Dr Tajul Iqmal Tajul Arus, the ministry’s traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) division principal assistant director, said this followed the second phase of enforcement of the act against traditional medicine practitioners who have yet to register with the health ministry.

He said under the act, individuals who practise TCM without a valid certificate, or who do not display their certificates, may be subject to a fine not exceeding RM10,000, imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months, or both.

“During the transition period from March 1, 2021 to February 28, 2025, we placed more emphasis on the educational approach to the enforcement of this act.

“From March 1, we will begin legal action against TCM practitioners in recognised fields of practice who are found to have violated and committed offences under this act,” he said in a media briefing session on the enforcement of the act here today.

Tajul Iqmal said that under the act, anyone who is not a registered practitioner cannot practise traditional medicine and can be fined a maximum of RM30,000 or imprisoned for not more than two years, or both, for the first offence.

For subsequent offences, they can be fined a maximum of RM50,000 or imprisoned for not more than three years. The same punishment can also be imposed on individuals who make false or misleading statements regarding TCM services.

He said as of Feb 25, his department had received 18,802 registration applications from TCM practitioners nationwide, covering seven recognised areas of practice.

The seven areas of practice currently recognised by the health ministry are traditional Malay medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, traditional Indian medicine, homeopathy, chiropractic, osteopathy, and Islamic medicine practices.

As of Jan 17, Tajul Iqmal said 14,312 local and 158 foreign TCM practitioners had been registered with the health ministry. The most registrations were by Malay traditional medicine practitioners, at 4,541.