FOREIGN spouses and children of Malaysians can now return to the country but must first obtain the Immigration Department’s approval, said senior minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

They had been stranded outside following the implementation of the movement-control order, he added.

“This is applicable not only to foreign spouses, but the children of Malaysians born abroad and who are not citizens,” Ismail Sabri said during his press conference in Putrajaya today.

“Before this, we did not allow it but now they can. But our advice to them is that they apply with the Immigration Department first.

“There have been cases where families arriving at KLIA resulted in only the Malaysian spouse being allowed to enter, while his or her foreign counterpart and their children are turned away.

“Since you can already apply to come back, it is better not to delay but to do so as quickly as possible,” Ismail Sabri said.

The Foreign Spouses Support Group had previously urged the government to adopt short-term measures to allow Malaysian families with mixed nationalities to remain together. – June 22, 2020.