EXPATRIATES and their family members registered under the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme can only return if they test negative for Covid-19, said Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

The senior minister said this would be the first step in their journey back to Malaysia.

“They must observe a very strict SOP. First, they must be declared negative of the virus and when they touch down in Malaysia, they will be quarantined for 14 days,” Ismail Sabri said in Putrajaya today.

He said being quarantine upon reaching Malaysia could not be avoided as it is possible to come into contact with an infected person along the journey back.

“This is a precaution,” he said, adding these measures included medical screening at Kuala Lumpur International Airport followed by a 14-day quarantine period at designated facilities.

“They must also bear the accommodation cost at the quarantine stations,” he said.

Earlier today, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Nancy Shukri had said that expatriates under the MM2H programme and their dependents can return home starting tomorrow.

The decision comes after The Malaysian Insight had reported that some 200 MM2H visa holders had complained of being stranded abroad because of the MCO, which prohibits entry by foreigners into the country.

MM2H director Sharifah Ikhlas Syed Ismail Al-Jaffree previously told The Malaysian Insight that these 200-odd expats are desperately seeking to return to Malaysia, adding that there may be more stuck overseas.

“According to our records, about 200 have requested (to come back to Malaysia), but we estimate there are more,” she said. – May 16, 2020.