Answer for Oral Question PL227

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Dayang Chong Chin Yee

YANG BERHORMAT DAYANG CHONG CHIN YEE requested the MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS to state whether the Government will integrate the National Labour Management System (NLMS) with the Immigration and National Registration Department’s system to require residential property owners to register and update information on foreign workers renting their residences, as well as enable Ketua Kampung to verify address information for emergency purposes.

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri Hal Ehwal Dalam Negeri

The integration between the National Labour Management System (NLMS) at the Department of Labour, now known as the Department of Manpower and Employment, and the Immigration and National Registration System (INRS) at the Immigration and National Registration Department has been implemented in stages.

• Since April 2023, NLMS has used data from the Immigration and National Registration Department to verify employer information through the electronic Know Your Customer or e-KYC method.
• Since 2024, the Immigration and National Registration Department has also used information from the Department of Manpower and Employment to verify the approval of Foreign Workers Licences in NLMS, thereby reducing the risk of document forgery.
• Starting in 2025, information on the approval of Foreign Workers Licences has also been shared directly between NLMS and INRS to process the issuance of Employment Visas.

At the same time, the entire process of recruiting foreign workers, issuing visas and Employment Passes continues to be strengthened through coordination among the relevant agencies. The Department of Manpower and Employment verifies company registration and ownership information through cooperation with the Registry of Companies and Business Names, while the Immigration and National Registration Department ensures that foreign nationals reside and work legally through the management of visas, immigration passes and identity cards. Compliance monitoring is also carried out through premises inspections and integrated operations with the relevant enforcement agencies.

In terms of residential addresses, information on the foreign worker’s place of residence must be provided during the application process for a Foreign Workers Licence, in accordance with the provisions under Section 86 of the Employment Act (Chapter 278). Under the National Registration Act (Chapter 19), every foreign national holding a valid Immigration Pass for a period exceeding three months is also required to register and possess an identity card, including providing information on their residential address. Therefore, basic mechanisms for recording foreign worker and residential address information are already available through the processes of manpower management, immigration and national registration.

In this context, relevant information may be shared with Penghulu Mukim and Ketua Kampung for specific purposes, including supporting emergency response, monitoring and coordination at the grassroots level. This is also in line with several PMKK Key Performance Indicators introduced in 2024, particularly KPI 3, namely “Percentage of complaints from village residents acted upon”, and KPI 4, namely “Percentage of mukim or village residents who are cared for, listened to and attended to”. Among other things, these two KPIs aim to ensure that the well-being of residents in every mukim and village continues to receive attention and is addressed more responsively under the responsibility of the respective Penghulu Mukim and Ketua Kampung.