PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA January 8, 2026 – Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail today outlined several key directions for the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) up to 2026, during the January Monthly Assembly of KDN, as an extension of the achievements in 2025.
He highlighted the amendment to the Federal Constitution relating to citizenship, particularly for children born abroad to Malaysian citizen mothers, as a major achievement of the previous year.
If all milestones proceed smoothly, children born abroad to Malaysian mothers will automatically receive citizenship status. Saifuddin urged the media to help disseminate this information, describing it as an achievement of the MADANI Government in terms of compassion and justice for mothers who have long faced this issue.
He stressed that decisions on other citizenship applications are not delayed. In 2025, the target of 20,000 applications was exceeded with 20,032 decisions made. From nearly 50,000 backlog applications when he took office, the remaining is now less than 4,000. Long-pending applications are expected to be resolved by the first quarter of 2026.
Another key direction is the launch of the new operations centre for the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) in Cyberjaya in the coming weeks, under the leadership of the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM). Previously, the NSRC operated at Bank Negara with collaboration from various agencies.
With the trend of rising financial losses from online scams far exceeding conventional crimes, the centre will receive dedicated funding. It is already operational, handling an average of 500 complaint calls per day, with half being valid cases. Amendments made last year allow complaints to be directly treated as police reports without the need to visit a police station.
In support of Visit Malaysia Year 2026, the Border Control Agency and Immigration Department, as the front line at entry points, will ensure smooth movement of people without compromising security, while increasing revenue collection together with the Customs Department, and addressing integrity issues.
Priority will be given to smoothness and security at major entry points such as KLIA 1 and 2, Sultan Iskandar Building, Sultan Abu Bakar Complex, Penang, Kota Kinabalu, and Sarawak. Installation of autogates will be completed at these locations.
Finally, the new Malaysian passport and new MyKad will be introduced at the end of the second quarter or early third quarter of 2026. The Malaysian passport currently ranks third globally in terms of reliability, with the new design incorporating enhanced security features in line with modern changes.
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