Service · Workforce
Employment Passes and expatriate visas, end to end.
An Employment Pass application is the visible last step of a sequence that starts months earlier. Companies that apply without ESD registration or labour-office pre-approval in place are not delayed — they are rejected, and the clock restarts.
What this covers
- ESD registration and expatriate quota setup for your company
- Employment Pass applications across Categories I, II and III
- JTKSM labour office pre-approval and supporting documentation
- e-Pax (MEPax) submissions and tracking
- MSM and CLAB/CIMS processing
- Dependent Passes for spouses and children
- Guidance on Resident Pass-Talent (RPT) eligibility, for cases suited to a longer-term pass
- Pass renewals, cancellations, and transfers between employers
- Professional Visit Passes for short-term technical assignments
Who needs this
Moving three engineers from head office
Each pass category carries a different salary threshold and a different validity period. Structuring compensation with the category in mind avoids renewing far sooner than you expected.
A newly incorporated company with no quota yet
You cannot sponsor anyone until ESD registration establishes how many expatriates you may hire and in what roles. This typically takes around 14 working days and has to happen first.
A rejected application that needs rescuing
Rejections usually trace back to a missing pre-approval or a job description that did not justify hiring a foreign national. We diagnose which stage actually failed before resubmitting.
How it works
- 1
Qualify
ESD registration establishes your company's expatriate quota — which roles you may fill with foreign nationals, and how many.
- 2
Pre-approve
Labour office pre-approval through JTKSM, typically 7–14 business days, with the organisational chart and role justification these submissions require.
- 3
Apply
The Employment Pass application itself. Stage-one approval typically comes through in 5–10 working days once documentation is complete, followed by visa issuance.
Typical durations assume complete documentation. Agency processing times vary by case, sector, and season.
Documents you'll need
We'll send a precise checklist once we know your situation, but engagements in this area generally start from:
- Passport copies, valid for the full intended pass period
- Academic certificates and professional qualifications
- Detailed CV and employment history
- Signed employment contract stating salary and position
- Company organisational chart showing where the role sits
- Justification for hiring a foreign national in the role
- Passport photographs to immigration specification
- Marriage and birth certificates, for Dependent Pass applications
Questions we get
From a standing start — company incorporated but no ESD registration — budget two to four months end to end. That is not one slow queue; it is ESD registration, labour office pre-approval, and immigration processing running as three sequential systems, each with its own review period.
Salary determines category rather than eligibility. Category I sits at RM 10,000 and above monthly and carries the fewest restrictions, Category II covers RM 5,000 to RM 9,999, and Category III covers RM 3,000 to RM 4,999 with shorter validity. The category you land in affects how often you renew.
Dependent Passes are available for spouses and children, with eligibility tied to the pass category held by the employee. Category I holders have the widest access. We process dependent applications alongside the principal's pass rather than as an afterthought.
For some high-skilled cases, Resident Pass-Talent (RPT) — administered by TalentCorp, separate from the standard Employment Pass — grants residency for up to 10 years at a time without being tied to a single employer, and can cover named dependants under the same pass. It isn't available to everyone: eligibility runs on its own criteria, not the salary-based categories an Employment Pass uses. Tell us your situation and we'll say plainly whether it's worth pursuing.
Often needed alongside this
Business Foundation & Registration
Sdn Bhd incorporation, ESD registration, and MDEC status for digital and technology companies — structured correctly from day one.
Licensing & Compliance
Municipal licensing, signboard approval, MOF and CIDB registration, plus EPF, SOCSO and specialized industry licenses.
Get started
Need workforce handled?
Share your situation and we'll map the exact approvals your business needs, with a fixed quote — usually within one business day.