KUALA LUMPUR: Bangladeshis comprise 37% of Malaysia’s foreign workforce, with over 800,000 nationals holding employment permits as of the end of June.
“In 2022, 49,353 Bangladeshi workers entered Malaysia after the country’s borders reopened following the Covid-19 pandemic,” the Home Ministry said in a parliamentary written reply dated Aug 25.
When the Foreign Worker Recruitment Relaxation Plan was introduced as a temporary mechanism in 2023 to expedite and facilitate the hiring of foreign workers, a total of 397,548 new Bangladeshi workers entered the country through this plan.
“In addition, in 2022, 20,331 Bangladeshi temporary work permit (PLKS) holders, and in 2023, 23,065 holders were repatriated by their employers,” the ministry said.
“As of June 2025, the Immigration Department recorded 803,332 active Bangladeshi PLKS holders, accounting for 37% of the total foreign workforce and positioning Bangladesh as the largest source country for low-skilled foreign workers in Malaysia,” it added.
Regarding undocumented migrant workers, a total of 790 Bangladeshi nationals were detained for overstaying their passes.
The ministry was responding to a question by Hassan Karim (PH–Pasir Gudang) on the total number of Bangladeshi workers brought into the country in 2022 and 2023, and requested a breakdown of those with valid work permits, those who are undocumented, as well as the number who have been returned to Bangladesh.
