence comprised official statistics from 2020–2025, policy documents, border-management and security reports, and peer-reviewed literature. The data were examined through thematic coding, pattern matching, source triangulation, and negative-case analysis. Results: The findings reveal asymmetric functional integration, characterized by established cross-border exchanges despite unequal market capacity, limited tourism amenities on the Indonesian side, fragmented governance, inadequate tourism data, and uncertain regular passenger connectivity. The Sei Nyamuk Cross-Border Post provides an institutional node for coordination and surveillance, but infrastructure alone has not ensured an operational tourism corridor. Regional security functions not only as a risk-control mechanism but also as an enabling condition for legal, accessible, and predictable mobility. Based on these findings, the study proposes the Sebatik–Tawau Tourism–Security Integration Model (GPA–ST), comprising shared destination governance, secure corridors, community-based tourism, connectivity and investment, and integrated data and risk management. Conclusion: Intensive cross-border interaction does not automatically produce balanced institutional integration. Strengthening Sebatik–Tawau integration requires coordinated tourism governance, proportionate security facilitation, improved local destination capacity, and field validation of the GPA–ST model.]]>
