Penang publishes a table of prices for foreign buyers, and so do Selangor, Johor and Melaka. Kuala Lumpur does not. Its land office lists two guidelines for the Kuala Lumpur office, on registration and on revenue, and neither covers foreign buyers. It does publish a circular to its own staff, and that circular sets a floor of RM1 million per unit.
For an MM2H retiree, the federal Silver tier requires a home worth RM600,000 or more. In Kuala Lumpur a foreigner cannot buy one for less than RM1 million.
This page draws on two documents, both read on 24 September 2026. Circular 7 of 2020 from the Office of the Director of Lands and Mines, Federal Territories, in force from 23 August 2019, is still listed on the office’s site. The Ministry of Economy’s Guideline on the Acquisition of Properties has been in force since 13 July 2022. Both are in Malay, and the translations are ours.
Where the RM1 million comes from
The circular takes its figure from the federal guideline of 2014 and says the floor applies to each unit, not to the total of a purchase. The minimum price in that guideline, it says, “bernilai RM 1,000,000.00 hendaklah dikira mengikut unit dan bukan dikira daripada jumlah pembelian unit-unit”, meaning valued at RM1 million, counted by unit and not across the total of several units bought. Two RM600,000 flats bought together do not clear it.
The 2014 guideline has since been replaced. The Ministry of Economy states that its guideline “has been updated and will be effective from 13 July 2022”, and that “the guidelines effective from 1 March 2014 are cancelled.” The replacement keeps the same number. Among the things foreign interests may not acquire is “Hartanah yang bernilai kurang daripada RM1,000,000 seunit”, property worth less than RM1 million a unit. It also says a foreigner’s purchase of a home at that price needs no ministry approval, because it is “di bawah bidang kuasa Pihak Berkuasa Negeri”, within the authority of the state. In Kuala Lumpur, that is the land office.
The edge is worded differently in the two documents. The federal guideline says RM1 million “dan ke atas”, and above. The circular’s clause on serviced apartments says “melebihi RM 1,000,000.00”, exceeding. At exactly RM1 million, ask the lawyer which reading the land office applies.
Serviced apartments
The 2014 guideline did not let foreign individuals own commercial units. The circular notes that much of Kuala Lumpur’s development is commercial with a residential character, naming “pangsapuri servis, pangsapuri suite, hotel suites dan boutique hotel”, and says the Federal Territory land committee, the JKTWPKL, may exempt a foreigner’s ownership of these. The price floor still applies, so a serviced apartment is open to a foreign buyer at the same price.
What a foreigner cannot buy, or must ask about
Under the federal guideline, foreign interests may not acquire:
- homes in the low-cost and low-medium-cost categories set by the state authority
- property on Malay Reserve land
- units allocated to Bumiputera buyers in a development
The circular adds two points for Kuala Lumpur. A foreigner’s purchase of vacant land or undeveloped residential lots goes to the land committee for a decision. Where a dealing needs the land office’s consent and runs from a Bumiputera owner to a non-citizen, the circular says such applications “hendaklah ditolak terlebih dahulu”, are to be refused in the first instance, with any appeal going to the committee. The criteria it lists for an appeal concern the seller’s circumstances, starting with proof that the property was advertised in at least three languages for six months.
What the land office charges
The office’s forms page lists the application for consent to own land by a foreign company or foreign citizen, Schedule 18, at RM50 per title.
We found no levy or percentage approval fee for foreign buyers on the office’s site, such as Penang’s of up to 3% or Melaka’s 3% with a RM30,000 minimum. That does not confirm there is none, so ask the lawyer handling the purchase for the full charges. Federal stamp duty is separate: a flat 8% for a foreign home buyer since 2026, or RM80,000 on a RM1 million home, as set out in the 8% stamp duty rule for foreign buyers.
MM2H: no Kuala Lumpur discount
Neither document gives MM2H participants a lower price in Kuala Lumpur. The federal guideline exempts a purchase under the MM2H programme from the Ministry of Economy’s approval, but a home at RM1 million or more does not need that approval anyway.
The guideline does set a lower floor for one group. Foreigners employed as expatriate officers, and permanent residents, may buy one home at RM250,000 or more, “kecuali di Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru dan Pulau Pinang”, except in Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru and Penang.
The working minimum for an MM2H participant buying in the city is therefore RM1 million on Silver or Gold, and the programme’s own RM2 million on Platinum.
| Place | Minimum home for a federal Silver participant |
|---|---|
| Kuala Lumpur | RM1 million |
| Penang, Island or mainland | RM600,000, the programme’s own minimum |
| Melaka, strata, outside the Heritage Zone | RM600,000, the programme’s own minimum |
| Johor | RM1 million |
| Selangor, Klang Valley districts | RM2 million |
The state figures are in the lower floor Penang sets for MM2H buyers and the Selangor and Johor floors. The programme’s own terms are in the federal MM2H tiers for retirees.
Limits of this reading
This page covers Kuala Lumpur only. Putrajaya and Labuan are Federal Territories with their own land offices, and we did not read their rules. The circular is addressed to the land office’s staff and predates the 2022 guideline, and we found no reissued version. Have the lawyer confirm the RM1 million for the specific unit before you sign. This is not legal advice, and it does not cover legal fees or financing.