Law of Malaysia

Module 5

Rights, citizenship and administrative law: the fundamental liberties, expression, religion and assembly, citizenship and immigration, administrative decisions and judicial review

Part II of the Federal Constitution (Articles 5 to 13) guarantees the fundamental liberties: life and personal liberty, freedom from slavery and forced labour, protection against retrospective criminal law, equality, freedom of movement, freedom of speech, assembly and association, freedom of religion, rights in education and property. The first thing to learn is who holds each right: some belong to every person, including a foreigner, and some to citizens only. The second is that most liberties are limited by law on grounds such as security, public order and morality. Around these rights sit citizenship and immigration, which decide who may stay, work and vote, and administrative law, which lets a person challenge in court a decision of a public authority. This module gives a foreigner a working map of what they may expect of the state and what the state may expect of them.

General education on the law of Malaysia, using invented people and businesses. It states laws and procedures in simplified form and is not legal advice. The law and its practice change, and every case turns on its facts, the state and the authority concerned. It does not offer legal representation or a legal opinion on any case. Consult a Malaysian advocate and solicitor for any real matter.

This course was written on 5 November 2026. To the best of our knowledge, it describes the law of Malaysia as it stood on that date. Laws change, and we may have missed or misunderstood something. If you notice a change, or have other information, please do not hesitate to contact us: we will review it and update the course. We do not claim to be the final source of the law.