THE Prime Minister’s Office today clarified that no restrictions are imposed on foreign investments or visitors who meet all the necessary immigration requirements imposed by Malaysian authorities.

“Malaysia welcomes all tourists, including those from China.

“In the case of China, tourists are given single-entry, 30-day visas to the country. Last year, Malaysia attracted some 2.3 million Chinese tourists, and is looking to attract up to 10 million in the coming years,” the PMO said in a statement today.

The statement comes after a Reuters report yesterday, which quoted Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad as saying that foreigners would no longer be allowed to buy homes in the Forest City project in Johor, as many were using their property ownerships to obtain visas to the country.

It was reported that Chinese nationals made up 70% of Forest City apartment buyers last year.

In the statement today, the PMO said Malaysia had certain conditions for foreigners buying properties in the country, to safeguard local interests.

“Purchase of properties does not guarantee automatic residency in the country,” it said.

“For foreigners wishing to make Malaysia their permanent residence, there is a government programme called Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H).

“Conditions are clearly spelt out for those interested and information on this programme is also publicly available.”

The statement also said Malaysia welcomes all foreign direct investments in the country that contribute to the transfer of technology, and provide employment for locals and the setting up of industries.

However, it made no reference to the Forest City project, which Dr Mahathir has long criticised as evidence that Barisan Nasional was selling off the country to China.

Forest City, a multibillion project by developer Country Garden Holdings Co, is among several Beijing-backed projects that took off in the BN era, only to face scrutiny by Pakatan Harapan.

In response to the Reuters interview, Country Garden said it has complied with all necessary regulations in developing the project, and that Dr Mahathir’s statement “may have been taken out of context”. – August 28, 2018.