KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 21): Individuals who misuse their identity cards (MyKad) by ‘renting out’ or handing them over to foreign nationals could face up to three years in prison, a fine of up to RM20,000, or both, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said.

He said the National Registration Regulations 1990 provide strict legal measures to curb foreign nationals' misuse of national identity.

“The government takes this matter seriously, with enforcement aimed not only at penalising offenders but also at preventing identity misuse and identifying such cases at an early stage,” he said during the question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.

He was replying to a supplementary question from Mohamad Shafizan Kepli (Gabungan Parti Sarawak-Batang Lupar) about reports of some Malaysians renting out their MyKad to foreign nationals for only RM100 to work in factories.

Mohamad Shafizan had earlier highlighted the detention of 36 foreign factory workers in Pasir Gudang during Ops Jejak 1.0 on Tuesday for allegedly using fake MyKads or those belonging to other people to gain employment.

Shamsul Anuar said the operation underscored the importance of joint enforcement efforts by the National Registration Department (JPN), the Immigration Department and Labour Department.

“The operation also focused on the possible involvement of original identity card holders suspected of renting out or handing over their documents to foreign nationals for employment purposes,” he said.

On enforcement efforts, he said the JPN had carried out 4,174 operations nationwide from 2022 to September this year, resulting in 1,868 arrests.

He said 577 cases were prosecuted under Regulation 25(1)(e) of the National Registration Regulations 1990 during the same period, comprising 449 cases involving the use of fake MyKads and 128 involving the use of others' identity cards.

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