Malaysia Employment Pass Tier Cost Comparison 2026

Do you intend to recruit international talent or to move to Malaysia in 2026? The expatriate employment has experienced the biggest evolution within a decade. Having the entirety of 13th Malaysia Plan (RMK-13) and new salary system through the new Ministry of Home Affairs in place by June 1 2026, it is not as much about paperwork as it is about strategic financial planning.

The Paradigm Shift of 2026 Reason Costs are on the Increase

The government of Malaysia has increased the minimum wage levels of most categories, to focus more on the development of local talents. This change was propelled by the MADANI framework, which seeks to make sure that expatriates introduce high level expertise that will be used in addition to the local workforce and not competing with it.

Cardinal Policy Drivers in 2026

• RMK-13 (13 th Malaysia Plan): The general economic strategy of lowering the dependence of low-skilled foreign labour.
• 1:3 internship Policy: This is a new policy that enforces on companies to employ at least three local interns with each expatriate employed.
• Local Succession Planning: A mandatory roadmap of Tier II and III passes of how a local will successively replace the expatriate.

Breakdown of Costs Filing and Immigration Fees

In addition to the salary, the employers have to also budget the ESD (Expatriate Services Division) and theMYXpats Centre processing fees. As of the year 2026, Sales and Service Tax of 8% will be charged on all application charges.

Application and Filing Fees (one time)

• Employment Pass (EP): RM 2,000 + 8% SST = RM 2,160
• Dependant Pass (DP): RM 500 + 8% SST = RM 540
• Professional Visit Pass (PVP): RM 1,200 + 8% SST = RM 1,296.

Immigration Endorsement and Levy

• Annual Pass Fee: RM 200 per year.
• Application Fee: AED 125.
• eVAL Fee: RM 159 (first entry fee).
• Levy (Tier III Only): Depends on sector (around RM 1,850 -RM 2,000).

The Unseen Costs of Compliance in 2026

The 2026 regulations provided two significant financial variables which did not exist in past decades:

The 1:3 Internship Policy Cost

In the Progressive Policy on Expatriate Contribution, firms employing an EP I expatriate are expected to employ 3 local interns.

• Average Internal allowance: RM 600/month.
• Annual Cost per EP I: RM 21, 600 (3 interns x RM 600 x 12 months).
• Advantage: This is a benefit because companies will have a double tax deduction of these internship costs through the MyNext portal.

JTKSM & Expat Post Requisition

Companies have to pass an Expat Post Requisition before applying to an EP. This involves 30-day advertisement of the position on MYFutureJobs. The absence of a local will require you to acquire a JTKSM Section 60K approval at the Department of labour, which is both time consuming in administration, and may incur recruitment audit expenses.

Action plan Checklist of Employers

To prevent wastage of time or refusal at the MYXpats Centre, make sure that you have verified the following:

• Projection 2026: Do you remember to apply your annual expatriate quota in the ESD portal?
• Cooling-off Period: In case an employee is transferring between a Category III to a Category II, have they passed the necessary cooling-off period of 3 months outside Malaysia?
• Digital Signature: When creating all the contracts, make sure they are signed with a known digital signature according to the updated 2026 ESD guidelines.
• Tax Clearance: In the case of renewals, the tax filings of the expatriate in his LHDN (Inland Revenue Board) should be current.

FAQs

Final Thoughts

The revised Malaysia Employment Pass 2026 is a quality and not a quantity strategy. Although the associated costs in terms of salary and compliance have increased, the increase in the lengths of time pass remains in Tiers I and II to a maximum of 10 years provides long-term business stability which is badly required.

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Disclosure

The article is informative as well as educational in nature. The advice to the readers is to ensure that they confirm information found in reliable sources, including the official ESD or MDEC portals, prior to making business or relocation decisions.