The Social Security Organisation (SOCSO, also known as PERKESO) announced the extension of social security protection coverage to domestic workers effective 1 June 2021. If you are a Malaysian employer of a foreign domestic worker, this new government rule needs to be complied with.
Kindly note if you are a foreign national hiring a foreign domestic worker, this new ruling does not apply to you).
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Foreign domestic workers are covered under the ‘Employment Injury Scheme’ of Act 4, where they are able to claim, due to workplace accidents, the following benefits:
- Medical benefit
- Temporary disability benefit
- Permanent disability benefit
- Dependent benefit
- Permanent service allowance
- Physical/Vocation/Return to Work/Dialysis benefits
- Corpse management benefits, in the event of death
2. Under this scheme, employers are mandated to contribute 1.25% of their workers’ monthly salaries, including overtime pay to SOCSO. Workers are exempted from contributing, and payments can be made via SOCSO’s online Employer ASSIST Portal after registration.
3. Employers of foreign domestic workers with existing private insurance coverage are exempted from contributions only up to 31 May 2022. This is in line with the government’s granting of a one-year cooling period since the new ruling came into effect on 1 June 2021 (Source: SOCSO). After 31 May 2022, all employers must register and contribute through SOCSO by 1 June 2022 even if their worker’s existing policy only expires after 31 May 2022.
Important Note for Malaysian Employers of Filipino Domestic Helpers:
Starting January 2022, Malaysian employers of Filipino domestic helpers are required to register and contribute to SOCSO as the Philippine Overseas Labour Office (POLO) in Kuala Lumpur has released an advisory making it mandatory for all Malaysian employers to present SOCSO registration and contribution proof for any POEA contract verifications/ renewal transactions from 2 January 2022 onwards (Source: POLO).
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Here’s what you need to do:
PART 1
Refer to the visual flowchart below to familiarise yourself with the SOCSO registration process. Please note that the process of registration may take up to between 6 to 10 working days based on our experience.
Below is a screenshot retrieved from the SOCSO guideline page (Source: SOCSO) – the form names shown below differ slightly from the actual form names of the files as SOCSO’s page is not regularly updated:
Before starting, please prepare scanned copies of the following supporting documents for verification:
(i) Employer’s IC or Passport
(ii) Worker’s Latest Passport
(iii) Worker’s Latest Work Permit
Please note that for this process, you will be asked to fill in 4 different forms at different stages, listed below for your reference – the download links for each form can also be found below:
(i) Borang Pendaftaran ID Portal PERKESO / Portal ID Registration Form (download)
(ii) Borang Pendaftaran Majikan (Borang 1) / Employer Registration Form (download)
(iii) Borang Pendaftaran Pekerja Domestik (Lampiran C) / Domestic Worker’s Registration Form (download)
(iv) Borang Pengisytiharan Orang Tanggungan Pekerja Asing / Domestic Worker’s Beneficiaries Form (download)
PART 2
To begin the process of registration on SOCSO’s ASSIST Portal, download and fill in the Registration Form (i.e. Borang Pendaftaran ID Portal PERKESO / Portal ID Registration Form), as well as the three remaining forms listed above in Part 1.
Once the first form has been filled in, send the Registration Form as an attachment to idportal@perkeso.gov.my to receive your login User ID within 3 working days.
After 1 to 3 working days, your application will be approved and SOSCO will set up an online account for you on the ASSIST Portal. You will be notified of your new log-in credentials (and temporary password) via email. First-time users will be prompted to set up a new password upon logging in with their User ID.
Kindly find below the samples of the forms along with instructions on filling them in as an employer of a domestic helper.
Tip: We recommend replying to the SOCSO email with the remaining forms and supporting documents (as listed above in Part 1); in some scenarios, the correspondent/ SOCSO officer may also assist with uploading the documents onto your profile directly on your behalf.
PART 3
Log in to SOCSO’s ASSIST portal using your new User ID and temporary password (retrieved from the email sent to you by SOCSO), and check the employer’s details on the portal by clicking on the ‘Update‘ button on the navigation bar of the main home page, and then select ‘Update Employer Information‘.
You will find that you can edit the employer’s details by pressing the edit button to the right of the employer’s name in the table shown (pencil icon), then editing and saving the details once this step is done.
After clicking Save & Continue on the bottom right of the page, you will be taken to a new page where you are asked to upload all supporting documents onto the SOCSO Assist portal.
On this page, you can upload the remaining supporting documents by clicking ‘Add Document‘ (i.e. Employer’s IC, Worker’s latest Work Permit, etc), then selecting all the relevant files, and uploading them. This is an important step in completing the employer and domestic worker registrations.
The full list of required documents are as follows:
(i) Employer’s IC or Passport
(ii) Worker’s Latest Passport
(iii) Worker’s Latest Work Permit
(iv) Borang Pendaftaran Majikan (Borang 1) / Employer Registration Form (download)
(v) Borang Pendaftaran Pekerja Domestik (Lampiran C) / Domestic Worker’s Registration Form (download)
Tip: Please also include the beneficiary’s e-mail address (i.e. the domestic helper’s email address) on the Domestic Worker’s Registration Form – while this is not requested, we have had some employers being asked by SOCSO to provide this.
If you have sent the above-listed supporting documents to idportal@perkeso.gov.my prior to logging on to the portal, this registration section may have already been completed. Please ensure that all files are uploaded.
PART 4
After 3 to 5 additional working days, SOCSO will notify you of the registration outcome via email and by generating PDF letters on the ASSIST portal.
To determine whether your SOCSO account has been successfully registered and activated, you should be able to find four to seven digital letters which have been generated to indicate successful registration (as shown in the screenshot below).
The letters shown above can be found in the “Document Listing” section on the home page of the portal; the Document Listing link is located on the main navigation bar of the ASSIST portal upon logging in. After clicking on Document Listing, scroll down to find “Generated Document Listing“, and there should be a set of letters addressed to the registered employer. Download all letters on the website for your safekeeping, but the important ones are:
(i) Pendaftaran Perusahaan Di Bawah Akta KSP 1969 – employer’s code provided
(ii) Pendaftaran Nombor Keselamatan Sosial Pekerja Domestik Asing Di Bawah Akta KSP 1969 – worker’s code provided
(iii) Jemputan Sesi Induksi Perlindungan Keselamatan Social (PERKESO) – invitation to an induction session (online)
Registered employers will be provided with an Employer Code which is a compulsory requirement for any dealings with SOCSO. All foreign domestic workers who are registered with SOCSO will also obtain a unique Social Security Foreign Domestic Worker Number (SSFDW No. – 12 digits) which is compulsory for the purpose of submitting employee contribution records.
PART 5
Now that you have successfully registered onto SOCSO as an employer and for your domestic helper, to begin contributing to your helper’s SOCSO, you may follow the following steps:
– After logging in, you will be taken to the home page of the ASSIST portal.
– On the right side of the page, click on “My Sites”, and then click on “SOCSO – Contribution”.
– Hover over the “Employer Contribution” link located on the left side of the page on the ASSIST portal’s main navigation bar.
– Click on “Add Contribution (Portal)“.
– Click on the “Arrears Contribution” button under the Employer Contribution Pending List.
– Under Submission Contribution Information, select the desired Contribution Month using the dropdown box (it should be the previous month).
– Click “Select“, then scroll down until your helper’s name is shown under the Employee Contributions section.
– Then click on the edit button under the “Action” column; the amount under the salary column can now be edited.
– Insert your helper’s base salary per month under the “Salary (RM)” column, and click “Save Draft”.
– SOCSO will help calculate the amount that should be contributed based on the salary/ figure given; click “Complete” to proceed with payment.
– Follow the remaining instructions shown on the website, and you should be receiving a receipt sent to your account’s registered email address once the contribution amount has been paid.
Please note that contribution payments for the current month can only be paid after the 16th day of every month; so if an account was registered on the 1st of January, contributions can only be made after the 16th of January.
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If you encounter any issues or have further questions, you may reach out to SOCSO directly at 1-300-22-8000 and they are known to be quite helpful!
For further reading and guidance, you may visit the link provided here to read up on how to register for SOCSO (landing page for SOCSO) or visit SOCSO’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, and the SOCSO’s Registration Guideline (Bahasa Malaysia).
To learn more about SOCSO’s ASSIST Portal, you may also visit this page: link.
Here at Pinkcollar, we understand that these processes can be somewhat difficult to manage. Please do not hesitate to contact us to enquire about the various services we provide. E-mail us today at hello@hirepinkcollar.com!
