Malaysia's labor market is opening up; applications can be made until December 31

The Malaysian government has announced that the calling visa quota for hiring foreign workers will be open until December 31.

The country's Home Minister, Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasional Ismail, confirmed the information on Tuesday. Almost all Malaysian media outlets have reported the matter.

The Home Minister said that applications for the recruitment of foreign workers will be accepted in a total of 13 sub-sectors, including agriculture, horticulture and mining. Among these, there are opportunities for the recruitment of workers in the service sector's wholesale and retail, land warehouse, security guards, metal and scrap materials, restaurants, laundry, cargo and building cleaning sectors.

He also said that recruitment in the construction sector will be limited to government projects, while in the manufacturing sector, priority will be given to new investments under the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA).

This time, only official agencies based on the sector will be able to apply for calling visas/foreign worker recruitment. As before, no agent or direct employer will be able to apply independently. After reviewing the application, the Foreign Workers Technical Committee will approve it and later by the Joint Committee.

The Home Minister also said that the quota of 24,67,756 workers is currently in place, which will remain in place until the end of the year (December 31, 2025). After that, the recruitment of foreign workers will be limited to only 10% of the country's total workforce. However, the relevant authorities of the country did not say how many Bangladeshis will be able to apply for this quota.