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How To Evict Tenant In Malaysia In 4

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Sherry Koh
Published: 1 Nov 2022 • Updated: 3 Nov 2022

Being a landlord or landlady

comes with its share of rewards
and challenges. One of the main
worries is whether the tenant
pays in full and on time every
month. When your tenant
breached the tenancy agreement,
what can you do (or not)?
Discover your rights as a
landlord or landlady, before
making any rash decision.

© sirajahmad | 123RF

Sometimes the unfortunate happen, such as a tenant

defaulting on rent or overstaying after termination of
rental.

Before evicting a tenant, you could try reasoning and

discussing alternatives that work for both parties. If
that fails, then the next step is a legal recourse.

iProperty.com.my spoke to a senior associate at

MahWengKwai & Associates, Denise Phang, for her
legal perspective of tenant eviction.

© Denise Phang, senior associate at MahWengKwai &

Associates

Reviewing The Tenancy Agreement

A tenancy agreement plays a vital role in taking legal

action against those who fail to fulfil their
responsibilities as a tenant. The more detailed a
tenancy agreement is, the better it is at protecting
both parties’ rights.

Disputes often arise when scenarios and issues

aren’t included in the tenancy agreement. Both
parties can opt to consult with their respective
lawyers to review the agreement before signing and
stamping it.

READ: Stamp duty, administration and legal fees for

a tenancy agreement in Malaysia

Before we get into the thick of tenant eviction, let’s

quickly take a detour of what happens if the landlord
or landlady would like to terminate when there’s NO
breach in the tenancy agreement?

According to Phang, it would largely depend on the

terms of the tenancy agreement. Some tenancy
agreements allows either party to terminate the
agreement at any time subject to advance notice in
writing e.g. two months prior to the date of
termination. 

However, some tenancy agreements are fixed term

agreements and cannot be terminated without a
breach by either party.

Such agreements usually would have a clause that

stipulates that the terminating party would have to
compensate the other party and pay damages for
the remaining unexpired term of the
tenancy agreement.

READ: Early Termination Of Tenancy Agreement In

Malaysia And Its Consequences

Can You Evict A Tenant Without Going

To Court?

© andreypopov | 123RF

Can a landlord or landlady evict a tenant without

going to court when there’s a breach of contract by
the tenant?

Phang advised, “From a legal perspective, the

answer would be no. Pursuant to Section 7(2) of the
Specific Relief Act 1950, a landlord can only recover
possession of the property by filing an action in
court.

“Self-help measures such as the termination of

electricity supply or changing of locks are not legal
means of evicting defaulting tenants.”

Currently, Malaysia does not have a specific

legislation to govern the relationship between
landlords and tenants.

So, parties often would have to rely on the general

provisions of the law such as the Specific Relief Act
1950, Contracts Act 1950, Distress Act 1953, Civil
Law Act 1956, Limitation Act 1953 and Rules of Court
2012.

The Malaysian Government via the Ministry of

Housing and Local Government is in the midst of
drafting the Residential Tenancies Bill (RTB) to
govern and regulate residential tenancies. However,
the RTB has not been tabled in Parliament to date.

4 Steps To Evicting A Delinquent Tenant

In Malaysia

© backyardproduction | 123RF

1) Seek professional legal advice

2) Issue an eviction notice in writing to the tenancy to

notify the tenant of:

any breaches of the tenancy agreement

committed by the tenant, such as defaulted on
rent payments;
termination of the tenancy agreement; 
demand for delivery of vacant possession
within a reasonable period of time; and/or
demand for any arrears of rent, outstanding
utility bills, maintenance charges, damages,
etc.

3) Consider which court action is more suitable

based on the landlord’s claims (civil action or writ of
distress)

4) Pursue legal action via court proceedings to evict

the tenant from your property

Issuing An Eviction Notice – What You

Should Know?

© avictorero | 123RF

If the tenant has breached the contract, such as

defaulting on rent payment for many months, then an
eviction notice can be issued.

A grace period must be included in the eviction

notice, to allow the tenant to vacate the property,
settle all overdue rents, and officially handover of all
items included in the property.

Moreover, the eviction notice must be signed by the

tenant as an evidence that he or she is aware of the
notice.

“An eviction or termination notice is usually required

under the tenancy agreement in order to notify the
tenant of any breach of the tenancy agreement
committed, termination of the tenancy agreement by
the landlord, and the time when the tenancy is
required to return possession of the rental property to
the landlord.

“Even if such a notice is not required under the

tenancy agreement, such a notice should still be
issued in order to protect the landlord in the event
court proceedings are brought by the tenant,” Phang
shared.

Recovery Of Damages Via Civil Action

© freedomtumz | 123RF

A landlord can only sue for damages in a civil

action, and a writ of possession can only take
place after a civil action is commenced and a court
order or judgment is obtained.

A writ of possession means that you’re requesting the

court to evict the tenant from your property. Once the
court grants this writ, the court bailiff can enter the
property and take the property back for you by force.

Phang explained, “A court order or judgment for

eviction is what a landlord would usually be granted
if the court allows the landlord’s civil action against a
tenant. A consent judgment is awarded only if parties
voluntarily agree to settle the case amicably.”

The pros and cons of recovering damages

via civil action

Pros Cons

The landlord/landlady can bring all

sorts of claims e.g. arrears of rent,
forfeiture of deposit, outstanding
water and electricity bills,
maintenance charges, rectification
costs and damages, and so on.  

Complies with Malaysian laws.

Landlord/landlady would not be Landlord
subject to claims by tenants for have to
unlawful interference to possession, pay
trespass or damage or loss of legal
property, etc.   fees  

A court order is enforceable via a

writ of possession wherein the
Court would order the court bailiff
to enter and take possession of
the landlord’s property. Police
officers’ assistance may be
requested, if necessary.

Recovery Of Overdue Rent Via Distress

Action / Writ Of Distress

© degreestudio | 123RF

Alternatively, the landlord or landlady may apply to

the court for the issuance of a warrant of distress
for the recovery of the overdue rents by seizing the
tenant’s goods and selling them to recover the
outstanding rental. A distress order could take
three to six months to get.

Phang explained that a Writ of Distress under the

Distress Act 1950 is limited in its scope as it only
allows the landlord or landlady to recover a
maximum of 12 months of arrears of rent.

This would exclude claims for possession of the

rental property whilst the tenant is still in occupation,
outstanding water and electricity bills, maintenance
charges or rectification costs, and so on.

A separate civil action would have to be taken for

these other claims.

“The court will issue a warrant to the court Bailiff to

seize and sell the goods of the tenant that are found
on the rental property to satisfy any arrears of rent,
provided that the tenant is still in occupation of the
rental property.

“Landlords may apply for a warrant of distress on an

ex-parte basis (without prior notification to the
tenant). The enforcement of the warrant of distress
would come as a surprise to the tenant which may
prompt the tenant to settle the arrears of rent urgently
to prevent the seizure of the tenant’s property,”
Phang said.

The pros and cons of recovering overdue

rent via Distress Action / Writ of Distress

Pros Cons

Recovery of arrears of
rent  
Limited to claims
for arrears of rent
Fast and less costly
only  
compared to a civil
action

Can A Tenant Sue A Landlord/Landlady

In Return?

© ferli | 123RF

Now, let’s flip the script. We now know that the

landlord or landlady can take civil action or distress
action against a tenant.

But let’s find out the circumstances where a tenant

can sue a landlord or landlady instead. Here’s what
Phang shared:

1) If the landlord breaches the terms of the

tenancy agreement, the tenant may sue the landlord
to compel the landlord to comply with the terms of
the tenancy agreement or to recover any cost,
expenses or damages incurred.

For example, when the landlord refuses to make

certain major repairs to the rental property such as
roof leakage.

2) If the landlord unlawfully terminated the

tenancy agreement, the tenant may sue the landlord
for unlawful termination of the tenancy agreement to
recover any deposits paid and any damages
resulting from the unlawful termination of the tenancy
agreement e.g. renovation costs, damages for
disruption of occupation or business carried out on
the rental property.

3) If the landlord resorts to threats or self-help

measures to force the tenant to desert the
premises, the tenant may apply to the Courts for an
injunction to prevent the landlord from doing so and
claim for any damages arising from the unlawful
interference by the landlord e.g. damages suffered
or any loss of belongings.

Remember not to take the law into your own hands.

Seek the assistance of a law firm such as
MahWengKwai & Associates if you decide to take
legal action against a delinquent tenant.

READ MORE

10 terms and conditions in a tenancy agreement

you should look out for
How to write a tenancy agreement in Malaysia?
Must you declare your rental income to LHDN &
Landlord tax incentives

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