In a policy bulletin on 20 January, Malaysia’s Human Resources Ministry confirmed that minimum monthly salaries for all three categories of the Employment Pass (EP) will double from 1 June 2026. Thresholds will now range between MYR 5,000 and MYR 20,000, depending on role seniority.
The move, billed as an effort to “realign foreign hiring with productivity goals”, will force Malaysian subsidiaries of Indian IT, engineering and consulting firms to revisit compensation structures and secondment budgets.
Mobility teams looking for real-time updates and filing support can lean on VisaHQ, whose India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) tracks Malaysia’s EP criteria, auto-generates salary-compliance checklists and coordinates dependent-pass paperwork—saving HR departments valuable lead time.
![Malaysia to double salary thresholds for Employment-Pass holders—Indian expats must budget higher pay packets]()
Immigration advisers warn that EP renewals filed after the effective date must meet the new ceilings; failure could require downgrading staff to shorter-term Professional Visit Passes or re-locating roles to India. Companies should therefore begin salary-benchmark exercises and board-level approvals no later than Q3 2025 to avoid talent-visa lapses.
For individual assignees, higher declared pay could mean steeper tax liabilities but also facilitates dependent-pass eligibility and local credit access. Employers are encouraged to communicate net-of-tax impacts transparently and adjust allowance frameworks accordingly.
The change underscores a broader South-East-Asian trend toward using wage floors to filter foreign talent—Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand have signalled similar reviews—amplifying competition for highly skilled Indian professionals. (economictimes.indiatimes.com)
The move, billed as an effort to “realign foreign hiring with productivity goals”, will force Malaysian subsidiaries of Indian IT, engineering and consulting firms to revisit compensation structures and secondment budgets.
Mobility teams looking for real-time updates and filing support can lean on VisaHQ, whose India portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/) tracks Malaysia’s EP criteria, auto-generates salary-compliance checklists and coordinates dependent-pass paperwork—saving HR departments valuable lead time.
Immigration advisers warn that EP renewals filed after the effective date must meet the new ceilings; failure could require downgrading staff to shorter-term Professional Visit Passes or re-locating roles to India. Companies should therefore begin salary-benchmark exercises and board-level approvals no later than Q3 2025 to avoid talent-visa lapses.
For individual assignees, higher declared pay could mean steeper tax liabilities but also facilitates dependent-pass eligibility and local credit access. Employers are encouraged to communicate net-of-tax impacts transparently and adjust allowance frameworks accordingly.
The change underscores a broader South-East-Asian trend toward using wage floors to filter foreign talent—Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand have signalled similar reviews—amplifying competition for highly skilled Indian professionals. (economictimes.indiatimes.com)
