The cabinet has decided to lift the freeze on recruitment of foreign workers in four sectors, said Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai.

The sectors allowed to hire effective yesterday are manufacturing, construction, plantation and furniture production, Sin Chew Daily quoted him as saying.

This follows Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's announcement in February on the temporary suspension to enable the government to review the revised two-category levy on foreign workers.

Liow said employers can make their applications the normal way, and not necessarily via the online system MyEG.

The cabinet is still studying the hiring of foreign labour for other sectors, he added.

He said there was no particular ban on workers from specific countries and the government would not set a limit on the number of intakes.

Liow, who is also MCA president, emphasised that the government is still discussing on the complaint that the fees imposed on the rehiring programmes are too expensive.