MM2H Plays Catch-up With SMM2H

While the General Manager of iProperty Shylendra Nathan says the group commends the government for relaxing Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) rules, Sarawak has been far ahead in reaping the benefits of the programme.

The national programme, or MM2H, was suspended by the federal government, but Sarawak did not suspend its very own Sarawak’s Malaysia My Second Home (S-MM2H), giving it a boost while the national programme was in gestation.

As a result of the relaxation of rules, the buyers under the MM2H now have to fulfil only two of 10 new criteria under the revamped programme: the increase in annual fee from RM90 to RM500 and the requirement to stay in the country for a minimum of 90 days each year. 

“Such a move will help reduce short-term pain points and outflow of MM2H holders currently within the country,” he says.

However, the government must remain consistent when announcing a revision to the MM2H policy.

“This will safeguard Malaysia’s reputation as a viable second home to foreign homebuyers and bolster foreign homebuyer interest in the Malaysian property market in the long run,” says Nathan.

However, the state of Sarawak has positioned itself to gain from the MM2H with a programme of its own.

Speaking to Business Today in a recent interview, Datuk Haji Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth, and Sports Sarawak says despite the federal MM2H suspension, Sarawak continued with the S-MM2H program with its existing criteria and that it differs from the MM2H promoted at Federal level.

That is because Sarawak wanted to leverage the fact that it has its state immigration policies and Sarawak is ready to capture the market. 

Furthermore, Nathan says as we transition to an endemic phase by the end of October, the MM2H programme will play a significant role in enabling a better economy after two years of the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic. 

“As such, we propose that the government continue looking into improving the MM2H programme to make it more attractive in terms of eligibility and home buying criteria for future participants and it should be done progressively over a period of time. 

“The current requirements include having a minimum of RM1 million in fixed deposit, compared to the much lower RM150,000 previously, and proof of liquid assets of a minimum of RM1.5 million, compared to at least RM350,000 previously.”

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