Retire in Malaysia as a Muslim: MM2H Rules, Budget, Healthcare and Where to Settle

There is no visa called a “retirement visa” in Malaysia. A Muslim retiree who wants to stay long term usually looks at the federal Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme. This guide sets out its official requirements as read on 12 November 2026, what housing and care cost in three cities, how healthcare is charged to foreigners, and what religious life looks like for older residents. Amounts are in ringgit (RM) with US dollars at Bank Negara Malaysia’s reference rate of RM4.0805 per US dollar on 12 November 2026 (BNM).

This is information, not advice on whether to move, where to live or how to hold your money.

MM2H: what the official portal says

The Ministry of Tourism (MOTAC) runs MM2H. The category page, whose footer reads “Last Update: 10/02/2026”, lists (MM2H categories):

	Silver	Gold	Platinum	SEZ/SFZ (50+)
Fixed deposit	USD 150,000 (RM612,075)	USD 500,000 (RM2,040,250)	USD 1,000,000 (RM4,080,500)	USD 32,000 (RM130,576)
Minimum home purchase	RM600,000 (USD 147,041)	RM1,000,000 (USD 245,068)	RM2,000,000 (USD 490,136)	price set for the SEZ development
Pass	5 years, renewable	15 years, renewable	20 years, renewable	10 years, renewable
Minimum age	25	25	25	50
Minimum stay	90 days a year at 25-49; none from 50	same	same	none
Participation fee	RM1,000 (USD 245)	RM3,000 (USD 735)	RM200,000 (USD 49,014)	RM1,000
Renewal fee	RM1,500	RM3,000	RM5,000	RM300

The portal also lists a processing fee of RM5,000 for the principal applicant (USD 1,225) and RM2,500 per dependant (USD 613). The guidelines page adds (guidelines, read 12/11/2026):

• Application route: only through a MOTAC-licensed MM2H agent and the One Stop Centre.
• Medical check-up: compulsory for the principal and dependants at a clinic or hospital appointed by MOTAC, after approval.
• Dependants: spouse; children under 21, or aged 21 to 34 if unmarried and not working in Malaysia; disabled children with no age limit; parents and parents-in-law. For older applicants, bringing a parent or a spouse on the same application is therefore an official option.
• Upper age limit: none is published on the pages we read. We found no published income requirement for the federal categories, though MOTAC may ask for supporting information.
• Work: the official category pages mark business, investment and career activities as not allowed for Silver, Gold and SEZ/SFZ and permitted for Platinum.
• Permanent residence: MM2H does not lead to it; SIM, citing the Tourism Minister’s statement to Parliament of 4 February 2026, reports that the programme was never about permanent residence or citizenship.

Sarawak and Sabah run separate state programmes with their own rules, which we do not cover here. For a full walkthrough of fees, documents and steps, Smart Invest Malaysia has an MM2H 2026 guide as further reading.

Where the deposit sits: a question for scholars

The deposit must be a fixed deposit with a Malaysian licensed financial institution. Malaysia licenses Islamic banks as well as conventional ones. Many Islamic term deposits use tawarruq (commodity murabahah), on which scholars differ. Bank Negara Malaysia’s Shariah Advisory Council ruled at its 199th meeting on 26 November 2019 that tawarruq executed through straight-through processing is permissible subject to five conditions (BNM). The OIC’s International Council of Fiqh Academy, in a resolution reported by Arab News on 22 June 2009, said that executing organised and reverse tawarruq is not permissible (Arab News). We do not choose between these views. Ask the bank which contract it uses and consult a qualified scholar. We recommend no bank or product.

What the programme does not give

No permanent residence, no right to work below Platinum, and no visa from owning property. The home you must buy under Silver, Gold or Platinum is a programme condition, and SIM reports that it cannot be resold for 10 years except to upgrade; this comes from MOTAC material SIM read on 28 October 2026, so confirm it with your agent.

A monthly housing and living budget

Rent comes from Numbeo (crowd-sourced; Kuala Lumpur updated 11 November 2026, George Town and Johor Bahru 8 November 2026). Utilities are Numbeo’s basic bill for an 85 m2 flat. Food is DOSM’s 2024 mean household spending for each state times the national 15.7% (food at home) and 17.0% (restaurants) shares, our calculation; the averages are for households of all sizes, not for a retired couple. We use a 1-bedroom flat, since many retired couples need less space; for 3 bedrooms, see our cost of living guide.

Per month	Kuala Lumpur	George Town (Penang)	Johor Bahru
1-bed rent, outside centre to centre	RM1,449 to RM2,810 (USD 355 to 689)	RM1,500 to RM3,655 (USD 368 to 896)	RM1,726 to RM2,181 (USD 423 to 535)
Basic utilities, 85 m2	RM252 (USD 62)	RM152 (USD 37)	RM215 (USD 53)
Housing subtotal	RM1,701 to RM3,062 (USD 417 to 750)	RM1,652 to RM3,807 (USD 405 to 933)	RM1,941 to RM2,396 (USD 476 to 587)
Inexpensive restaurant meal	RM20 (USD 4.90)	RM14 (USD 3.43)	RM15 (USD 3.68)
DOSM 2024 mean household spending (all sizes)	RM8,178 (USD 2,004)	RM5,850 (USD 1,434)	RM5,927 (USD 1,453)

Read the Penang row with care: Numbeo flags estimates because of few contributors there. The numbers describe housing only; they are not a retirement income target. Electricity follows TNB’s tariff of 44.43 sen/kWh in total for generation, capacity and network, plus a monthly fuel adjustment of up to 3 sen/kWh (paultan.org), and air conditioning drives usage.

On top of this, an MM2H Silver applicant needs the deposit, which stays in your name but is locked apart from permitted withdrawals, and the home purchase. We do not publish agent fees: no official page lists them.

Healthcare for older residents

Public hospitals. Foreigners are charged at published rates. One Ministry of Health hospital (Hospital Miri, page updated November 2026) lists RM40 (USD 10) for a general outpatient visit, RM120 (USD 29) for a specialist visit and RM100 (USD 25) for emergency attendance; ward rates per day of RM160 (third class), RM180 (second) and RM320 (first); and admission deposits of RM1,400 to RM7,000 for medical cases and RM2,800 to RM11,000 for surgical cases (Hospital Miri). Treatment is charged on top of ward rates.

Private care. A private GP consultation is regulated at RM10 to RM80 since 2 April 2026 (The Star). The Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council lists about 91 hospitals and specialist centres in its directory and says it publishes cost ranges guided by the Ministry of Health (MHTC). We found no verified private hospital room or procedure prices that we can quote for Penang or Johor Bahru, so we give none. SIM, citing RinggitPlus, reports a 6% service tax on private healthcare for non-Malaysians since 1 July 2025.

MOTAC’s compulsory medical check-up applies at the approval stage. We do not recommend any insurance or takaful product; if a law or programme requires cover, read the official requirement.

Where Muslim retirees settle

We found no official count of where foreign retirees live, so we describe the three cities with published data.

• Kuala Lumpur: the federal capital, with the widest choice of hospitals and international services. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong heads Islam in the Federal Territories, according to Wikipedia’s article on Islam in Malaysia.
• George Town, Penang: an island city whose Armenian Street area is shown on this page. Penang has no sultan, so the Agong heads Islam there too.
• Johor Bahru: the state is ruled by a sultan, who heads Islam in Johor, and the city lies across the Strait of Johor from Singapore. Forest City, the only location for the MM2H special zone category, is in Johor. Johor moved from a Friday-Saturday weekend to Saturday-Sunday on 1 January 2025, per Wikipedia’s summary of public holidays.

Other states, including Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, observe a Friday-Saturday weekend; if you value a Friday that follows the prayer rhythm, check each state’s practice yourself. In any city you will find mosques, halal food verified through JAKIM’s portal at halal.gov.my, and community activities run by mosques. Religious matters such as personal status for Muslims fall under state Syariah courts; take advice from a qualified Malaysian lawyer for wills and inheritance, and from scholars on matters of fiqh.

Safety

The UK FCDO (updated 19 March 2026, still current on 12 November 2026) advises against all but essential travel only to islands and dive sites off the coast of eastern Sabah, between Sandakan and Tawau. The US State Department rated Malaysia Level 1, Exercise Normal Precautions, in February 2026, noting petty crime such as bag snatching; we read this through search results, so check the live advisory (FCDO).

Practical checklist

1. Read the official portal first and keep a dated copy of the conditions for your category.
2. Verify the agent: MOTAC says applications go only through licensed agents; check the licence on MOTAC’s site.
3. Confirm your age category: minimum stay applies from 25 to 49 and not from 50, per the portal.
4. Ask about the bank contract if an Islamic deposit matters to you; consult a scholar.
5. Book the medical check-up at a MOTAC-appointed clinic or hospital after approval.
6. Plan healthcare: note where the nearest public and private hospitals are and what foreigner rates apply.
7. Check tax with professionals in both countries. Residence for Malaysian tax depends on days, not on the pass; SIM reports that individuals present for 182 days or more in a year are generally tax resident, citing the Inland Revenue Board. This is not tax advice.
8. Diarise renewals and keep the personal bond and insurance papers MOTAC lists for your stage.

What we left out

• Agent fees and processing times for MM2H, which no official page publishes.
• Private hospital room and procedure prices, which we could not verify.
• Home-country pensions and tax, and Malaysian tax on foreign income beyond the pointer above.
• Any recommendation of a bank, insurer, takaful operator or mortgage.

Sources were read on 12 November 2026. Rules change often; verify with MOTAC before committing money.