Foreigner Own Property Guildline & FIC

Since 30 June 2009 foreigners buying property in Malaysia no longer need to apply for Foreign Investment Committee (FIC) approval. The FIC itself has been disbanded and is now replaced by the Unit Kawal Selia (Monitoring and Supervision Unit), Seksyen Pengagihan (Distribution Section) of the Economic Planning Unit in the Prime Minister’s Department (EPU).

EPU in its latest guidelines which take effect on 1 January 2010 allows foreigners to buy any property in Malaysia (except Malay Reserve Land) so long as it is valued at RM 500,000 and above.

Under this new guideline, foreigners or foreign interest are no longer allowed to purchase property in Malaysia valued at less than RM 500,000 unless the foreign person has MM2H status and is buying residential properties in a State in Malaysia (for example, Sarawak and recently Selangor) where foreigners are not prohibited under State Land rules from purchasing property below RM 500,000.

Foreigners or “Foreign Interests” means any interest, associated group of interests or parties acting in concert which comprises :

• individual who is not a Malaysian citizen; and/or
• individual who is Permanent Resident; and/or
• foreign company or institution; and/or
• local company or local institution whereby the parties as stated in item (a) and/or (b) and/or (c) hold more than 50% of the voting rights in that local company or local distribution.