Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the government has agreed to relax the existing conditions for Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) applications to increase the arrival of foreign tourists and investors to Malaysia.
“The improvement of MM2H is expected to increase investment activities in the Malaysian financial market and the country’s real estate industry,” he said in tabling of Budget 2024 at Dewan Rakyat today (Oct 13).
Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister said that the next Visit Malaysia Year has been set for 2026, where the government targeted 26.1 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2026 with domestic spending of RM97.6 million.
The government has also allocated RM350mil to boost tourism promotions and activities to make Malaysia the world’s top tourist destination again.
“Malaysia has remained a tourism destination, and has tripled its international tourist arrivals to 13 million as of August this year,” he said.
He added that the government will introduce the Malaysia Visa Liberalisation Plan, recognising the significant contribution of the tourism and manufacturing sectors to national development.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the plan involves facilitating the approval of employment passes for strategic investors in key sectors including long-term visit pass for international students who have graduated to meet the needs of the industry’s skilled manpower.
“Improving visa on arrival facilities, social visit passes and multiple entry visa offers will encourage the entry of tourists and investors, especially from India and China,” Anwar added.
The Malaysia Madani 2024 Budget is the second national budget tabled by the unity government under the leadership of Anwar, who is also Finance Minister.
The tabling of the Budget, which began at 4pm, is broadcasted live on local television and social media platforms.
