Malaysia’s Human Resources Ministry has issued guidance requiring Malaysian employers to follow an eight-step process for recruiting foreign workers, including those from Bangladesh. The directive, issued on Sunday, is seen by the Bangladesh government as an indication that Malaysia may soon reopen its closed labour market. As of Tuesday, however, Bangladesh’s Expatriates’ Welfare Ministry and its High Commission in Kuala Lumpur had not received a formal announcement on when the market would reopen.

The process requires employers to seek approval and advertise vacancies, apply for worker quotas through the ministry’s one-stop centre, pay levies, obtain conditional approval and complete embassy formalities. Workers must then be recruited and sent through recruitment agencies, obtain a Visa With Reference, and enter Malaysia. Employers were advised to use the Foreign Workers Centralized Management System portal for information and approved agency lists.

Malaysia previously published lists of 25 Bangladeshi recruitment agencies and more than 40 medical centres, prompting objections from manpower exporters and political parties alleging a syndicate. Bangladesh has written to Malaysia seeking clarification. The existing 2021 memorandum of understanding remains valid until December, while recruitment from Bangladesh was halted in June 2024 amid allegations of irregularities and corruption.