Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H): Silver tier (Malaysia): Requirements
Malaysia residence route
Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H): Silver tier
Retirees who can place a substantial fixed deposit and buy property, and want the entry tier of the national program.
- Income threshold
- No income test
- Minimum age
- 30+
- Validity
- Five years, renewable.
- Permanent residence
- MM2H does not lead to permanent residency.
- Processing
- 4 to 10 months
The financial test in detail
There is no monthly income test on the current tiered structure. The requirement is a fixed deposit of 150,000 U.S. dollars placed with a Malaysian bank, plus the purchase of residential property with a minimum value of RM 600,000.
Savings
A 150,000 U.S. dollar fixed deposit, of which a proportion may be withdrawn after a qualifying period for approved purposes such as property, healthcare or education in Malaysia.
What the status gives you
- Renewal
- Renewable on continued compliance with the deposit, property and presence conditions.
- Work rights
- No. MM2H is expressly a non-work visa.
- How much time you must spend there
- A minimum of 60 days per year in Malaysia, which may be cumulative.
- Citizenship
- Not a path.
- Government fees
- Visa: 1,000 USD. Government participation and visa fees plus mandatory agent fees, which together commonly run several thousand dollars.
- 1 Engage a licensed MM2H agent Applications must be submitted through an agent licensed by the Ministry of Tourism. This is not optional and agent fees are a real cost.
- 2 Legalise U.S. documents Because Malaysia is not a Hague member, documents are authenticated through the U.S. chain and then legalised at the Embassy of Malaysia in Washington D.C. Budget several weeks.
- 3 Place the fixed deposit Opened with a Malaysian bank once conditional approval is granted. The deposit is the substance of the application.
- 4 Purchase qualifying property The minimum value depends on the tier and on the state, and state-level foreign purchase minimums also apply.
Your action Documents and authentication Government processing
Your document checklist for this route
10 documents in total, of which 4 need authentication: 1 through the U.S. Department of State and 3 through a Secretary of State.
- U.S. passport Identity and the physical book the visa is placed in. Lead time: Routine renewal takes weeks; check current published times
- Passport-format photographs Every application. Specifications differ by country and are enforced strictly. Lead time: Same day
- National long-stay visa application form The core filing. Almost always country-specific and often only valid if printed from the consulate portal. Lead time: Same day
- FBI Identity History Summary (background check) U.S. Department of State, Office of Authentications (federal) Embassy legalization Almost every retirement and long-stay residence visa requires a national-level police clearance. For Americans that means the FBI Identity History Summary, not a local police letter, because consulates want a federal record covering all 50 states. Lead time: 1 to 10 days to obtain, then federal authentication
- Certified birth certificate Secretary of State for the issuing state Embassy legalization Proves identity, nationality and, where relevant, family relationships for dependants. Lead time: 3 to 20 days depending on state
- Certified marriage certificate Secretary of State for the issuing state Embassy legalization Required whenever a spouse is included as a dependant, and to prove joint income or joint savings. Lead time: 3 to 20 days
- Bank and brokerage statements Proof of savings or liquid assets, used either instead of income or alongside it. Lead time: 1 to 10 days
- Medical certificate or health declaration Secretary of State for the issuing state Embassy legalization Required by Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and several Latin American programs; usually a simple statement that you are free of specified communicable diseases. Lead time: 3 to 14 days
- Private international health insurance certificate Nearly universal. Schengen countries usually require a minimum of EUR 30,000 of coverage valid across the zone; other countries set their own floor. Lead time: 1 to 3 days
- Certified translation of the authenticated set Non-English-speaking destinations require the document and its apostille translated by a translator they recognise. Lead time: 2 to 7 days
Why applications on this route fail
- Relying on pre-2021 descriptions of MM2H. The program was suspended and rebuilt twice and the old low thresholds are gone.
- Assuming an apostille is enough. Malaysia requires embassy legalisation.
- Overlooking the 60-day annual presence requirement.
Apply here
- Official MM2H programme portal The authoritative source for current tiers and conditions.
- Malaysian Immigration Department Visa and pass administration.
- 1 Obtain the record Order certified copies from the issuing authority. Do not use photocopies, scans or hospital souvenir certificates.
- 2 Notarise if required Letters and affidavits need a notary acknowledgement before any state can authenticate them. Government-issued vital records do not.
- 3 County clerk (some states) A handful of states require the county clerk to certify the notary commission before the Secretary of State will act.
- 4 Authenticate State-issued documents go to the Secretary of State of the issuing state. Federal documents go to the U.S. Department of State Office of Authentications.
- 5 Apostille or legalise Hague Convention destination: an apostille finishes the chain. Non-Hague destination: the document then goes to that country embassy or consulate for legalisation. For Malaysia the document must then go to that country's embassy or consulate. An apostille alone will be rejected.
- 6 Certified translation Translate the document together with its apostille. Translating first means paying twice.
- 7 File with the consulate Book the appointment at the consulate with jurisdiction over your state of residence and bring originals plus copies.
The expensive mistake: translating before the document is authenticated. The apostille or legalisation certificate is itself part of what the receiving government reads, so it has to be inside the translation. Do it the other way round and you pay for the same translation twice.
Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H): Silver tier: common questions
How much income do I need for the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H): Silver tier?
There is no published income test on this route. There is no monthly income test on the current tiered structure. The requirement is a fixed deposit of 150,000 U.S. dollars placed with a Malaysian bank, plus the purchase of residential property with a minimum value of RM 600,000.
Do I need savings as well as income?
A 150,000 U.S. dollar fixed deposit, of which a proportion may be withdrawn after a qualifying period for approved purposes such as property, healthcare or education in Malaysia.
Can I work on this visa?
No. MM2H is expressly a non-work visa. This is the field applicants most often misread, and in several countries remote work for a U.S. employer counts as work performed locally.
What documents need an apostille?
For this route we count 4 documents needing authentication: 1 federal, through the U.S. Department of State, and 3 state-issued, through the Secretary of State of the issuing state. Malaysia is not a Convention country, so embassy legalisation is required on top.
How long does it take?
4 to 10 months
How much time must I spend in the country?
A minimum of 60 days per year in Malaysia, which may be cumulative.
Does it lead to permanent residence?
Permanent residence: MM2H does not lead to permanent residency.. Citizenship: Not a path..
Verified Sep 7, 2026
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This resource is provided free by Federal Apostille as an educational tool. It is not legal, tax, immigration or financial advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by using it. Immigration rules, income thresholds, fees and processing times change frequently and often without notice, and consulates apply them differently. Always confirm current requirements with the official government source and the specific consulate that has jurisdiction over your U.S. state of residence before you act. Every figure on this site carries the date we last verified it and a link to the primary source.
