Fee for Labour Recalibration Programme to remain at RM1,500

PUTRAJAYA - The fee to hire undocumented migrants in this country under the Labour Recalibration Programme (RTK) 2.0 will remain at RM1,500, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said.

"So far, there is no plan to reduce or abolish the fee. So it remains status quo,” he said in response to calls by the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) to review the recalibration fee or compound.

On Jan 18, Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud said that employers can start applying for recruitment of foreign workers through RTK 2.0 from Jan 27 until Dec 31.

The eight sectors allowed to recruit foreign workers are manufacturing, construction, mining and quarrying, security guards, services, agriculture, plantations and foreign maid.

RTK, which initially ended on Dec 31, 2022, was created to regularise illegal immigrants in the country so that they could be employed by qualified employers but subject to strict conditions set by the government through the Immigration Department and the Labour Department of Peninsular Malaysia. The extension of the RTK and the creation of the Relaxation of Employment of Foreign Workers Plan were among the matters agreed upon in the special meeting on foreign worker management chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Jan 10.

Saifuddin Nasution said RTK aims to facilitate employers in hiring undocumented migrants already in this country, which is cheaper than paying recruitment agencies to bring in new foreign workers from source countries.

He added that last year, the government recorded over RM700 million in revenue through the recalibration programme.

As of Jan 22 this year, the Immigration Department recorded 1,484,677 foreign workers holding temporary working visit passes, of which 446,229 are from Bangladesh, Indonesia (399,827), Nepal (285,768), Myanmar (135,590) and India (81,002). - BERNAMA