Groups write to 11 ministers opposing Turap migrant worker platform, warn of monopoly risk

A coalition representing private employment agencies has strongly objected to the proposed implementation of the Universal Recruitment Advanced Platform (Turap).

They claimed that the platform would create a monopoly in the migrant worker recruitment sector.

The coalition, comprising the Malaysian Association of Employment Agencies (Papa), the Malaysian National Association of Private Employment Agencies (Pikap), and the Malaysian National Human Resource Organisation (Pusma), voiced concern that a single platform would cripple more than 1,000 existing licensed agencies.

“While the system aims to promote ethical recruitment, its implementation as a mandatory single channel will bring severe legal and economic implications.

“We support ethical recruitment, but the Turap model will create a private commercial entity as the sole ‘gatekeeper’. This contradicts the principles of a free market,” they said in a joint letter to 11 cabinet ministers.

In the April 8 letter, the coalition urged the ministers not to support the implementation of Turap as a mandatory single channel for migrant worker recruitment.

The letter, sighted by Malaysiakini, was addressed to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, Human Resources Minister R Ramanan, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Johari Abdul Ghani, Works Minister Alexander Nanta Linggi, and Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

It was also sent to Plantation and Commodities Minister Noraini Ahmad, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu, Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Armizan Ali, Economy Minister Akmal Nasir, Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Arthur Joseph Kurup, and Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing.

Monopoly and legal breaches

One concern raised in the letter was a potential breach of the Private Employment Agencies Act 1981, under which a private entity should not be granted overriding authority over licensed agencies, particularly those in categories B and C.

Licence holders in categories B and C represent recruiters for domestic and migrant workers in the formal sector.

“The introduction of a mandatory platform is also seen as a form of market concentration that could violate the Competition Act 2010.

“When all employers and foreign agents are forced through a single system with no alternative, pricing power will be concentrated, and healthy competition undermined,” they said.

The letter was signed by Papa president Foo Yong Hooi, Pikap president Fiona Low, and Pusma president Siti Zarina Ismail.

Police probe

On March 27, Malaysiakini reported that the government was considering introducing a new digital system to manage migrant workers, which industry sources said would be known as Turap.

The proposal, sources said, is aimed at improving the migrant labour recruitment ecosystem, which is often linked to high costs and worker welfare issues.

However, some industry players questioned whether the new system would bring meaningful change or merely add another layer to an already complex landscape involving multiple systems.

Papa, representing over 700 private employment agencies, had raised concerns over Turap’s end-to-end recruitment process if the role of licensed agencies is reduced.

Following the report, police launched an investigation into Malaysiakini, with one of its journalists called in to give a statement.

Efforts by Malaysiakini to obtain comments from the Human Resources Ministry on the proposed platform since February have been unsuccessful.

The ministry is responsible for the welfare of migrant workers in Malaysia.

Multiple systems

Currently, migrant worker management relies heavily on the Foreign Worker Centralised Management System (FWCMS), operated by Bestinet Sdn Bhd.

Although the system is privately run, as of Dec 31, 2025, the government reportedly paid more than RM381 million to Bestinet to manage 2.35 million passes issued through 11 main modules, including eQuota, the biometric system (BMS), and eRecruitment.

The government was also developing the National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe), a large-scale system aimed at strengthening immigration management, including the use of biometrics and facial recognition.

In 2024, HeiTech Padu Bhd secured a RM892.19 million contract for the NIISe project by the Immigration Department. In an October 2025 filing to Bursa Malaysia, the company said the contract had been revised to RM1.05 billion.

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