Founded in 2002, MM2H became the most common beautiful visa in the world thanks to its affordable requirements and appealing incentives. Investment news outlet IMI referred to MM2H as the “wide margin “‘s biggest investment relocation program in the world in 2020.
However, when COVID- 19 arrived, Malaysia partially suspended the MM2H program in August 2020 in accordance with a government decision to forbid foreigners from entering the nation and allow it to thoroughly evaluate the program.
A modified MM2H was eventually announced a year later in September 2021 with much more stringent criteria.
The maximum fixed payment and monthly offshore money condition was raised to RM1 million and RM40, 000 both. In addition, candidates would have to confirm ownership of liquid resources worth at least RM1.5 million.
Software for MM2H programs dropped in 2022 as interested applicants balked at the stringent requirements and turned to a less-known but more affordable program in Sarawak, according to MM2H agents.
Because it has complete control over its own immigration laws, Sarawak has its own type of MM2H ( Sarawak- MM2H).
At the time, the program only required applicants to meet a minimum of a fixed payment or a regular requirement for offshore earnings. However, Sarawak- MM2H holders just needed to spend 15 days a year in Sarawak, and had travel widely to West Malaysia the rest of the time.
In October 2023, with MM2H uses over by 90 per cent, the federal government decided to suspend the project once, pending a review.
In December that time, it made fresh requirements known, making MM2H a three-tiered program with the most inexpensive silver tier requiring a maximum fixed payment of RM500, 000.
Potential applicants were hesitant to apply because there was no clarity on the requirements for onshore income and liquid assets, and they preferred to wait for a complete list of requirements to be released.
Federal Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing claimed that his government had spent a lot of time looking over and fixing” inadequacies” of past MM2H situations. This whole record was just released on June 15.
The requirement for onshore revenue and liquid assets was eliminated for all levels, but the silver tier required a property purchase requirement and a minimum fixed deposit amount was raised.
Participants in all MM2H system categories are still unable to apply for permanent residency, which is a shift from the December statement that made it possible for those in the platinum tier to do so.  ,