Malaysia lifts visa regulation for India

The Malaysian government under the leadership of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has announced a significant change to the entry visa policy for Chinese and Indian nationals. Effective December 1, Malaysia will abolish the entry visa requirement for Chinese and Indian nationals. The Prime Minister made this announcement during his speech at the annual convention of his People's Justice Party in Putrajaya.

What will change for Indian travelers?

• Abolition of visa: Indian nationals will no longer require an entry visa to visit Malaysia from December 1.
• Visa-free stay: Indians can stay in Malaysia for up to 30 days without applying for a visa.

Earlier, Prime Minister Ibrahim announced plans to improve visa regulations next year to further encourage the influx of tourists and investors, particularly from India and China. China and India are important markets for Malaysia, ranking fourth and fifth respectively on the list of source countries for tourist arrivals. From January to June this year, Malaysia recorded a total of 9.16 million tourist visits, of which India accounted for 283,885, cementing its position as a major source of tourists for Malaysia. The government hopes that the simplification of the entry process will attract more tourists and increase their spending in the country, which in turn will contribute to Malaysia's economic development.

This makes Malaysia the fourth country after Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Thailand to announce visa-free entry for tourists from India.