Transit through Malaysia: do you need an MDAC?

Kuala Lumpur is one of the busiest connecting hubs in Southeast Asia, and plenty of travellers pass through Malaysia without ever planning to visit it. So a fair question comes up again and again: if I am only changing planes, do I need a Malaysia Digital Arrival Card?

The short answer is that it depends on whether you pass through Malaysian immigration. This guide explains how to tell, which situations usually need a card, and what to do if you are not sure. As always, transit rules can change, so anything here is correct at the time of writing and worth checking against the official site and your airline before you fly.

The one question that decides it

The MDAC is an arrival card. It is meant for people who enter Malaysia, which in practice means anyone who walks through an immigration counter or autogate and has their passport checked for entry.

If your connection keeps you inside the international transit area of the airport and you never go through immigration, you are not entering Malaysia in that sense. Airside transit is not on the Immigration Department's list of MDAC exemptions, but the card declares an arrival into Malaysia, so if you never pass through immigration you have no arrival to declare. Your airline can confirm whether your connection stays airside.

If your connection means you clear immigration, even for a couple of hours, you are entering Malaysia and you need a card like any other visitor, unless you belong to one of the general exempt groups such as Singapore citizens.

Airside and landside, in plain terms

Airports talk about "airside" and "landside", and these words are the key to transit questions.

• Airside is everything past passport control: departure gates, duty-free shops and the international transfer areas. You can move between flights without officially entering the country.
• Landside is the public part of the airport: arrival halls, check-in counters, taxi ranks and train stations. To get there from an international flight, you pass through immigration.

An airside transit is usually the simple case. A landside transit, where you step out into the public area for any reason, normally counts as entering Malaysia.

Situations that usually do not need a card

These are the typical cases where travellers stay airside. In each one, check that your booking really is a single connected journey.

• You booked one ticket with a connection in Kuala Lumpur, your bags are checked through to your final destination, and you already have your onward boarding pass.
• You arrive and leave from the same terminal and follow the transfer signs rather than the arrival signs.
• Your airline or the transfer desk confirms you can stay in the transit area for the whole connection.

Situations that usually need a card

These are the common reasons transit passengers end up clearing immigration. If any of them applies, plan to submit an MDAC within the three days before you land.

• Separate tickets. If your two flights were booked separately, perhaps with two different low-cost airlines, you often have to collect your bags, go landside and check in again for the second flight.
• Changing terminals. KLIA has two terminals, Terminal 1 and Terminal 2. If your flights use different terminals, ask your airline how the transfer works and whether it takes you through immigration.
• Collecting bags. If your luggage is not checked through, you will usually need to pass immigration to reach the baggage hall and then come back through departures.
• A long layover. If you want to leave the airport to see the city, eat somewhere or sleep in a hotel outside the terminal, you are entering Malaysia.
• A stopover by choice. If you break the journey for a night or more, you are a visitor like anyone else.

What about visas?

The arrival card and a visa are separate. If you clear immigration and your nationality normally needs a visa to enter Malaysia, you may need one even for a short landside connection, unless a transit concession applies to you. If you stay airside, the visa question usually does not arise, but some nationalities have specific transit rules. The Immigration Department of Malaysia publishes visa requirements by country, and that is the place to check. Our guide to the MDAC and visas explains how the two fit together.

If you are not sure

Transit arrangements depend on your airline, your ticket and sometimes the terminal, so the most reliable source is the airline that carries you into Malaysia. A few practical points:

• Ask the airline, before you travel, whether your connection stays airside and whether your bags are checked through.
• Look at your booking: one booking reference for the whole journey is a good sign, two separate references usually mean a landside transfer.
• If you are still unsure and you are within the three-day window, submitting a card is a sensible precaution. It is free on the official site.

Filling in the card for a landside transit

If you do need a card, fill it in as you would for any visit, with a few transit details in mind.

• Date of arrival: the date you land in Malaysia.
• Date of departure: the date of your onward flight, which may be the same day.
• Last port of embarkation: the country your inbound flight left from.
• Flight number: the inbound flight that lands in Malaysia, not the onward one.
• Accommodation: if you are staying overnight, use the hotel address. For a same-day connection with no hotel, give the most accurate address in Malaysia you can, such as the airport hotel if you plan to rest there.

Our step-by-step guide to filling in the MDAC covers every field in more detail.

Before you fly checklist

• You know whether your connection stays airside or goes landside.
• You know whether your bags are checked through to your final destination.
• If you will clear immigration, your MDAC is submitted within three days before you land.
• You have checked whether your nationality needs a visa for a landside stay.
• Your passport is valid for at least six months from the day you arrive.

The arrival card is free on the official MDAC website, and your airline can tell you exactly how your connection works.

Last reviewed on 5 October 2026. Entry rules change, so always check the official MDAC website and the Immigration Department of Malaysia before you travel.