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An Exclusive Guide To The Malaysian Work Visa and Work Permit

30th June 2021

Teaching English abroad has always been a welcoming program for all aspiring ESL teachers who wish to fulfill their teaching dreams. Native or non-native speakers can both enjoy this lucrative hike in their career satisfaction. Indeed, when we talk about the ESL market we do come across the news or advertisements regarding the work visa and employment permit, isn’t it? We all know Asian countries like China and Thailand are open to candidates all over the globe, however, Malaysia has kept a lot of conditions for the recruitment processing.

Belonging from a native country is not enough for an ESL job. A strong foundation in language teaching, as well as the language usage, is highly required. Thus, before an employer hires a teacher, a TEFL certification is the first mandate. Teaching English abroad is a booming industry in Asian countries. Countries like China, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and India has made quite the name for them in recruiting and accepting TEFL certified teachers.

Malaysia and the ESL Market

Malaysia had always been looked at as a place by the world, very similar in ways with that of Singapore. Be it tourism or education, Malaysia has been successful in housing a few names of globally recognized teacher education organizations. Teacher training in Malaysia is advanced and they have strict rules when it comes to qualifying a teacher to work in the education sector.

Among essential details, it pre-dominantly comprises of an Islamic demographic and therefore their disciplines also include a little of their belief systems. However, there is no compromise made in accepting the advanced teaching skills and the strategies. When it comes to education, Malaysia boasts of a robust education administration. Along with the great tourism value and attractive geographical features of being an island with developed cities, it makes it an ideal option for TEFL teachers to look for jobs. This is where the business gets a bit narrowed down to strict conditions.

Visa and work permit in Malaysia are stringent and the chances are not high. The majority of the jobs are not exactly advertised internationally on job portals. The ones which are done are usually for the job of assistant teachers or with a specific add-on to the role of a teacher.

If you are living in Malaysia, your chance of getting a job is likely to be high, but then the question arises about the impossibility of altering your homeland for a job! There is one silver lining though - native as well as non-native applicants are welcome if you are living there.
 

Let’s find out the contracts available for teaching English abroad.

Applications for a work visa are to be made from the Malaysian Representative Office in your country/state/province. Although, the recruiters would prefer to interview the applicant in person, given the current situation, web meetings and interviews are now arranged. One can always promise to be in the country once the job is finalized. 

If you are a TEFL teacher (NES or NNES) residing in the USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland, you can visit Malaysia on a Social Visit Pass (SVP) that is valid for 3 months given that you have a return airline ticket. During that time, if a job is secured then the SVP can be changed to Work Visa upon meeting all the other visa requirements. Within the 3 months, one cannot do any part-time job.

Thus, calculating the expenses and saving, it is recommended during the stay. With the help of the SVP now it is feasible to apply for the Employment Application pass. If the pass is extended beyond the SVP then one has to leave Malaysia and then enter the country through Singapore or Thailand. The flight details become mandatory at the immigration.

Teaching jobs in Malaysia also requires you to be under contract for not more than 6 months. If you wish to work more or your employer wants to extend your stay, the Malaysian Employment Application needs to be renewed as per the other requirements. When applying for a teaching job in Malaysia, a degree, TEFL certification and a minimum of 2 years of teaching experience is compulsory.

Conclusion

The good news is, with the increased acceptance of webinar platforms in education, Malaysia has now made it a point to hire more teachers from around the world to associate with their schools and institutions. With that, it can be concluded that a TEFL certified teacher if he or she can meet all the job requirements can certainly apply for a job in Malaysia. However, speaking in terms of generic facts, Malaysia has not been a big fan of recruiting a lot of expats in the education sector; especially teachers. The teacher recruitments in Malaysia are very few when it comes to accepting international applicants.