Budget 2027: DE Rantau +2 Years, EP Spouses May Work From 2027

Two lines in Malaysia’s Budget 2027 speech matter for foreigners who already live here, or are planning to. One concerns digital nomads, the other concerns the spouses of senior expats. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim tabled the budget in the Dewan Rakyat on Friday, 9 October 2026.

What changed

DE Rantau Nomad Pass: two more years. The speech says existing DE Rantau Nomad Pass holders who have reached the two-year limit “will be granted an additional two years to continue residing and working remotely in Malaysia, subject to the prescribed conditions.” Until now the pass has been capped at 24 months. MDEC’s FAQ describes it as a 3–12 month Professional Visit Pass that can be renewed once for 12 more months.

Category I EP spouses: allowed to work. The speech says that from 1 January 2027, spouses of expatriates holding a Category I Employment Pass who themselves hold a Dependant Pass “will be allowed to work in Malaysia, subject to the prescribed conditions.”

The speech doesn’t spell out the conditions for either measure, and neither does the Malay Mail report. Treat both as announced but not yet open for applications.

Who it affects

• Digital nomads on DE Rantau who have used, or will soon use, their full 24 months. Under the current FAQ, 24 months is the maximum stay. The speech refers to existing holders, and it doesn’t say whether people who already left after hitting the cap can come back.
• Families of Category I Employment Pass holders. Under the expatriate employment policy in force since 1 June 2026, Category I means a minimum monthly salary of RM20,000 (MIDA). Spouses of Category II and III holders aren’t mentioned in the speech.
• Not DE Rantau spouses. MDEC’s FAQ answers “Can my spouse work in Malaysia under this pass?” with a plain “No.” Nothing in Budget 2027 changes that.

What you should do

1. DE Rantau holders close to the 24-month mark: don’t let your pass lapse because you’re expecting the extension. MDEC’s FAQ says you can renew up to three months before expiry. Watch mdec.my/derantau for the extension conditions before you make plans that depend on it.
2. Category I EP families: don’t start a job before the conditions are published. The speech dates the change from 1 January 2027 and makes it subject to conditions, so it isn’t in force today. If you’re negotiating an offer for 2027, tell the employer the start date depends on the new rules.
3. Moving to Johor on either pass: costs haven’t changed. The DE Rantau processing fee is still RM1,080 per applicant and RM540 per dependant, including 8% SST (MDEC FAQ).

For an overview of all the routes for living legally in JB, see our Moving to Johor Bahru guide. If your plans are long-term, compare these routes with the MM2H 2026 guide.

Background

DE Rantau is MDEC’s digital nomad programme. The income threshold is USD24,000 a year for tech talent and USD60,000 for non-tech roles (MDEC FAQ v10.0). The speech listed both measures as part of a six-point package to attract global firms and skilled talent. For Johor, the same speech said the JS-SEZ master plan and blueprint will be launched by the end of this year. It also promised more local bus routes, more frequent KTM Komuter trains and GrabShuttle services ahead of the RTS Link opening.

We’ll update this page once MDEC and the Immigration Department publish the conditions.