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Malaysia
This Week in AsiaEconomics

Malaysia reboots flagging ‘second home’ golden visa scheme with eye on Chinese expats

  • Just 500,000 ringgit (US$107,000) in deposits and assets is now required to apply for a Malaysia My Second Home visa, down from 2.5 million ringgit
  • But experts caution the lower threshold may not be enough, as it remains unclear if a 40,000-ringgit monthly income condition still needs to be met

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An aerial view of Chinese developer Country Garden’s Forest City development in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. The development had been set a target of housing some 700,000 residents across four reclaimed islands, but is currently only sparsely populated. Photo: EPA-EFE
Joseph SipalanandAmy Sood
Malaysia’s move to slash the amount needed to qualify for its second home programme to US$100,000 deposited in the bank has raised hopes of a surge of interest from potential expatriates, including from China.

But experts warn the government must offer clear and consistent rules to lure serious numbers of applicants, after years of vacillating between appealing only to Asia’s rich and trying to attract its middle classes who need a cheaper point of entry.

Applications for the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme have plunged by as much as 90 per cent since a 2021 policy shift that limited the scheme to foreigners with at least 2.5 million ringgit (US$539,000) in fixed deposits and liquid assets combined, and a monthly income of 40,000 ringgit (US$8,600).

To address the tail-off, the government revamped the deal earlier this month, saying it will open entry to the MM2H to foreigners with a minimum fixed deposit of just 500,000 ringgit.

Industry participants think that is sure to catch the eye of prospective participants from China.

“It definitely will revive their interest,” said Anthony Liew, president of the MM2H Consultants Association.

Liew, whose clients are predominantly from mainland China, said fewer than 400 families a year made the cut after the 2021 revision to the entry rules, compared to 5,610 families in 2018.

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