The Malaysia My Second Home programme (MM2H) was launched in 2002 to attract foreigners to retire and live in Malaysia for an extended period.
However, it was suspended in November 2019 and re-launched in October 2021 but with more restrictive application conditions.
The stricter requirements led to a dip in the number of approved applications. From November 2021 to September 2023, only 1,905 MM2H applications were approved versus 5,610 in 2018.
According to Hong Leong Investment Bank research in its note today, were four main reasons for the in the applications for the MM2H programme reintroduced in 2021.
i) A fixed deposit requirement of RM1 million, versus RM150,000 for those aged 50 and above and RM300,000 for 50 years old and below.
ii) An offshore income of RM40,000 per month, versus RM10,000 previously;
iii) Liquid assets of RM1.5 million from the previous requirements of RM350,000 for 50 years old and above as well as RM500,000 for 50 years old and below
iv) Minimum residency in Malaysia of 90 days, versus no minimum stay requirement in the previous programme.
In the updated 2023 MM2H programme, the fixed deposit and minimum residency requirements were removed, while no mention was made of offshore income and liquid asset requirements.
