Malaysia passes a new law allowing mothers to pass on citizenship to children born abroad

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia has passed a law allowing foreign-born children of Malaysian mothers to gain citizenship, a progressive move that was delayed for months after activists and backbenchers railed against other provisions of the law when it was first proposed.

The 2024 constitutional amendment bill was passed on October 17 with the required two-thirds majority in the lower house and 206 yes votes in the 222-seat parliament.

The move to allow both mothers and fathers to pass on their Malaysian citizenship to their children born abroad was widely welcomed.

“We hope that with the amendment we can finally bring some justice to the children of mothers who marry non-Malaysian citizens,” Democratic Action Party (DAP) lawmaker Syahredzan Johan said during the debate in Parliament.

Nevertheless, criticism of other sections of the new law remained.

When the bill aimed at combating statelessness was first tabled in March 2024, backbenchers threatened a revolt against regressive provisions that included, among other things, the automatic stripping of citizenship for abandoned and stateless children.

Some of these controversial points have been resolved in the new law. Abandoned children, also known as foundlings, automatically receive citizenship, while foreign spouses who acquire citizenship through marriage but divorce within two years of receiving citizenship do not have their citizenship revoked and do not become stateless.

Chairperson of Parliament’s Select Committee on Children, Women and Community Development, Ms Yeo Bee Yin, commended the government for actively advising the committee.

“The amendments presented today represent a middle ground between the Home Office and NGOs, which have been subject to several drafts,” the DAP backbencher told Parliament on October 16.

However, there was still discontent among lawmakers.

The bill revokes the existing automatic Malaysian citizenship for permanent resident (PR) children born in Malaysia. Instead, these children are given PR status and can apply for Malaysian citizenship through registration or naturalization.

Parti Keadilan Rakyat backbencher Hassan Karim said the government should take a more liberal stance on automatic citizenship for these children.

“I recognize the progressive aspects of the bill, but we must ensure that children of both PR parents born in Malaysia are recognized as citizens by law. They are the flesh and blood of Malaysia, unlike foreign footballers who have been naturalized as Malaysians,” he told The Straits Times.

He was referring to the seven foreign football players (as of February 2024) who were granted citizenship for representing Malaysia on the international stage.