29th September 2026 - 4 min read
The Malaysian passport is now tied with Singapore’s as the second strongest in the world, according to the Passport Index Global Ranking 2026, behind only the UAE. That’s up from third place last year, and the Immigration Department says it gives you access to 175 destinations without applying for a visa in advance.
Before you start packing, though, visa-free doesn’t always mean free. Several of these destinations charge you before you board or when you land, and the fees add up quickly if you’re travelling as a family.
The Immigration Department splits the 175 into 129 visa-free destinations and 46 visa-on-arrival destinations. Of the 129 visa-free destinations, eight need an electronic travel authorisation (eTA), including the UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Sri Lanka. You don’t need a visa for any of them, but you do need to apply online before you fly, and most charge a fee. Airlines check for it at check-in, so if you don’t have one, you don’t board.
Visa on arrival usually means paying at a counter after you land. A few places don’t charge for it, so check each destination before you set aside cash.
These are the per-person fees for some popular holiday destinations, based on official rates as of 29 September 2026.
| Destination | What You Need | Estimated Cost Per Person |
| United Kingdom | ETA (£20) | RM108 |
| New Zealand | NZeTA (NZD17 via app, NZD23 online) plus NZD100 visitor levy | RM270 to RM284 |
| Australia | ETA (AUD20) | RM57 |
| South Korea | K-ETA (KRW10,000) | RM30 |
| Nepal | Visa on arrival (USD30 for 15 days, USD50 for 30 days) | RM122 to RM204 |
| Bali, Indonesia | Visa-free, plus IDR150,000 tourist levy | RM34 |
| Sri Lanka | ETA, fee waived for Malaysians | RM0 |
| Maldives | Visa on arrival | RM0 plus a nightly green tax |
*Ringgit amounts are estimates, converted at mid-market rates on 28 and 29 September 2026.
New Zealand is the priciest on the list, and the NZeTA itself is the small part of it. The NZD100 International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy makes up most of what you pay. South Korea is cheaper than it looks for families, because Malaysians under 18 or aged 65 and above don’t need a K-ETA at all. Bali’s levy is separate from any visa, and every foreign visitor pays it, children included.
Getting Nepal’s visa before you fly costs a little more, at RM130 for 15 days and RM210 for 30 days from the Nepal Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. In return, you pay in ringgit instead of US dollars, though you’ll need to visit the embassy in person. The Maldives doesn’t charge for its visa on arrival, but your hotel bill includes a green tax for every guest aged two and above, at USD6 a night in guesthouses and USD12 a night in resorts (about RM24 to RM49).
The UK raised its ETA fee from £16 to £20 on 8 April 2026, and there’s no discount for children. Two adults and two kids pay £80, or about RM433, before you’ve booked a single hotel night.
One ETA covers multiple trips over two years, with stays of up to six months each. If your passport expires before those two years are up, though, the ETA ends with it and you’ll need to apply and pay again with your new passport.
You can still visit Schengen countries such as France, Germany and Italy visa-free, with nothing to apply for beforehand. That will change once the European Union starts its European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), a €20 online authorisation for visa-exempt visitors, Malaysians included.
ETIAS isn’t running yet, and no start date has been confirmed. The EU has said it’ll announce the date several months ahead.
Check the entry rules for your destination as soon as you book your flight. Some eTAs are approved in minutes, but the K-ETA and NZeTA can take up to 72 hours.
Apply only through official channels, such as the UK ETA app or GOV.UK, the official NZeTA app and k-eta.go.kr. Copycat websites look convincing and charge you extra for filling in the same form.
Since these fees are charged in pounds, dollars or won, your bank adds a conversion fee on top when you pay by card. A multi-currency debit card lets you convert ringgit into the currency you need ahead of time, usually at a better rate, and pay from that balance without your bank’s markup. And while you’re adding entry costs to your trip budget, add travel insurance too. None of these authorisations cover you if something goes wrong overseas.
Depending on where you’re going, set aside up to RM284 per person for entry fees alone. A family of four heading to New Zealand, for example, pays RM1,080 to RM1,136.
Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for the latest money tips and updates.
Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.
Comments (0)