Indonesian ambassador Hermono, who confirmed this with FMT, said the signing by the human resources ministers of both countries will be witnessed by President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Malaysian human resources minister M Saravanan and Indonesian manpower minister Ida Fauziyah will ink the document on behalf of their countries.

The signing was first postponed in February when the two countries could not resolve certain issues. It was then postponed to last month but Ismail was busy with other issues, forcing the delay again.

“We are now finalising the arrangement for the signing on April 1 in Bogor,”Hermono said.

Last week, he told FMT the cost of hiring a maid from Indonesia would be capped at RM15,000.

On the breakdown of the cost, he replied: “It will be known after the MoU is signed”.

Meanwhile, the ambassador said the deduction of two to three months’ wages to help offset the cost of bringing these maids into Malaysia will not be allowed anymore.

“Such a practice will be a thing of the past,” he said.

Earlier, Hermono was reported to have said that all outstanding issues had been resolved, and the embassy would ensure the hiring of domestic helpers would proceed smoothly.

He said the MoU contained a clause for “one maid per household with six members” to prevent them from being overworked by large families or shared among different households.

“Also, if among the six there is an infant or elderly who needs special care, employers must hire an additional helper,” he said.

He added that the agreement did not provide a specific amount as a minimum wage but it could be around RM1,500.

“Domestic helpers from Indonesia will also be entitled to one off day per week. If they agree to work on their off days, they must be compensated,” he said.

The practice of allowing maids to enter with a tourist visa and subsequently apply for a work permit online would be discontinued under the new pact.