PUTRAJAYA, Nov 17 — Permit renewal cost for Indonesian domestic workers (PDA) has been set at RM610 and must be paid by the employers, said Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar.

He said the cost, set by the Immigration Department, included a levy payment of RM410; Temporary Employment Visit Passes (PLKS) (RM60); processing fees (RM125) and visa (RM15).

The cost does not include health check-up (Fomema) for the PDA which is carried out in the first, second, and third year and every two years thereafter at a price not exceeding RM200, he said.

"Renewal of expired passports also has a fee determined by the embassy of the respective PDA’s country of origin,” he said in a statement, adding that complete information on the fees can be obtained from the Immigration Department website.

Sivakumar said the permit renewal application can be made by the employer or by appointing private employment agencies (APS) registered with the Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia (JTKSM) where the list of APS is also available on its website.

He said employers are required to renew the PDA work permits annually and it must be done three months before the permit expires.

The payment that PDA employers have to bear includes levy, PLKS and processing fees for work permit renewals (PLKS extensions). Employers also need to make payments for visas, the rate of which varies according to the country of origin, he said.

He added that currently, the management of PDA employment for Indonesians is required to be done through APS registered with JTKSM.

Any additional costs imposed by the APS are subject to the agreement of both parties while the PDA permit renewal process other than Indonesians can be done by the employer online through the e-PLKS@JIM portal, he said. — Bernama