Malaysia will take strict actions against employers who fail to pay levy for their foreign workers from 1 January, 2018.

Illustrative image (Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com)

Deputy Director of the Labour Department of Malaysia Rosman Abdul on December 28 stressed that the employers must bear the levy fees for foreign workers.

Those who fail to do so would be asked to refund the amount deducted from their workers’ wages back to them and the department would invoke Section 24 of the Employment Act 1995, he added.

The new levy policy was initially scheduled to come into effect in early 2017 but was delayed for one year after appeals by employers.

The levy for foreign workers imposed by Malaysia’s Immigration Department on manufacturing, construction and services sectors is fixed at 1,850 MYR per year (453 USD), while the levy for agriculture and forestry sectors is 640 MYR (nearly 157 USD).

(Source: VNA)