A total of 17,896 undocumented migrants were being held at immigration detention centres nationwide as of July 6, with over 10% of them being children, says home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
In a written parliamentary reply, he said all the children were detained with at least one parent and were not separated from their families.
Saifuddin said the immigration department operates 20 detention facilities, 18 permanent depots and two temporary holding centres, along with six centres for minors, known as Baitul Mahabbah.
He said these facilities have an overall capacity of 21,530, with the number of detainees at any given time ranging between 16,000 and 18,000, depending on arrests and deportations.
Four nationalities make up over 90% of the detainee population: Myanmar (41.6% or 7,453 people), the Philippines (21.5% or 3,839), Indonesia (21.3% or 3,817) and Bangladesh (6.3% or 1,136).
Saifuddin was responding to Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (Muda–Muar), who asked for the number of individuals held at each immigration detention centre.
In a separate reply to Takiyuddin Hassan (PN-Kota Bharu), Saifuddin said 98,318 Malaysians renounced their citizenship between 2015 and 2025 to become Singapore citizens.
He said 2024 saw the highest number of renunciations during the period, with 16,930 Malaysians giving up their citizenship.
