When a marriage has broken down, the spouse may choose to end the marriage. A foreign spouse choosing to divorce a local spouse would cause he/she to lose the Spouse Visa (Long term Social Visit Pass in Malaysia) and problems may arise when the spouse has a child in the marriage who is a Malaysian citizen. In this situation, losing the Spouse Visa would mean the foreign divorcee cannot remain in Malaysia and would directly affect the foreign divorcee’s involvement in the growing of the child.
Divorce can be tough on the child of the marriage and most parents would want to minimize the impact of divorce on their child. Studies have shown that having both parents actively involved in a child's life can provide significant social, psychological, and health benefits. As such, this article discussed how the foreign divorcee can remain in Malaysia after divorce.
Work Visa
Unless the foreign divorcee is able to secure employment in Malaysia, there will be various types of work visas that the Malaysian government issues to allow the foreign divorced spouse to remain in Malaysia for the purpose of work.
However, this is not applicable to those foreign divorcees that can’t secure employment in Malaysia.
Resident Pass
Resident Pass is issued to any foreign national who falls under any category specified under Regulation 16A Immigration Regulations 1963. The categories include divorcees to citizens with a biological child who is a Malaysian citizen. However, there are certain conditions to be fulfilled in order to apply for the Resident Pass, among others:-
i) the divorcee has resided in Malaysia for at least 3 years on a valid long term pass;
ii) the application must be sponsored by a Malaysian aged 21 years and above;
iii) the divorcee to a Malaysian citizen must secure full or joint custody of the biological child by the relevant court of law. (Click here to read more)
The Residence Pass allows you to stay in Malaysia for 5 years and the holders are eligible to work, study, and set up a business without having to convert to another pass, subject to the conditions of other relevant authorities.
There are several types of pass issued by the Malaysian government that allows foreign divorcee to remain in Malaysia, however, they require strict compliance and involves complicated procedures in the application.
You can reach out to us should you require assistance and to strategies your divorce to secure your rights to remain in Malaysia after your divorce. To know more...