Can I run payroll in Malaysia without a local entity?

Yes. Through an Employer of Record (EOR), Gracemark employs your talent under Malaysia labor law and runs local payroll, no entity required.

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Payroll in Malaysia

Payroll in Malaysia runs in MYR (Malaysian ringgit). Monthly payroll cycle is standard, with statutory contributions due by set monthly deadlines. No statutory 13th-month bonus is mandated, though many employers pay a discretionary or contractual annual bonus tied to company performance. Statutory employer contributions apply. Gracemark operates it end-to-end, humans, not tickets.

Get a Malaysia payroll quote Paying an existing team there? Tell us the headcount, email or phone is enough.

Currency

MYR, Malaysian ringgit

Payroll cycle

Monthly payroll cycle is standard, with statutory contributions due by set monthly deadlines.

Working week

Standard workweek is capped at 45 hours under the Employment Act, with overtime paid at 1.5x for normal working days and higher rates for rest days/public holidays.

Minimum wage

National minimum wage is MYR 1,500 per month effective February 2025 (raised from MYR 1,500 set in the 2022 order), applicable to employers with 5+ employees; RM1,700/month applies from February 2025 per government announcement.

13th-month

No statutory 13th-month bonus is mandated, though many employers pay a discretionary or contractual annual bonus tied to company performance.

Employer cost

Employer contributions include EPF (Employees Provident Fund, typically 12-13% of wages), SOCSO (employment injury and invalidity, low single-digit %), and EIS (Employment Insurance System, 0.2%), together roughly 13-16% of gross salary.

Probation

Probation periods are commonly 1 to 6 months by contract, with no fixed statutory maximum under the Employment Act, though 3-6 months is typical practice.

Notice period

Notice periods scale with service length (4 to 8 weeks typical); termination benefits are payable for redundancy/retrenchment based on years of service under the Employment (Termination and Lay-Off Benefits) Regulations.

Two ways to run payroll in Malaysia

Own-entity payroll

For long-term presence in Malaysia. Gracemark manages statutory filings, pay runs, and year-end reporting under your entity, with a named operator on South-Eastern Asia time.

EOR-run payroll

No entity in Malaysia? Employ and pay talent under Gracemark's local infrastructure via EOR, onboard in 1–2 weeks (eor), no local incorporation.

Compliance essentials in Malaysia

EPF (provident fund) plus SOCSO are the core contributions
Leave and notice both scale with length of service
English-capable, multilingual professional workforce
Recent Employment Act updates broadened coverage
Strong shared-services and fintech presence

Get a payroll quote for Malaysia

Send your headcount and salary band. We reply with employer burden, net-to-gross, and setup timeline, no sales scripts.

Get your Malaysia hiring plan

Send the role, a selected worker or an existing-team requirement in Malaysia. Get a written recommendation covering the model, cost categories, responsibilities and next steps. One hire is welcome; no meeting required.

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Deeper guide

Hiring guide: Malaysia →

Employ without entity

EOR services →

All countries

Global payroll overview →