Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H)

CA, doesn't seem like the tests are very good? I work in a hospital. I was sick COVID like symptoms. Sent me home got tested the next Friday. Again on Sunday both came back negative. PCR nose swab test. Hospital gave go ahead come back to work Monday.
I got one day off.  Turned out to be a sinus infection.
Which after going to the ED they were sure it was covid. Fever, sore throat, couldn't breath.
Didn't say here's an RX for xyz. I ended up going to the urgent care for Amoxicillin.

Oh luckily the Covid vaccines have already started. Question is will the allow foreigners who've been vaccinated entry without Quarantine?

1openmind wrote:

Oh luckily the Covid vaccines have already started. Question is will the allow foreigners who've been vaccinated entry without Quarantine?

Here's the big problem. 
1.  Will the vaccines actually work
2.  Currently vaccines have been “predicted” to be 70/90% effective.

Given the 70/90% effective rate , that would indicate its likely a plane of 300 passengers would have possibly 30 to 90 passengers Positive to Covid.   

Given that....Australia & Thailand this week have stated that quarantine 14 days will stay in place after a vaccine is rolled out.   Unless the “experts” can prove beyond doubt the vaccines are 100% effective we could be seeing quarantine for years to come as Australia have stated. 

After all it only takes one infected passenger to slip thru & screw up an entire country's health & economy.

Yep I figured vaccines would not prevent quarantine. I also hear Covid is just a warm up. A practice run for the next pandemic that's good to be much worse.

Another issue will be with the proposed “Vaccine Passports”.
Countries will need to agree on the vaccines used, how implemented,  follow up booster doses etc....

That'll be a nightmare of a political bunfight staged between countries that despise one another.

Even in Australia theres talk of a new political party being formed by antivaxers.   Government was talking of making vaccines mandatory, airlines saying No Jab,No Fly, employers saying No Jab,No job etc...but surveys indicate close to half the population are hesitant to take a vaccine until proven 100% reliable.    That's a large group of people 50% of the population....? 

A recent interview with a prominent MP indicated the worst is yet to come.....and it will be Lawyers, Politicians, Medics, religious groups, etc etc ...all fighting it out through the courts , parliament & anywhere else they can be heard. 

So far , the billions of dollars thrown at covid have been directed at science & medics.
The lawyers have been mainly left on the sidelines.   Just wait until the bunfight starts as to the “legalities” of how all this will be put in place.

This game is only just getting started.

Personally I'd like to be able to travel again. I am waiting on the vaccine now. Will be arriving shortly.  The hospital is giving the Pfizer vaccine which I am not crazy about. I think there is one vaccines that is one shot. 2 of the vaccines are 2 shots.

I'd like to get mobile as well...I'm in Vietnam which is Ok,,,but who knows when things will open up .
If the quarantine stays in place ....my next move might be permanent.

I'd rather not go through all the drama & BS on a regular basis.   Getting to Malaysia for my regular getaway may be over for some time to come.  Air Asia's future is looking shakey. 

Think I'll build a raft & paddle.😆

Agree...I'm currently in MY having worked for several years in VN and then the PH...given their is talk of "the next pandemic", I agree on whether its better to permanently relocate to another country. As an Aussie, I'm hoping to move back to AU after 14 years working in Asia but its all up in the air given COVID and like what was said about the political and legal aftermath....

I was approved for the MM2H back at the end of 2019. Had 2 trips planned and tickets booked. Cancelled both to complete the process's
Trying to decide now what we what to do?
Work longer and then reapply with smm2h.
Not sure yet.

Ontheroad57 wrote:

Given the 70/90% effective rate , that would indicate its likely a plane of 300 passengers would have possibly 30 to 90 passengers Positive to Covid.   
.

It's more like 95% for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. And it's unlikely that there would be 100% rates of infectivity (which is different from rates of infection). Take the US. Current active cases are 8.3 million (out of a population of 332 million) = 0.025%. In your 300 passenger plane you might think about 8 would be active covid cases WITHOUT the vaccine. But people who are active with the virus are not necessarily actively shedding the virus. But let's ignore that as it is complicated by the degree of illness.

So if one solely relied on vaccination as the main determinant of flight allowance you might have one out of 300 cases of a person with Covid  on the flight.

But what if you also linked that with TESTING. Authorised Covid tests range in effectiveness from 90-95% (rtAntigen tests) to the rtAntibody tests 99-99.8%. Certain rt Antigen tests will no longer useful for some who have received vaccines. It will "appear" that they have been previously been infected (or have an active infection).

So if you used the latter (RtAntigen) test in conjunction with the vaccine the probability would drop to 1 person on 100 flights being infected (1/30,000). And remember, that's based on a current high infection level like the USA. With more people vaccinated that is likely to drop. People from countries that have better control of the pandemic will have much lower infection rates.

Countries could also simply monitor the situation in the origin countries of passengers. They could offer a "NO QT" policy for those from Green or Yellow Zone nations who have been vaccinated and have a rtAntibody test. The risk might be something like 1/200,000 passengers in such a procedure.

That's more like it. But in the end it will be up to governments quarantine mandate, hopefully those that have been vaccinated will be QT exempt.

The RM 10,000/month is also my fear. We make significantly more than that but all in investment gains which are apparently not counted as it's not fixed income. Is there any way around this under the old scheme (as we don't know the new rules yet)?

Interesting...

The Malaysian Government has advised us today that expired social visit pass (tourist visa) holders will be permitted to leave Malaysia without incurring any penalties or enforcement action up to 14 days from the expiry of the current RMCO period (31 March 2021). As per the previous RMCO extension, we understand that this ONLY applies to foreign nationals whose social visit passes expired after 1 January 2020. We understand that during this time you will be able to go straight to the airport to return to Australia without having to regularise your status (i.e. no need to get a 'special pass' from the Immigration Department).

We also understand the visa expiry grace period does NOT apply to long-term pass holders (such as expatriate pass or spouse visa holders). Those visa holders must apply to the Department of Immigration for an extension in the usual manner. The authorities have also reiterated that long-term pass holders are not automatically permitted to re-enter Malaysia, and must seek prior permission from the Malaysian Government to do so. Please refer to relevant Malaysian Government websites for further details.

Ok, gang, March or April?????   Surprised not seeing more reported on this (if true)....

https://www.themalaysianinsight.com/s/294290

Old news.

Agree - surely the government should be informing people at this stage of the status nd also more importantly what the new requirements could be?  Definitely not being see as a priority for the government or the tourism industry.  Its so protracted!

It's taking a long time indeed. If it doesn't happen by April, we will change course to Bali for a year. Quite a hassle with school-going children, but we have to have a backup plan. Our MM2H agent seems to have no news either.

Well, gang, I just hope your agent can survive financially perhaps to next year most likely.  If you are like me, I would want to be vaccinated fully before traveling abroad anyway and everything is dependent on where Malaysia is with respect to the Covid situation at say year end this year.  I had really high hopes back in 2018 on Malaysia and the progress that it was making but now I really don't know. The handling of the MM2H folks who weren't allowed entry back into Malaysia even when they could have been quarantined fully for 2 weeks was telling.  People do have choices and they will speak with their wallets.  If say the new requirements for MM2H are much harder to meet, how do they honestly expect to attract people with a straight face?

I would say each country harden and soften their immigration criteria based on whether they have met their quota of foreign people for whatever period they have in mind. It has never been an open invitation.
I also heard Thailand has made their immigration laws more strict to curb migration.

The only criticism I have for countries  is when they change the rules on those they have already accepted to come-in as the impact could be sever on those people and their families.

My best

Fred

Just got a message from the agent, MM2H to reopen end of March as confirmed by KPMG Malaysia. No further details disclosed.

Any news about letting in people who have been vaccinated?

It is going to be harder to stay in Malaysia given the recent curbs on issuing Work permits.  I have been in Asia for over 20 years, the last 6 in Malaysia.
The company I worked for pulled out of Asia just before Covid and (luckily) I got a decent redundancy package.  However due to Covid and the work permit rules I am finding it near on impossible to find a job.

The economy is nearly done for,  therefore if they have any brains (which it doubt it) , they should ease the rules to encourage people to come here,  after all none of us are getting any free ride here, on the contrary we're contributing to the economy.

Is there anything noteworthy/enlightening/helpful from her response regarding the MM2H program in this interview?

Datuk Seri, can you share with us the updates on Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme, which is now under your jurisdiction?

As announced on Aug 4, 2020, the government has decided to temporarily suspend the MM2H programme to allow the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry and related agencies to comprehensively review and re-evaluate the MM2H programme since its inception in 2002.

The suspension is in line with the government's decision not to allow foreigners to enter Malaysia following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

One of the key fields in this comprehensive review is to study the dedicated lead agency and primary implementor to govern the MM2H programme.

The programme will be reviewed based on the criteria, conditions, incentives as well as comparative study to equivalent MM2H programmes, such as Citizenship by Investment (CBI) or Residence by Investment (RBI).

The Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry is confident that all stakeholders will benefit from the outcome of this study, which will be synergised with the existing needs of the MM2H programme.

The Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry also hopes that all related parties can support the government's intention to improve the MM2H programme so that the revised MM2H programme will be comparable with other similar programmes internationally.

In the meantime, to those who have obtained MM2H passes who are currently not in Malaysia, they are required to obtain approval from the Immigration Department to re-enter Malaysia.

The application to re-enter Malaysia can be made online, through this link: https://mtp.imi.gov.my/myTravelPass/mai … nditionN2H

However, the government is imposing entry restrictions into Malaysia on foreign travellers who are travelling from countries that have recorded over 150,000 Covid-19 cases.



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Excuse me,

I am Nahida Parvin now from Bangladesh. I and my 2 children have "MALAYSIA MY 2nd HOME" visa. We are stuck in Bangladesh from 28 February 2020. We are badly in need to return to Malaysia. For your kind information, we have attempted several times to reenter Malaysia but could not get approval for travel. That's why I am writing for your kind help regarding the approval for reentry.

In this circumstance, we badly need to get the link through which we can approach for an approval letter to reenter Malaysia. It would be a great help for us if you could guide us to get the approval as well as reenter Malaysia. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Thank you.

If not mistaken
You have to approach the Malaysian Consulate

Can someone tell me about the current differences between the three MM2H for West Malaysia, Sarawak, and Sabah? I imagine they are all closed at the moment. But what are the differences, why are they different, and then are you required to fly in and out of that particular state? Are there separate forums for each program?

Visit the Facebook group

Sarawak my 2nd home

Thanks, I saw the basic details online, and everything is still of line due to covid, I was just wondering about more of the nuance between the programs. As it stands from having never visited, KK seems like the place we want to check out first.

I dont know much about the sarawak mm2h
I m on the peninsula mm2h for last 15years

Well there are some major differences for Sarawak. They don't require a fixed deposit with a pension of 7k for single or 10k for a family, with primary petitioner over 50. They now re allowing agents to hire. Or a sponsor. Have to stay in Sarawak for 15 days a year. And your allowed to stay in Malaysia anywhere on the Sarawak mm2h,  not sure about Sabah? Check out the Facebook group Sarawak mm2h. I applied for the mainland was approved December 2019z haven't been able to get in to finalize it. I like the smm2h better. Don't need to tie up $40k in a low interest  account.

Hi,

Let me introduce myself. I am Jonathan, licensed agent for both the West Malaysia MM2H and Sarawak MM2H.

Below are some of the differences and information:

1) West Malaysia MM2H visa - Participants are only allowed long stay in West Malaysia.
 
2) Sabah MM2H - Participants are only allowed long stay in Sabah.

3) Sarawak MM2H - Participants are allowed long stay in West Malaysia and Sarawak, but not Sabah. All Sarawak MM2H participants are required to comply with a minimum 15 days stay yearly in Sarawak.

4)  West Malaysia and Sabah MM2H are currently suspended,

5) Sarawak MM2H is open for applications. That being said, Sarawak MM2H is unique where applicant(s) must be present during the application process, This is due to the required medical check up and fixed deposit placement to be done before the submission of application. All documents must be certified true copy in Sarawak only.

It will only be possible for those outside the country to apply for Sarawak MM2H when the border reopens.

Right now, we are only doing applications for those already in Sarawak since the lockdown.


6) On the fixed deposit, Sarawak MM2H applicants have the option of not placing the required fixed deposit. The condition is they must prove having a fixed monthly offshore income equivalent to RM7,000 (for single application) or RM10,000 (for couple/family application).

Please keep in mind, the immigration department will ask to prove the income every 5 years. The moment they are not able to do so, they will be asked to place the required fixed deposit in lieu.

* Note the Sarawak MM2H visa is issued in a block of 5 years. At the end of every 5 years, the Immigration Department will review if the participant has complied to the condition (ie minimum15 days stay yearly, monthly income/FD and medical check up).


Best regards.

Also the mainland MM2H is good for 10 years.

Anybody else notice the new website????  I believe I am seeing new rules, like the FD after the first year you must now maintain 100K in there throughout.  Wasn't it before you could have withdrawn all of it after the first year for use say to buy a property or car.

http://www.mm2h.gov.my/

Hi, the website was up since last July.

And the rules have remained the same from 2010.

Those placing RM150,000 (50 years old and above) can withdraw up to RM50,000 on the 2nd year.

Those placing RM300,000 (below 50 years old) can withdraw up to RM150,000 on the 2nd year.

Best regards.

Hi there, I am planning to apply for a second application this year. Do you have any indication when they will open the process? I prefer Sabah and Sarawak as I stayed in Borneo for about a month and loved it. Sarawak was saying they open it early 2021 but then 3rd lockdown came in. Appreciate if you know information. Also let me know trustworthy agent for Sabah/Sarawak.
Thanks Dewan

Hi Dewan,

I am Jonathan. Sarawak MM2H is open for application. Whereas Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah MM2H are still closed, no idea when are they going to reopen.

That being said it would be quite a hassle to make a trip to Sarawak now for the application due to the lockdown and tight border control.

Best regards.

Hi
Thank you for these details. It was much needed

OMG, maybe some actual progress to eventually allowing us to come and finish up our paperwork???


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