Sabah Law Society president Roger Chin said Sabah and Sarawak have safeguards and special interests under the Malaysia Agreement 1963, which include control over immigration matters, to allow this.
Chin said these safeguards had allowed Sarawak to have its own MM2H programme, under the Sarawak Tourism Board. Its rules are different from those implemented in the peninsula.
“Sabah’s very own MM2H programme, on its own terms and conditions, can go a long way to attract foreign investment to the state,” he said in a statement here today.
“This can include those who may no longer qualify under the new rules set under the programme in Peninsular Malaysia.”
On Aug 11, the federal government announced the resumption of the MM2H programme, starting Oct 1, but with stricter criteria.
Under the new programme, the compulsory fixed deposit in local banks has been raised to RM1 million (from RM150,000) for applicants aged 50 and above, and to RM300,000 for applicants aged below 50.
Applicants are now also required to have a minimum offshore monthly income of RM40,000 (previously RM10,000), declared liquid assets of RM1.5 million (previously RM500,000), and a minimum stay period of 90 days in total every year. The five-year pass can be renewed for another five years.
The Sarawak government has announced that these new changes would not affect its Sarawak MM2H programme.
Sarawak tourism, arts and culture minister Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said the state would stick to the existing criteria in use since Sept 1 last year as the programme had always been aimed at attracting quality visitors to Sarawak.
Chin said some of the differences applied by Sarawak include the requirement to invest in residential properties worth at least RM600,000 applied only to applicants aged between 40 and 50.
Applicants aged above 30 could be considered if they were accompanying their children to study in Sarawak or seeking long-term medical treatment.
In addition, a minimum stay period of only 15 days cumulative per year is required and a 10-year pass is issued to successful applicants.
Chin said a shift in the Sabah government’s focus of MM2H – being investment-driven instead of being primarily tourism-driven – could reap benefits. It could encourage economic growth and prosperity, propelled by foreign investments.
“The placement of the MM2H programme under the purview of the state industrial development ministry, away from the tourism ministry, could also be the catalyst to achieve this,” he said.
Chin said this was also in line with the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) development plan launched by chief minister Hajiji Noor previously, with three main thrusts to develop the state from 2021 to 2025.
These thrusts are agriculture, industry and tourism; human capital and the well-being of the people; and green infrastructure and sustainability networks.
“Under the SMJ development plan, Sabah intends to attract and bring more investments to the state.”
Chin said Sabah could also emulate the US’ EB-5 visa, which is an employment-based fifth preference category immigrant visa programme for investors to become lawful residents.
He said under this scheme, these “green card” holders can invest substantial capital to finance a business in the country employing at least 10 American workers.
The EB-5 programme is intended to encourage both foreign investments and economic growth.