Changes effective November 2025
The Ministry of Home Affairs (“MOHA”) has introduced a new requirement under the Immigration Department of Malaysia for companies sponsoring expatriates registered with the Expatriate Services Division (“ESD”), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (“MDEC”), and Iskandar Malaysia Expatriate Services Centre (“IRDA XPATNOVA”).
Companies are now required to shorten expatriates’ passes if they are not renewing them prior to the expatriate’s permanent departure from Malaysia.
Key actions upon expiry of EP or PVP
1. Submit a Pass Shortening Application
For expatriates who have ended their assignment in Malaysia and are permanently leaving the country, the sponsoring company is required to submit a pass shortening application, (also referred to as a “pass cancellation”), at the relevant portals1, regardless of their pass’ balance validity period2 .
Prior to this new requirement, companies would typically allow the EP or PVP to lapse naturally upon expiry and only submit pass cancellations or shortenings in cases where the expatriate ended the assignment earlier or returned ahead of schedule.
Once the application is approved, a Shortened Pass Slip will be issued, which can be downloaded from the ESD portal.
For MDEC, the company must initiate the pass cancellation online via the MDEC portal, followed by submitting the original passports to MDEC in person to complete the process.
