Digital nomad visa in Malaysia

• The DE Rantau Nomad Pass is a type of Professional Visit Pass for foreign digital freelancers, independent contractors and remote workers in IT and digital roles, such as software, cloud, cybersecurity, AI, data, digital marketing and content creation.
• A second group of roles also qualifies: founders and chief officers, managers in marketing, finance, sales, HR and customer success, legal counsel, consultants and technical writers, or an equivalent position.
• It is open to applicants of every nationality except citizens of Israel, and the main holder must be over 18.
• It is not for people employed by a company registered in Malaysia: a remote employee must work for a foreign-based employer that is not registered in Malaysia.
• The pass covers Peninsular Malaysia and the Federal Territory of Labuan only; you can travel to Sabah or Sarawak, but you enter those two states on a tourist pass.
• A tourist pass or a Student Pass cannot be converted into a DE Rantau pass.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• For tech and digital roles the income test is about US$24,000 a year. To be safe, have more than US$25,000 a year.
• For the other listed roles, such as founders, consultants, finance, sales and legal work, the income test is about US$60,000 a year. To be safe, have more than US$61,000 a year.
• Employees prove income with a signed contract, three months of payslips and three months of bank statements whose deposits match the payslips.
• Freelancers prove income with signed client contracts, three months of invoices, proof of payment from platforms such as PayPal, Stripe or Wise, and three months of bank statements showing consistent income above the test.
• Every contract must have started at least three months before you submit your application.
• Most Malaysian banks do not accept a Professional Visit Pass for opening an account, so plan to be paid from abroad.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• An employee's contract must show the remote arrangement, job title and duties, a contract length (preferably at least six months from the application date), the salary in US dollars or equivalent, and the foreign employer's details.
• A letter from your employer confirming remote status, terms and income is optional but strongly recommended.
• Documents must be in English or come with a certified English translation, as clear PDFs, and your name and income figures must match across them.
• Your passport must have more than 14 months of validity when you apply.
• To endorse the pass you upload your full passport copy, your latest immigration entry stamp, any eVISA or Visa with Reference, a health insurance policy covering Malaysia, and the income tax e-registration slip from the Inland Revenue Board.
• The health insurance policy needs at least three months of validity and must run for the whole pass period.
• If MDEC acts as your sponsor, you sign a personal bond; the bond form carries an RM10 revenue stamp and is endorsed by the Inland Revenue Board.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• All applications are made online through MDEC's DE Rantau site, and you do not need to be in Malaysia to apply.
• MDEC says it processes an application within six to eight weeks of a complete submission, and that this can be longer if it asks for more documents; it does not offer expedited processing.
• You can stay in Malaysia on a tourist visa while the application is reviewed, but if approval comes while you are inside the country you must leave and, depending on your nationality, get a Visa with Reference before re-entering.
• The approval letter is valid for six months and cannot be extended; if you miss that window you apply again.
• On first entry you must go through a normal immigration counter, not the e-gate, because the entry stamp is needed for endorsement; endorsement must be finished within one month of that entry.
• The e-Pass is generally issued within a week of a complete endorsement application, and you must stay in Malaysia until it is issued.
• A renewal can be filed up to three months before expiry and takes six to eight weeks, with the e-Pass about a week after.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The processing fee is RM1,080 per applicant and RM540 per dependant, including 8% sales and service tax, and it is not refundable even if you are rejected, cancel or withdraw.
• At endorsement you pay an immigration pass fee of RM360 for one year (RM90 for each three months), which is also non-refundable.
• Multiple-entry visa charges, if your nationality needs one, vary by country and are set by the Immigration Department.
• If MDEC is your sponsor you pay a bond that is refunded when the pass expires: RM2,000 for the United States and Canada, RM1,500 for Australia. New Zealand is not named in the table and its "Others" line is RM1,500, so confirm your rate with MDEC.
• Since 1 August 2026, MDEC accepts no appeals against a rejected application; you may apply again when you meet the requirements.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The Professional Visit Pass is valid for 3 to 12 months and can be renewed once for a further 12 months, so the longest stay is 24 months.
• The pass allows multiple entries.
• Dependants who can apply are a spouse or common-law partner, a child, adopted child or stepchild under 18, a disabled child of any age, and the main holder's parents.
• A spouse cannot work on the pass, and each dependant application is assessed separately from yours.
• Children who want to attend school in Malaysia need a Student Pass applied for through the school, unless they are home-schooled.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• The 24-month maximum ends the pass, and MDEC's FAQ describes no step from it to permanent residence.
• The Immigration Department lists its own permanent residence categories (wife, husband or child under 18 of a Malaysian citizen, and "fully foreign national"), and its page does not tie any of them to this pass.

Sources: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), Immigration Department of Malaysia. Checked 16 October 2026.

• You are a Malaysian tax resident for a year if you spend 182 days or more in Malaysia in it; shorter stays can also count under linking rules set out by the tax authority.
• For a foreign remote worker, MDEC's tax table says stays of 60 days or less are not taxed and stays of 61 days or more are taxable, with the rate based on residence status.
• For a foreign freelancer, MDEC describes 10% withholding tax (or a treaty rate) for the first 182 days, then taxation as a resident, with the withholding credited against the final tax.
• The tax authority's table for 2023 to 2025 runs from 0% on the first RM5,000 up to 30% above RM2 million for residents; non-residents pay a flat 30% on Malaysian income.
• An LHDN guideline exempts certain foreign income a resident individual receives in Malaysia for 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2026; a newspaper and a tax news service report an extension to 2036 that we could not confirm from the gazette.
• MDEC's tax table names no special tax regime for this pass, and says to ask the tax authority about the treatment of non-resident individuals.

Sources: Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026.

• Retirement visa in Malaysia
• Work permit in Malaysia
• Family visa in Malaysia
• Investor visa in Malaysia

• Visas in Malaysia
• Malaysia

1. Visa requirements by country (Keperluan Visa Mengikut Negara), Immigration Department of Malaysia (Jabatan Imigresen Malaysia). Checked 15 October 2026. In Malay; Canada, Australia and New Zealand are on the list of countries that need no visa for any purpose of entry; the United States is on neither list; no length of stay is given.
2. Malaysia international travel information, US Department of State (Internet Archive copy). Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 11 February 2026. Says business or tourism of 90 days or less needs no visa.
3. DE Rantau Nomad Pass FAQ, version 10.0 (28 August 2026), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). Checked 16 October 2026. Eligibility, income tests (US$24,000 tech; US$60,000 other roles), documents, processing, fees, sponsor bond table and tax table for the Professional Visit Pass.
4. US citizens and residents abroad: filing requirements, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 16 October 2026. Page last reviewed or updated 28 September 2026.
5. Foreign earned income exclusion limit, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 10 October 2026. Tax year 2026 figure: up to $132,900 per person.
6. Limited double taxation agreements, Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL). Checked 10 October 2026. Lists the United States of America, P.U.(A) 242/1989, as a limited agreement.
7. United States income tax treaties, A to Z, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 10 October 2026. Malaysia is not listed.
8. US international Social Security agreements, US Social Security Administration (Internet Archive copy). Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 4 October 2026; Malaysia is not on the list of agreements in force.
9. Malaysia travel advice and advisories, Government of Canada (travel.gc.ca). Checked 11 October 2026. Page last updated 9 October 2026; gives 90 days for Canadians.
10. Determining your residency status, Canada Revenue Agency. Checked 16 October 2026. Page details date 20 January 2026.
11. Comprehensive double taxation agreements, Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL). Checked 10 October 2026. Lists agreements in force with Canada (signed 1976), Australia (signed 1980) and New Zealand (signed 1976, with protocols).
12. Malaysia travel advice, Australian Government, Smartraveller (Internet Archive copy). Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 7 June 2026; says Australians can in most circumstances get a 90-day tourist visa on arrival.
13. Australian resident for tax purposes, Australian Taxation Office (Internet Archive copy). Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 1 October 2026.
14. Malaysia travel advice, SafeTravel (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand). Checked 15 October 2026. We found no official stay length for New Zealand passports.
15. Tax residency status for individuals, Inland Revenue (New Zealand). Checked 16 October 2026. Page last updated 25 June 2026.
16. Entry Permit, Immigration Department of Malaysia. Checked 16 October 2026. Lists permanent residence application categories; the page does not set out the criteria or years.
17. Residence status (section 7, Income Tax Act 1967), Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL). Checked 10 October 2026. Page last updated 10 August 2026.
18. Individual tax rates, Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL). Checked 15 October 2026. Table for years of assessment 2023, 2024 and 2025; no 2026 table shown.
19. Tax treatment in relation to income received from abroad (amendment, June 2024), Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN / HASiL). Checked 10 October 2026. Paragraph 5.2.2 on resident individuals; written for the period to 31 December 2026.