SHAH ALAM, June 29 — Malaysians returning from overseas will be required to pay a fee of between RM30 to RM150 for Covid-19 testing upon entering the country while foreigners will be charged between RM60 to RM250, says a new Federal ruling effective today.
The new rule, known as the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Fee for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) Detection Test) Regulations 2020, was made on June 26 by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba.
The new regulation stated that “any citizen or foreigner entering Malaysia from overseas shall pay the fee specified… before proceeding for immigration clearance at any point of entry.”
“Any citizen or foreigner in Malaysia may also request to undergo Covid-19 detection test at any government hospital or any place determined by the director-general to be a place to undergo Covid-19 tests,” the regulation stated.
The term “government hospital” includes government clinics and medical institutions declared by the government as federal medical institutions.
The fee under the new directive is as follow:
- Polymerase chain reaction: RM150 (Malaysian citizen), RM250 (foreigner)
- Antigen rapid test kit: RM60 (Malaysian citizen), RM120 (foreigner)
- Antibody rapid test kit: RM30 (Malaysian citizen), RM60 (foreigner)
According to the regulations, the type of test required by those entering the country would also be determined by the health director-general.
It stated that the health minister, in his discretion, may make full or partial waivers of the fees for Covid-19 tests in any particular case.
Previously on June 7, Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Malaysians returning from abroad are no longer required to undergo a mandatory quarantine effective June 10 but would instead have to undergo a Covid-19 swab test as soon as they arrive at the airport.
The people found positive would be sent to the hospital for treatment while the ones with negative results are subjected to a 14-day self-quarantine at home.
Those under quarantine would be required to wear a wristband for the identification process and would also have to download the MySejahtera application for monitoring purposes.
