People Advisory & Mobility
Work Pass Services Malaysia
Malaysia work pass and immigration support for in-bound talent
Employment Pass, Professional Visit Pass, Work Permit and Dependant's Pass filings, handled end to end under Immigration Department rules. We build the documentation, run the submission calendar, and deal with the Department on renewals, transfers and conversions. Filed by our locally-incorporated Malaysian office, part of a group that has been operating in Southeast Asia since 2002.
24+ years
of regional recruitment heritage across Southeast Asia
EA C No. 1432
JTKSM Licensed Employment Agency - SSM No. 202301013641 (1507563-K)
4 pass types
EP · PVP · Work Permit · Dependant’s Pass
Per-application
transparent line-item pricing, no minimums
How it works
1
Eligibility check
Before anything is filed we look at whether it should be. The role as described, the candidate's qualifications and salary against the category being applied for, and your existing pass-holder profile, because that history shapes how a new application is read. Where the case looks marginal we say so at this point and set out what would strengthen it, or which pass type is the better route. Nobody benefits from a weak submission going in.
2
Application preparation
We assemble the filing itself: the forms, the company documents the Department expects to see, qualification verification for the candidate, and a role justification written to the criteria rather than lifted from the job advertisement. Requirements shift, so the pack is checked against current practice before it goes rather than against what was accepted last year.
3
Submission & monitoring
The application is submitted and tracked until a decision comes back. Where the Department asks for more information, we prepare a substantive response with you and the candidate rather than resubmitting the same material with a covering note. You hear about a query when it arrives, not when it has become a deadline.
4
Renewals, changes, & appeals
After approval the pass has a life of its own. Renewals are filed ahead of expiry, change-of-employer applications handled when someone moves, cancellations processed on departure, and dependant passes kept linked. If an application is refused and an appeal is worth making, we build the appeal around the grounds actually cited.
Work pass services in Malaysia under JTKSM EA Licence C No. 1432
Agensi Pekerjaan People Profilers Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. (SSM No.: 202301013641 (1507563-K)) holds JTKSM Employment Agency Licence C No. 1432 - the licensing framework under the Private Employment Agencies Act that authorises us to operate as your appointed employment agent in Malaysia. We file Employment Passes, Professional Visit Passes, Work Permits, and Dependant’s Passes for Malaysia employers, backed by the People Profilers group's 24+ years of regional recruitment heritage across Southeast Asia. We are the JTKSM-licensed filer; the client remains the legal employer of every pass holder. Our practice is built around three things - accurate first-time submissions to reduce the likelihood of queries or rejections, honest eligibility advice before applications are filed (we will say no if the candidate's profile doesn't meet current criteria), and a per-application pricing model with no minimum commitment so you only pay for filings you actually need. We don't pretend to control the Immigration Department's processing timelines or approval decisions - those sit with the Immigration Department - but we do everything within our control to give each application the best chance.
What's included in our work pass service
Three things, priced so you can budget for them. The filings themselves, the compliance and advisory work that ought to accompany any application and frequently does not, and a fee structure with no minimum, no retainer and no HR services bundled in that you did not ask for.
Pass filings
- ✓Employment Pass (EP) - initial & renewal, Cat I / II / III
- ✓PVP - initial & renewal, scope & duration planning
- ✓Work Permit (PLKS) - initial & renewal, sectoral quota & dependency ratio
- ✓Dependant's Pass (DP) - linked to primary EP holder
Compliance & advisory
- ✓Eligibility pre-checks before filing
- ✓EP qualifying criteria check (Cat I / II / III) & ESD endorsement
- ✓PVP scope & Work Permit quota / dependency ratio planning
- ✓Immigration Department query responses & appeal preparation
Transparent pricing
- ✓Per-application service fee, line-itemed
- ✓Immigration Department fees passed through at official rates, no markup
- ✓No retainer, no minimum commitment
- ✓Quoted up front before any application is submitted
Each fee is confirmed in writing before the filing goes in. You remain the legal employer of the pass holder throughout; we act as the JTKSM-licensed employment agent filing on your behalf under Licence C No. 1432. Employers who would rather have the filings sit inside a wider HR arrangement should look at HR Shared Services instead.
When standalone work pass services make sense
This is the right service if you run HR yourself and want a licensed agent for the immigration work alone. Three situations account for most of it.
Foreign HQ expanding into Malaysia
A head office abroad hiring its first people into Malaysia, usually before anyone from HR is on the ground here. We file the Employment Passes, arrange dependant passes for families relocating, and advise on the order things have to happen in, because incorporation and employer registration with the Expatriate Services Division both have to be complete before a pass can be issued.
Established employer with regular pass volume
Employers with filings running all year: renewals coming due, Professional Visit Pass and Work Permit cycles turning over, quota and dependency ratio positions to keep an eye on. Rather than carrying that in house or moving between agents, per-application pricing means you pay for the filings you actually make.
Complex or marginal applications needing eligibility review
Applications that need thinking about before they are submitted. A senior hire whose salary or qualification recognition sits near a category boundary, a Work Permit application close to a sector quota, or a candidate whose background does not present in the standard shape. We assess whether there is a realistic path first, and prepare the appeal if one becomes necessary.
If you want work pass filings bundled with full HR function outsourcing under one retainer, see HR Shared Services. If you're planning a restructuring that affects foreign-pass workforce decisions before any filing decisions are made, our HR Consultation service helps with the upstream workforce planning.
WORK PASS & EXPATRIATE
Employment Pass, tracked from application to renewal
Document preparation and submission via ESD · Renewal deadlines monitored so status never lapses
Industries & Functions We Cover
Eligibility is read in the context of the sector. What counts as a justified expatriate role in oil and gas is read differently from manufacturing, and quota and dependency ratio positions vary again. Because we recruit into these industries in Malaysia, the person preparing your application already understands why the role exists rather than asking you to explain it in writing.
Aerospace & Aviation
Licensed aircraft engineers, avionics technicians, MRO project managers and aerospace QA around Subang, Sepang and Senai.
Automotive
Sales and aftersales managers, service centre leads, parts and inventory specialists, and EV product roles with distributors and component makers.
Banking & Financial Services
Relationship managers, credit and investment analysts, compliance and AML officers and risk managers across BNM-licensed institutions, takaful and Islamic finance.
Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical
Regulatory affairs, QA and QC, process and validation specialists, medical science liaisons and commercial roles for manufacturers and distributors.
Chemical
Process and production engineers, EHS officers, technical sales and plant supervisors across specialty and petrochemical operations.
Construction & Civil Engineering
Project managers, site and structural engineers, quantity surveyors, contracts managers and safety officers on Klang Valley and Iskandar developments.
FMCG & Retail
Brand and category managers, trade marketing, key account managers and retail operations across a dispersed peninsular sales force.
Healthcare
Medical representatives, clinical operations, pharmacists, nursing leadership and hospital administration for private groups and device companies.
IT & Telecommunication
Software engineers, DevOps, product managers, network and infrastructure specialists and technical sales across KL, Cyberjaya and the Penang corridor.
Logistics & Transportation
Warehouse and operations supervisors, freight forwarders, customs specialists, fleet and procurement roles around Port Klang, KLIA and Johor.
Marine & Offshore Engineering
Naval architects, marine and subsea engineers, project and vessel operations roles, and HSE specialists for yards and offshore support.
Media & Publishing
Account managers, content and digital marketing specialists, designers, editors and PR executives across agencies and publishers.
Oil & Gas
Drilling, process and reservoir engineers, HSE coordinators, project controls and commercial analysts, including upstream and Sarawak and Sabah postings.
Real Estate & Property
Property and leasing managers, investment and asset managers, facilities leads and property consultants for developers and REITs.
Semiconductor
Process, equipment and test engineers, yield and reliability specialists, production supervisors and supply chain roles across the Penang and Kulim clusters.
Frequently asked questions
Which work passes do you handle?
Employment Pass, Professional Visit Pass, Work Permit and Dependant's Pass. For each of those we file initial applications, manage renewals ahead of expiry, handle change of employer, and process cancellation when someone leaves.
Outside that scope sit the specialist routes and permanent residence applications, which we do not take on. Where your situation involves one, we will either point you to specialists who work on it daily or tell you honestly that a standard pass is the better answer.
How is your work pass service priced?
Per filing, itemised. One service fee for each pass we file, with the Department's own charges passed through at the official rate and no margin added to them. Different pass types carry different fees because they involve different amounts of work.
Nothing is retained, there is no annual contract and there is no minimum. You engage us when there is something to file and you pay nothing in the months when there is not.
Every fee is quoted in writing before submission. Where volume is high enough that a bundled arrangement would cost you less, we will say so rather than continuing to bill per application.
Do you guarantee work pass approvals?
No. Approval decisions belong to the Immigration Department and turn on the candidate's profile, the pass category, the strength of the case and current policy. None of that is within an agent's gift, and an agent promising otherwise is selling you something they do not own.
What we will commit to is the quality of the filing: an honest read on eligibility before anything is submitted, documentation that is complete and accurate, substantive responses to queries, and a properly built appeal where a refusal warrants one. That tends to produce fewer queries and better first-time outcomes, but the decision stays where it is.
How long does the Immigration Department take to process work passes?
Processing times are set by the Department and move with its own workload, so we do not publish our own figures. Doing that would imply a degree of control over the queue that no agent has.
When you engage us for a filing we tell you the current published timeline for that pass type and flag anything unusual we are seeing in practice, which is often more useful than the official figure on its own.
What happens if the Immigration Department queries or rejects an application?
Queries are routine rather than a bad sign, particularly where the role justification or a qualification needs further substantiation. When one arrives we work with you and the candidate to put together a proper response inside the window given, rather than restating what was already submitted.
A refusal is a different conversation. We read the grounds with you and give an honest view on whether an appeal has a path, because an appeal needs new evidence or a genuinely different framing to succeed. Where the refusal looks sound under current criteria we will say so and discuss alternative pass types or a different candidate rather than filing an appeal for the sake of it.
How is this different from your HR Shared Services or in-house immigration staff?
Standalone filings suit employers who keep HR in house and want a licensed agent only for the immigration work. Payroll, the employee lifecycle and statutory reporting stay wherever they are today, and you call us when a pass needs filing.
HR Shared Services is the other model: we take on payroll, the employee lifecycle, benefits, statutory reporting and the pass filings together, on a monthly retainer rather than per application.
Against an in-house immigration hire, the calculation is volume. Below a certain number of filings a year, one person's salary, training, portal access and the time it takes to keep up with changing requirements costs more than agency fees. Above it, in house can be cheaper, with the caveat that it concentrates the knowledge in one person who may not always be there.
Explore our other services
Need something different? Browse our other broad service categories.
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