Malaysia Clears Expat Backlog

Malaysia’s Digital Ministry said it has cleared a backlog of more than 3,600 foreign knowledge worker applications at the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation stage and sent them on for further action as of April 15. (bernama.com) The ministry said the pileup built up in the expat programme because system limits forced manual processing, staffing was tight, and application volumes jumped. (freemalaysiatoday.com) Those applications are handled through Malaysia’s expat system for digital and information and communications technology companies, where employers register first and then apply for passes for foreign hires. (mdec.my) MDEC said it used stopgap steps to work through the queue, including moving staff, restructuring workflows, hiring temporary personnel and adding resources. The ministry said processing is expected to stabilise by the second quarter of 2026. (malaymail.com) The delay matters for companies that need Employment Passes and Professional Visit Passes to bring in overseas specialists. Malaysia’s Expatriate Services Division describes the system as the first point of contact for companies seeking to employ eligible expatriates. (esd.imi.gov.my) For firms under MDEC’s digital-company track, the process runs through Xpats Gateway, which links employers with government agencies and issues decisions electronically. The platform’s own FAQ says it is meant to provide end-to-end processing for those applications. (esd.imi.gov.my) The backlog surfaced after industry stakeholders raised concerns in a March 29 statement about revised guidelines and slower timelines, according to the ministry’s response reported on April 18. (freemalaysiatoday.com) The wider system is still changing. Xpats Gateway posted multiple 2026 notices, including a revised investor-pass category from March 13 and a revised Employment Pass salary policy set to take effect on June 1, 2026. (xpatsgateway.com.my) For now, the immediate bottleneck appears to have moved: the ministry said the 3,600-plus cases have left the MDEC stage, and the next test is whether processing actually settles back to normal by the end of this quarter. (bernama.com)