Yes, a foreigner working in Malaysia now pays into EPF (KWSP is the same fund under its Malay name). EPF for expats on a work pass has been compulsory since wages for October 2025: 2% from you, 2% from your employer, and you get all of it back only when you leave Malaysia for good or reach 55.
That is a change from what I saw around me until late 2025. Plenty of expats I know in Kuching worked here for years and never had an EPF account, because nobody required one. If you started or renewed after October 2025, check your first payslip from November 2025 onward for two 2% lines, and ask HR for your EPF number.
TL;DR
- Contributions are mandatory for wages from October 2025 under Act A1760%20ACT%202025.pdf), and the first payment was due on 15 November 2025.
- The rate is 2% employee and 2% employer, with no age tiers for anyone who joined EPF on or after 1 August 1998.
- Domestic workers are excluded, Employment Pass holders are included, and permanent residents pay the citizen rates.
- Anyone who had opted in at a higher rate dropped to 2% unless they filed KWSP 17A or 18A.
- i-Simpan and i-Saraan are for citizens and permanent residents only.
- Full withdrawal before 55 works only through the Leaving the Country route, per KWSP.
What Is KWSP, and Is It the Same as EPF?
KWSP stands for Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja, the Malay name of the Employees Provident Fund, and the two are one statutory body under the Ministry of Finance, founded in 1951. A payslip can say either. The fund runs under the EPF Act 1991, so the Employment Act’s pay and leave rules never decide what you contribute.
How the fund works for a Malaysian member sits in the general EPF explainer. This page covers what changes for a passport holder.
Do Foreigners Have to Pay EPF in Malaysia?
Yes, if you are a non-citizen employee with a valid passport and work pass, and the rate is a flat 2% each way.
| Who | Employee share | Employer share | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-Malaysian employee, joined EPF on or after 1 Aug 1998 | 2% | 2% | The default for anyone on a work pass |
| Non-Malaysian who elected to contribute before 1 Aug 1998 | Citizen rates | Citizen rates | Unchanged by the 2025 rule |
| Permanent resident | 11% (5.5% at 60+) | 13% or 12% (6.5% or 6% at 60+) | Treated as a citizen, not a foreign employee |
| Foreign domestic worker (maid, cook, driver, gardener) | Exempt | Exempt | Voluntary only |
The legal test is in the new section 70A: a non-citizen “whose country of domicile is outside Malaysia” and “who enters and remains temporarily under the authority of any pass”. KWSP’s employer page lists the passes that meet it: the Visitor’s Pass (Temporary Employment), the Employment Pass, the Professional Visit Pass, and Student, Residence and Long-Term Social Visit Pass holders whom Immigration allows to work. A spouse on a dependent pass with work permission falls under the same 2% rule when the pass is one of these and Immigration allows them to work.
For employers, the deadline is the 15th of the following month, so October wages were due by 15 November 2025. Employers pay both shares in whole ringgit, rounded up, and may deduct the employee’s share from pay. Those who pay late owe the dividend rate plus 1%, with a RM10 minimum. SOCSO is a separate deduction, covered for foreign workers here. An employer hiring a maid in Kuching does not have to contribute, because domestic helpers fall outside the rule.
I Had Already Opted In at 11%. What Happened in October 2025?
Your rate dropped to 2%. The transitional clause in section 11 of Act A1760 moved every post-1998 opt-in to the new 2% schedule on the day the rule began, and nobody had to ask. For long-stayers, that is the one surprise: the payslip simply shows a smaller number from November 2025. To stay on the higher rate, you file KWSP 17A (AHL) and your employer keys it into i-Akaun (Employer). An employer who wants to pay more files 18A (AHL).
Where Does the Money Go: The Three Accounts?
Every contribution splits 75/15/10 between Akaun Persaraan, Akaun Sejahtera and Akaun Fleksibel, and KWSP applies that to non-Malaysians under 55 as it does to citizens. Akaun Fleksibel is withdrawable at any time with a RM50 minimum, but for a passport holder the KWSP page says to do it manually at an EPF office, with online access reported but unconfirmed.
Savings earned 6.15% for 2025 on both conventional and Shariah accounts, declared on 28 February 2026. The earlier years are in the explainer linked above.
How Do I Register for i-Akaun With a Passport?
Employment Pass and Temporary Employment pass holders were registered automatically from Immigration data in October 2025, and everyone else registers at an EPF office. Activation needs more, because the app’s selfie check wants a MyKad. A passport holder activates at a Self-Service Terminal (passport, a registered Malaysian mobile number, fingerprint) or at the counter with the original passport, the work pass, the mobile number and a KWSP 3 (Daftar) form. For the counter route, budget a morning, take a queue number and bring originals.
Kuching has two options. Pejabat KWSP Kuching sits in Bangunan KWSP on Jalan Uplands (93598), with a terminal open daily 8am to 8pm. Its counters run 8:30am to 4:30pm on weekdays. Visitors who have done withdrawals there mostly describe staff who talk them through the paperwork. The second option is the terminal at UTC Kuching on Jalan Bukit Mata, but it is a kiosk, so anything needing a counter goes to Jalan Uplands. Opening hours and queue tips for both offices are in a separate guide.
Can an Expat Contribute More, or Voluntarily?
Only through your employer, by filing 17A or 18A for a higher percentage of wages. Self Contribution (renamed i-Simpan from 1 January 2026, capped at RM100,000 a year) and i-Saraan are open to citizens and permanent residents, and KWSP’s FAQ says work-permit holders are not eligible.
A long-stayer can ask for an employer top-up at offer stage. On a two-year contract, a higher rate only grows a pot you will spend effort recovering.
How Do I Withdraw EPF When I Leave Malaysia?
You apply under Leaving the Country, which pays out the whole balance and closes the account. A job change inside Malaysia does not qualify. The sequence below follows KWSP’s own checklist for form 9K (AHL).
| Step | Who | What | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Employer, then you | Employer files tax clearance (CP21) and cancels the pass; you collect the Immigration Check-Out Memo | In the weeks before you leave |
| 2 | You | Fill in KWSP 9K (AHL), Leaving the Country | Once the pass is cancelled |
| 3 | You | Gather passport (and the old one if the number changed), proof the job ended, Check-Out Memo, bank proof | With the form |
| 4 | You | Submit at an EPF office, or by post from overseas with certified copies | Soon after the memo |
| 5 | EPF | Pays the full balance plus dividend to your bank account | After approval |
The proof that the job ended can be a resignation or termination letter, an income tax clearance statement or the work permit cancellation, and the form wants the Check-Out Memo as well. Tax clearance is covered in how the 182-day count treats your leaving year and, for the forms, in the guide to tax clearance before you leave. Read both before step 1.
Bank proof must show your name, passport number, nationality and an active account. If the passport number does not match the bank’s records, EPF issues a banker’s cheque instead. Foreign transfers need a separate form, with fees.
Timing is the part KWSP leaves open. Its advice is to apply within two months before the work pass expires, and it states no processing time; third-party guides say several weeks. The bank account you opened as a foreigner must stay open until the money lands, so it cannot be closed on the flight out. Getting the payout home is a separate job after that.
Foreign workers discussing the rule keep returning to the same worry: easy to put in, a chore to get out. People I know have left Malaysia with EPF balances still sitting unclaimed because chasing the withdrawal from abroad was more trouble than the amount was worth.
Is EPF Taxed When a Foreigner Withdraws It?
Malaysia does not tax the withdrawal or the dividends. If your employer pays your 2% for you, that portion counts as a taxable perquisite. Whether your home country taxes the lump sum depends on where you go. The income tax rules for foreigners cover the Malaysian side only.
So, Is EPF Worth Anything to an Expat in Kuching?
At 2% the balance stays small: on a RM8,000 salary the two shares add up to about RM320 a month, or RM3,840 a year before dividend. You cannot opt out, the exit is paperwork with no published processing time, and the Malaysian bank account has to stay open after you have left. The Finance Ministry has called 2% “relatively low” and said it will keep monitoring it, so the deduction may rise (NST, 22 October 2026). Ask HR for your EPF number and check i-Akaun within two months of starting.
FAQ
Do Foreign Workers Get EPF in Malaysia?
Yes, at 2% from you and 2% from your employer since October 2025. Domestic workers are excluded.
Can a Foreigner Withdraw EPF Without Leaving Malaysia?
Only from Akaun Fleksibel, or at age 50 or 55. A move to another Malaysian employer does not qualify for the full withdrawal.
What Is the Difference Between EPF and KWSP?
None. KWSP is the Malay name and EPF the English one for the same fund.
Before you leave: check your payslip, ask for your EPF number and open i-Akaun while you still have a Malaysian mobile number. The tax clearance steps for leavers come first, and the addresses and hours of the Kuching offices are in a separate piece. For more on life as an employee here, see working in Kuching.