Understanding your leave entitlements in Malaysia is not just useful — it is essential for protecting your rights as an employee. Many workers accept whatever their employer offers without knowing whether it meets the legal minimum. This guide explains the full framework of leave under Malaysian law in 2026, including annual leave, public holidays, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, and other forms of time off.
Annual Leave Under the Employment Act 1955
The primary legislation governing leave entitlements for most private-sector employees is the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265). The Act sets minimum standards — your employer may offer more than these minimums, but they are legally prohibited from offering less.
Annual Leave Entitlement by Years of Service
Annual leave (cuti tahunan) entitlement under Section 60E of the Employment Act 1955 is tiered based on how long you have worked for the same employer:
| Years of Service | Annual Leave Days |
|---|---|
| Less than 2 years | 8 days |
| 2 years to less than 5 years | 12 days |
| 5 years or more | 16 days |
These are paid leave days, meaning you receive your full ordinary rate of pay for each day taken.
Proration for Incomplete Years
If you join an employer partway through the calendar year, your annual leave entitlement is prorated. The formula is:
(Number of completed months of service in the year ÷ 12) × Full annual entitlement = Prorated leave days
For example, an employee who joins on 1 July (6 complete months remaining in the year) with less than 2 years’ service would be entitled to 4 days (6/12 × 8) for that year.
The Minimum Floor Rule
A critical point: your employment contract cannot grant fewer leave days than the statutory minimum. Any contract clause that attempts to do so is void to that extent — the statutory minimum automatically applies. Your employer is, however, free to be more generous, and many do offer 14 or more days regardless of years of service as part of their benefits package.
Taking and Scheduling Leave
Annual leave must be taken within the same calendar year where possible, though the Act allows leave to be carried forward by agreement between employer and employee. If the employer requires an employee to take leave during a company shutdown (e.g., a factory closure over the festive season), the Act permits this, provided reasonable notice is given. Approved leave cannot be unilaterally cancelled by the employer without a legitimate operational reason.
Public Holidays
Under Section 60D of the Employment Act 1955, every employee is entitled to a minimum of 11 paid public holidays per year. Of these, 5 are compulsory and cannot be substituted:
- National Day (31 August)
- Birthday of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (first Monday of June)
- Birthday of the Yang DiPertua Negeri (for Sabah and Sarawak) or Birthday of the Ruler / Federal Territory Day (depending on state)
- Labour Day (1 May)
- Malaysia Day (16 September)
The remaining 6 holidays are drawn from the gazetted national and state public holiday list, which includes festivals such as Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Chinese New Year, Deepavali, Wesak Day, Christmas, and state-specific royal birthdays. The exact dates vary year to year and by state.
Working on a Public Holiday
If your employer requires you to work on a gazetted public holiday:
- You are entitled to three times your ordinary daily rate of pay for work done on that day (for a wage earner), or
- A replacement holiday on another day, at your employer’s discretion, plus your ordinary pay for the public holiday.
Employers who fail to compensate employees correctly for public holiday work commit an offence under the Employment Act.
Sick Leave Entitlement
Section 60F of the Employment Act 1955 sets the minimum paid sick leave entitlement. Like annual leave, it is tiered by length of service:
| Years of Service | Paid Sick Leave Days |
|---|---|
| Less than 2 years | 14 days |
| 2 years to less than 5 years | 18 days |
| 5 years or more | 22 days |
Hospitalisation Leave
If your illness or injury requires inpatient hospitalisation, you are entitled to an additional 60 days of paid hospitalisation leave per year, over and above your ordinary sick leave days. This means in a worst-case year, an employee with 5 or more years of service could be entitled to up to 82 paid absence days (22 sick leave + 60 hospitalisation leave), provided the absence is medically certified.
Requirements for Valid Sick Leave
To claim paid sick leave, you must obtain a medical certificate (MC) from a registered medical practitioner, a registered medical officer, or a registered dentist (for dental illness). An MC from an unregistered practitioner does not qualify. Your employer may also require you to notify them of your absence on the first day, in accordance with your employment contract.
If you are on approved sick leave (with a valid MC), the days do not count against your annual leave entitlement. However, if you fall ill during a period of annual leave, the practice varies — most employers treat it as sick leave upon presentation of an MC, though the Act itself is silent on this scenario.
Maternity Leave
Malaysia provides significant maternity protections under the Employment Act 1955, strengthened by the 2023 amendments (Employment (Amendment) Act 2022, effective 1 January 2023).
Duration and Pay
Female employees are entitled to 98 consecutive days of paid maternity leave per confinement. This is a major increase from the previous 60 days, brought in by the 2023 amendments. The 98 days is a continuous period — it cannot be split or taken intermittently.
Maternity leave applies for up to 5 surviving children. If an employee already has 5 or more surviving children from all confinements, the employer is not legally required to pay for maternity leave for subsequent births — though many employers choose to extend the benefit regardless.
When Maternity Leave Can Start
Maternity leave can begin up to 30 days before the expected confinement date (i.e., before birth) or on the actual day of confinement — whichever is earlier. The full 98 days runs from that commencement date.
Pay During Maternity Leave
The employer pays the employee’s ordinary rate of pay for all 98 days. Employers cannot require the employee to use annual leave in lieu of maternity leave.
Dismissal Protection
The Employment Act 1955 prohibits employers from dismissing a pregnant employee or giving notice of dismissal during pregnancy and the statutory maternity leave period. Doing so is an offence and the employee is entitled to seek remedies through the Industrial Relations Department or the Labour Court. There are limited exceptions for serious misconduct, but these are narrowly construed.
Paternity Leave
The 2023 amendments also introduced a statutory minimum for paternity leave — a significant change for working fathers in Malaysia.
Married male employees are entitled to 7 consecutive days of paid paternity leave per child. Key conditions:
- The employee must be legally married to the mother of the child.
- The 7 days applies per confinement — it is not a once-in-a-career entitlement.
- The leave must typically be taken around the time of confinement (your employer may require reasonable notice where practicable).
- The employer pays the employee’s ordinary rate of pay for the 7 days.
Prior to the 2023 amendments, there was no statutory right to paternity leave. Fathers who received it did so purely through the goodwill of their employer’s HR policy. The legal minimum of 7 days now applies to all employees covered by the Employment Act.
Other Types of Leave
The following types of leave are commonly provided by employers in Malaysia but are not mandated as statutory minimums by the Employment Act 1955. Whether you receive them, and on what terms, depends entirely on your employment contract or company policy.
Compassionate / Bereavement Leave. Most employers provide 3–5 days of paid leave on the death of an immediate family member (spouse, parent, child, sibling). Some extend to extended family. The Act does not mandate this.
Marriage Leave. Many employers grant 3–5 days of paid leave on an employee’s marriage. Again, this is contractual, not statutory.
Study / Exam Leave. Employers who support employee education may grant paid or unpaid leave for examinations. There is no statutory requirement to do so.
Haj Leave. Muslim employees who perform the Haj pilgrimage are entitled to one continuous period of paid leave for this purpose, under a separate provision (Section 60I of the Employment Act). This is a once-in-a-career statutory entitlement, not an annual one.
For all of the above (except Haj), if your contract is silent, you have no legal claim. If you believe your employer is denying contractual benefits, you should first raise it with HR in writing.
What If My Employer Denies Leave?
If you believe your employer is denying leave entitlements you are legally or contractually entitled to, follow these steps:
Step 1: Check your employment contract. Confirm what the contract says. Does it comply with the statutory minimums? If your contract offers fewer days than the law requires, the statutory minimum applies automatically.
Step 2: Raise it with HR in writing. Submit a written request (email is sufficient) so you have a record. State the specific provision of the Employment Act or your contract that you are relying on. Many disputes are resolved at this stage through clarification.
Step 3: Contact JTKSM (Jabatan Tenaga Kerja Semenanjung Malaysia). If HR does not resolve the matter, you can file a complaint with the Department of Labour (JTKSM for Peninsular Malaysia; Sabah Labour Department or Sarawak Labour Department for East Malaysia). Complaints can be lodged online or at the nearest Labour Office.
Step 4: Formal claim. If the Labour Department’s conciliation does not resolve the dispute, the matter may be referred to the Labour Court (for claims under the Employment Act) or the Industrial Court (for unfair dismissal and related matters). Legal representation is not required in the Labour Court.
It is an offence under the Employment Act for employers to deny statutory entitlements. Penalties include fines of up to RM50,000 per offence, and repeat offences can attract higher penalties.
The Employment Act 1955 — Who Is Covered?
Not every employee in Malaysia is covered by every provision of the Employment Act 1955. Understanding who falls within its scope is important.
Coverage After the 2023 Amendments
The Employment (Amendment) Act 2022, which came into force on 1 January 2023, significantly expanded the Act’s coverage. The key changes:
Wage threshold. Previously, the Act’s core protections applied only to employees earning RM2,000 per month or less (or certain categories regardless of wage). The 2023 amendments extended coverage to employees earning up to RM4,000 per month. Employees above RM4,000 may still be covered for certain provisions (such as maternity and paternity leave) depending on their contract classification.
First Schedule employees. The First Schedule to the Act lists certain categories of workers who are covered regardless of their monthly wage level. These include:
- Manual workers (regardless of wages)
- Employees engaged in the operation or maintenance of a mechanically propelled vehicle
- Supervisors of manual workers
- Domestic servants (with some provisions excluded for this group)
Excluded categories. Domestic servants are covered by the Act in principle but are excluded from certain key provisions, including the annual leave, sick leave, maternity, and rest day provisions. Foreign domestic workers in particular have limited protections under the Act, though they remain covered by contract law.
Senior managers and executives. Employees earning above RM4,000 who are classified as managers or executives typically rely on their employment contracts and the Industrial Relations Act 1967 for protection against unfair dismissal, rather than the Employment Act for day-to-day conditions of service.
If you are unsure whether you are covered by the Employment Act, the JTKSM website (jtksm.mohr.gov.my) provides guidance, or you can call the Labour Department hotline for advice specific to your situation.