Malaysia’s Ministry of Home Affairs has revised the minimum salary requirement for Employment Pass Category I (DP01).
From RM10,000 to RM20,000 minimum basic salary per month.
Effective 1 June 2026. All new and renewal applications submitted on or after that date must comply.
Now here’s the part a lot of people are getting confused about —
This applies to the DP01 category as a whole. It doesn’t matter what entity is sponsoring your work permit — Labuan midshore entity, Sdn Bhd, whatever the setup is. Same rule, same threshold, same deadline.
If your permit is under DP01, the RM20,000 minimum applies to you.
What you should be doing now:
If you or your staff are on a DP01, now is a good time to review the salary structure and make sure the employment contract is aligned ahead of the next renewal.
If you’re planning a new DP01 application, structure it correctly from the start with the updated threshold in mind.
Applications submitted on or after 1 June 2026 follow the new requirement, regardless of when the original permit was issued.
This is the most significant update to the EP framework in close to a decade, and it applies across the board.
If you’d like to understand how this applies to your specific situation, feel free to reach out. We work with clients on work permit applications and entity setups regularly and happy to walk you through it.
Drop me a message or comment below.
