Home minister: Grads from 23 countries to get one-year pass to study, travel, and work part-time in Malaysia

Malay Mail

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 27 — Malaysia will offer long-term social visit passes to international students from 23 low-risk nations — including neighbours Singapore and Brunei — to allow them to stay here for up to a year after graduation, with this new policy to start on December 1 this year, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said today.

Saifuddin Nasution said the pass would enable the students to further their studies, travel, and work part-time in job sectors that are permitted according to the country’s laws.

He said it will be open to citizens from 23 low-risk and high-income countries, including Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Canada, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and the United States.

In a statement today, Saifuddin Nasution said this is one of five Home Ministry initiatives for Malaysia’s new Visa Liberalisation Plan, which will be implemented from December 1 with the aim of increasing revenue for Malaysia that expects tourism to remain a key driver of the country’s economic growth.

Saifuddin Nasution said other initiatives include Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s announcement yesterday of a new policy of 30-day visa-free entry for China’s and India’s nationals travelling to Malaysia from December 1.

Saifuddin Nasution said the 30-day visa exemption for Chinese and Indian nationals will be from December 1 this year to December 31 next year.

As for two other initiatives under the Visa Liberalisation Plan, Saifuddin Nasution said Multiple Entry Visa (MEV) for up to 30 days will be issued to “all tourists who wish to enter Malaysia”, and that there will be issuance of a seven-day umrah transit visa through agencies that are registered under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture to handle umrah or Muslim pilgrimages.

The last initiative under the five-initiative plan is to improve the validity period of visas issued by Malaysia from the current three months to six months, and to standardise the eligibility period for Social Visit Passes to a minimum of 30 days for all countries that require visas to enter Malaysia.

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