MM2H Eligibility & Cost Checker
Enter your age and savings — see which tier you qualify for and the real all-in cost, with the locked deposit shown apart from money you actually spend.
Last verified: 2026-08-16 — visa rules change, so confirm current requirements at the official portal before you apply.
This checker reflects the MM2H programme as overhauled in July 2024 — three tiers (Silver / Gold / Platinum), US-dollar fixed deposits, a mandatory property purchase, a lower minimum age, and no blanket monthly-income test. Always confirm the current, binding figures on the official Malaysia My Second Home portal (mm2h.gov.my) run by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. This tool is general guidance, not immigration advice.
Which MM2H tier do I qualify for, and what does it really cost?
Since the July 2024 overhaul there are three national categories: Silver (USD 150,000 deposit, 5-year pass), Gold (USD 500,000, 15-year), and Platinum (USD 1,000,000, 20-year, and the only one that may work in Malaysia). All require age 25+, a compulsory property purchase held 10 years, and 90 days a year in Malaysia — and none require proof of offshore income. The deposit is locked, not spent: it is refundable, and up to 50% can later be withdrawn for an approved home, education, medical or tourism spending. The checker below maps your age and savings to a category and shows the locked deposit separately from money you actually spend.
The three national tiers
Fixed deposits are set in US dollars. The ringgit figures below are indicative conversions only — the binding amount is the USD figure on the official portal.
Silver
5 years (renewable)
- Fixed deposit
- USD 150,000 (≈ RM 660,000, indicative)
- Property purchase
- RM 600,000 minimum
- Government fee
- RM 1,000 participation fee
- Minimum age
- 25+
Gold
15 years (renewable)
- Fixed deposit
- USD 500,000 (≈ RM 2.2 million, indicative)
- Property purchase
- RM 1,000,000 minimum
- Government fee
- RM 3,000 participation fee
- Minimum age
- 25+
Platinum
20 years (renewable)
- Fixed deposit
- USD 1,000,000 (≈ RM 4.4 million, indicative)
- Property purchase
- RM 2,000,000 minimum
- Government fee
- RM 200,000 participation fee
- Minimum age
- 25+
Other routes (not Penang, not in this checker): the SEZ/SFZ category takes a much smaller deposit (USD 65,000 / USD 32,000) from age 21, but it ties you to the Johor zones — the property must be bought direct from a developer under Johor state policy, and business, investment and employment are all "not allowed". Sarawak runs its own S-MM2H: RM 500,000 fixed deposit, age 30+, RM 5,000 processing fee, 30 days a year in Sarawak. Penang applicants use the national categories above.
What we deliberately don't state as a precise number
On a YMYL topic like a visa, a confident-but-wrong number is worse than an honest "confirm this". Where reporting genuinely conflicts, we flag it rather than guess:
- Verify
When the deposit becomes partly withdrawable
MOTAC's Terms and Regulations allow the 50% withdrawal "after the approval as MM2H participant has been obtained". The official portal summary instead describes withdrawals "starting from the second year onwards". The two do not agree on timing — confirm with OSC MM2H before planning around it.
- Verify
Ringgit value of the deposit
The ringgit figures shown are indicative conversions only — exchange rates move. The locked amount is the USD figure in the MOTAC terms, not a fixed ringgit number.
Rule changes we track
Most published MM2H calculators still show the pre-2024 rules (an income test, an age-50 split). These are the changes this checker is built around.
- Jul 2024MM2H relaunched as three national categories (Silver / Gold / Platinum). The old single programme — a flat RM 1,000,000 deposit for over-50s and RM 500,000 for under-50s — was scrapped.
- Jul 2024Offshore-income requirements dropped for EVERY category, in MOTAC's own words. The old blanket monthly test (~RM 40,000/month) is gone and was not replaced tier-by-tier.
- Jul 2024Minimum age set at 25 years and above for all national categories.
- Jul 2024Compulsory property purchase added for every category (RM 600K Silver / RM 1M Gold / RM 2M Platinum), not sellable for 10 years.
- Jul 2024Category deposits denominated in US dollars (150K / 500K / 1M).
- Jan 2025SEZ/SFZ category introduced for the Special Economic / Financial Zones: age 21+, USD 65,000 (21-49) or USD 32,000 (50+), property bought direct from a developer under Johor state policy.
Sources & accuracy note
The figures in this checker and in VisitPenang's MM2H visa guide come from one record, quoted from MOTAC's Terms and Regulations (accurate as of 22 July 2024) and the SEZ/SFZ terms (January 2025). Last verified against those documents on 2026-08-16. The ringgit amounts are indicative conversions — the binding figure is the USD one — and where the sources genuinely disagree, such as when the 50% deposit withdrawal becomes available, we say so rather than state a false-precise number.
- Official programme portal — Malaysia My Second Home, Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (mm2h.gov.my)
- Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) — motac.gov.my MM2H programme page
- For a binding answer, always defer to the official portal above — agent, medical, insurance and legal costs in the estimate are indicative market ranges, not government figures.
Long-stay medical & travel cover
Flexible travel and medical insurance you can start and stop by the month.
We may earn a commission from bookings made through these links, at no extra cost to you.
Next steps for settling in Penang
Full MM2H Visa Guide
The complete post-2024 rules, application process, and Penang property details.
Cost of Living Guide
What everyday life in Penang actually costs once you have the visa.
Banking & Finance
Where to open the MM2H fixed deposit — Maybank, CIMB, Public Bank.
Neighbourhoods for Expats
Tanjung Tokong, Tanjung Bungah, Bayan Lepas and where MM2H holders settle.
MM2H Checker FAQs
How does the MM2H checker decide which tier I qualify for?
It compares your stated liquid savings against the fixed-deposit floor for each post-2024 national tier — USD 150,000 for Silver, USD 500,000 for Gold, and USD 1,000,000 for Platinum — and shows the highest tier you clear, plus how much more you would need to reach the next one. Deposits are officially set in US dollars; if you enter ringgit it is converted at an indicative, clearly-dated rate only to compare tiers.
Why does the cost estimate separate the deposit from the other costs?
Because the fixed deposit is locked, not spent. It sits in a Malaysian bank and is refundable when you exit the programme, and up to 50% can later be withdrawn for an approved residence purchase, education, medical or tourism spending — MOTAC's terms allow that once you have approval, though the official portal words the timing differently, so confirm it. Lumping it into a single all-in number — as many cost articles do — makes MM2H look far more expensive than the money you actually part with. The checker shows the locked deposit, the property (an asset you own), and the genuinely-spent fees and ancillary costs as three separate lines.
Is the fixed deposit really in US dollars, or ringgit?
US dollars. MOTAC's Terms and Regulations state "Fixed Deposit (FD) of USD1 million", "USD500,000" and "USD150,000" for Platinum, Gold and Silver respectively, so this is not a matter of interpretation — consultancy sites that restate the figures in ringgit are converting, not quoting. The ringgit amounts shown here are indicative conversions at a dated rate; the binding amount is the USD figure.
How many days a year must I spend in Malaysia on MM2H?
Ninety. MOTAC requires you to be present in Malaysia for 90 days (cumulative) in one year, and it is the same for every category with no age exemption. What does vary by age is who may fulfil it: for participants aged 25 to 49, the days can be met by the principal or their dependants.
Do I have to buy property, and does Penang have its own rules?
Yes — a property purchase is compulsory after approval and cannot be sold for 10 years, though MOTAC's terms set no deadline for completing it. Penang also sets its own foreigner minimums on top of the category floor: roughly RM 1,000,000 on Penang Island and RM 500,000 on the mainland (Seberang Perai). Your qualifying purchase must meet whichever number is higher — the tier floor or the Penang state minimum.
Is this immigration advice?
No. This is general guidance to help you understand the tiers and rough costs. Immigration rules and figures change, applications must go through a MOTAC-licensed agent, and you should confirm every current requirement on the official MM2H portal (mm2h.gov.my) before acting.