InVinoVeritas

That's a very interesting point you make, Davita, and one I'd never thought of before. By calling the program "second" home it implies you should have a first home elsewhere and presumably should spend more time there than in Malaysia.

But we don't know the exact intentions of MM2H so it's difficult to talk about the spirit of the program. All we can do is respect the rules. And the same goes for on-arrival visas where Malaysian immigration can decide on-the-fly how to apply them.

Unfortunately this has, through no fault of his own, created a problem for Merlinman which is going to be tiresome to resolve - good luck there

InVinoVeritas

I doubt they visit this forum and really MM2H is pretty insignificant to the economy so if people never stay here or they spend all year here I don't suppose anyone is terribly bothered. What we can't do as MM2Hers is get involved in Malaysian politics, which for me is an absolute positive.

Fenella

I didn't notice anyone "thumbing nose" in this thread. Why would we? I'm sure that everyone who has been granted the MM2H visa is very happy about it.

No doubt, if the Malaysian authorities decide that: "in the spirit" of MM2H they do in fact want people to reside here on a permanent basis, they will change the requirements to reflect this. Like any change that may happen in the future, each individual will then have to make the decision on whether or not to continue with the programme.

RedApe

Well it is a "Second Home" because you can't really use the MM2H Visa to become a Malaysian citizen eventually. They certainly expect you to perhaps return home, or somewhere else, eventually and maintain your citizenship there. They also have a generous 10 (or 5 years in my case, Sarawak) term before renewal. But one still must renew.

But there is no "you must have a permanent foreign address" requirement in the literature, nor do they require that one leave the country for any length of time annually or during the period of renewal.

The "you must have a second residence" thing is a bit far-fetched IMO. That was never a restriction in the program from its inception. The restriction is only in citizenship (or permanent residence visa) access.

merlinman

Generally speaking, when one talks about having a second home it means an alternative residence which is usually visited on a regular basis once or twice a year, maybe more, for varying periods, to the extent that it often eventually becomes the first home. Conversely the overriding impression given by some contributors to this discussion is that their Malaysian second home is a merely a bolt-hole, even just a P.O box, used as a last resort when tired of everywhere else. Whilst there may be an assumption, or even expectation, on the part of the authorities that MM2Hers may ultimately leave the country, for the latter to have that attitude is, in my opinion, outside the spirit of, & indeed abusing, the system.

bakedbean

Oh yes they do !! I have seen one of my posts lifted Word for Word from this forum and placed on the gov site That was a few years ago mind, after my change of circumstances.

bakedbean

Getting back on topic...... I think everyone should remember that MM2H is just a long term visa. As Scott on the old forum used to say, we are just long term tourists. That is all.

Sure... you can live somewhat permanently in Malaysia on the visa but you are never permanent and it will not lead to any permanent residency. All this talk of long term immigration is a load of twaddle. We are not immigrants. We are tourists !!

So... yes you can think of it as a permanent base but don't think of it as Permanent. Always have a Plan B in the back of your mind. There are plenty of other Retirement Visas out there.

eCdD

Well, let´s see what the future will bring. In 10 to 20 years will are many young people here with parents on MM2H (sounds great) that maybe were not all born here but spent all the life from Kindergarten to school in Malaysia, speak Bahasa and 99% will got to university.

If I would be Malaysia I would hug and kiss this future tax base, but sure, noboby knows.