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Indonesia – Employment agencies threaten to stop sending workers to Malaysia

28 January 2015

Indonesian employment agencies have threatened to stop sending workers to Malaysia following a sharp increase in the visa-processing fee. The cost increased from MYR 15 (USD 4) to MYR 250 (USD 69) last month after the process was outsourced to a private company, reports news.asiaone.com

The Indonesian Manpower Services Association (Apjati), which represents over 500 employment agencies, has written to the Indonesian Parliament and the country's Human Resources and Foreign ministries, calling for an immediate halt to the sending of workers to Malaysia.

The statement read: "We strongly reject the increase in fees. It is an exploitation of our citizens. Such an increase must be done through an agreement between both governments.”

Over 150,000 Indonesian workers travel to Malaysia each year for work. Halting the flow of workers would significantly impact the Malaysian economy and also the level of remittances sent back to Indonesia.