ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS ACT 2007

Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants LAWS OF MALAYSIA REPRINT Act 670 ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS ACT 2007 As at 30 September 2025 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF LAW REVISION, MALAYSIA UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968 2025 1 2 Act 670 Laws of Malaysia ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS ACT 2007 Date of Royal Assent ... ... ... ... 18 July 2007 Date of publication in the Gazette ... ... ... ... 26 July 2007 ... ... ... ... 22 February 2022 Latest amendment made by Act A1644 which came into operation on Previous Reprints First Reprint Publisher’s Copyright C … … … … 2014 PERCETAKAN NASIONAL MALAYSIA BERHAD All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording and/or otherwise without the prior permission of Percetakan Nasional Malaysia Berhad (Appointed Printer to the Government of Malaysia). Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 670 ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS ACT 2007 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Part I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and commencement 2. Interpretation 3. Scope of application 4. Extension of Act to extra territorial offences 5. Prevailing law Part Ia HIGH LEVEL COMMITTEE 5a. High Level Committee 5b. Meetings of the Committee 5c. Function of the Committee Part II COUNCIL FOR ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS 6. Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants 7. Functions and powers of the Council 8. Power of Minister to issue directions 9. Meetings of Council 4 Laws of Malaysia Section 10. Establishment of committees 11. Secretary of the Council and other officers Act 670 Part III TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS OFFENCES, IMMUNITY, ETC. 12. Offence of trafficking in persons 13. Aggravated offence of trafficking in persons 14. Offence of trafficking in children or a person who is unable to fully take care of or protect himself because of a physical or mental disability or condition 15. Offence of profiting from exploitation of a trafficked person 15a. Offence in relation to trafficked person in transit 16. Consent of trafficked person irrelevant 17. Past sexual behaviour irrelevant 17a. Movement or conveyance of trafficked person irrelevant 18. Fraudulent travel or identity documents 19. Recruiting persons 20. Providing facilities in support of trafficking in persons 21. Providing services for purposes of trafficking in persons 22. Harbouring persons 23. Obligation of owner, operator or master of conveyance 24. Intentional omission to give information 25. Immunity from criminal prosecution 26. Protection of informers Part IIIa SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS 26a. Offence of smuggling of migrants 26b. Aggravated offence of smuggling of migrants 26c. Offence in relation to smuggled migrant in transit 26d. Offence of profiting from the offence of smuggling of migrants 26e. Fraudulent travel or identity documents 26f. Providing facilities in support of smuggling of migrants 26g. Providing services for purposes of smuggling of migrants Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Section 5 26h. Concealing or harbouring smuggled migrants and migrant smugglers 26i. Supporting offence of smuggling of migrants 26j. Offence of conveyance of smuggled migrants 26k. Obligation of owner, etc., of conveyance Part IV ENFORCEMENT 27. Enforcement officers 28. Power of investigation 29. Power of arrest 30. Search and seizure with warrant 31. Search and seizure without warrant 32. Access to computerized data 33. List of things seized 34. Power to examine persons 35. Admissibility of statement 36. Forfeiture of conveyance, moveable property, etc. 37. Cost of holding conveyance, moveable property, etc., seized 38. No costs or damages arising from entry, search or seizure to be recoverable 39. Obstruction 40. Tipping-off 41. Institution of prosecution Part V CARE AND PROTECTION OF TRAFFICKED PERSONS 41a. Non-application 42. Place of refuge 43. Appointment of Protection Officers 44. Taking a person into temporary custody 45. Person in temporary custody in need of medical examination or treatment 46. Medical examination and treatment 6 Laws of Malaysia Section Act 670 47. Authorization for hospitalization 48. Control over hospitalised person 49. Steps to be taken after medical examination or treatment 50. No liability incurred for giving authorization 51. Investigation, enquiry and Protection Order 51a. Permission to move freely and to work 52. Recording of evidence of trafficked person 53. Application by parent, guardian or relative 54. Release of trafficked person 55. Trafficked person who escapes or is removed from place of refuge 56. Offence of removing or helping a trafficked person to escape from place of refuge 57. Power of Minister to remove trafficked person from one place of refuge to another Part VI MISCELLANEOUS 58. Restriction on media reporting and publication 59. Evidence of agent provocateur admissible 60. Admissibility of documentary evidence 61. Admissibility of translation of documents 61a. Admissibility of deposition of trafficked person or smuggled migrant who cannot be found 62. Indemnity 63. General and enhanced penalties 64. Offence by body corporate 65. Offence by employee or agent 65a. Public servant 66. Regulations 66a. Order for payment of compensation to the trafficked person 66b. Order for payment of wages in arrears in the case of no conviction 67. Prevention of anomalies Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 670 *ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS AND ANTI-SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS ACT 2007 An Act to prevent and combat trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants and to provide for matters connected therewith. [Part I, II, Section 66 and 67–1 October 2007, P.U. (B) 339/2007; Part III, IV, V and VI–28 February 2008, P.U. (B) 86/2008] ENACTED by the Parliament of Malaysia as follows: Part I PRELIMINARY Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the **Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007. (2) This Act comes into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister by notification in the Gazette, and the Minister may appoint different dates for the coming into operation of different provisions of this Act. *NOTE—Previously known as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act 2007. Change in short title vide section 3 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons (Amendment) Act 2010 [Act A1385] w.e.f. 15 November 2010–see P.U. (B) 500/2010. **NOTE—All references to the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act 2007 and the Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons in any written law or document shall, on the coming into operation of this Act, be construed as references to the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 and the Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants respectively– see section 26 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons (Amendment) Act 2010 [Act A1385] w.e.f. 15 November 2010–see P.U. (B) 500/2010. 8 Laws of Malaysia Act 670 Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “this Act” includes any subsidiary legislation made under this Act; “prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister by regulations; “fraudulent travel or identity document” means a travel or identity document that— (a) has been made, or altered in a material way, by a person other than a person or agency lawfully authorised to make or issue the travel or identity document on behalf of a country; (b) has been issued or obtained through misrepresentation, corruption or duress or in any other unlawful manner; or (c) is being improperly used by a person other than the rightful holder; “exploitation” includes all forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude, any illegal activity or the removal of human organs; “child” means a person who is under the age of eighteen years; “Court” means Sessions Court; “Council” means the Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants established under section 6; “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for internal security; “smuggled migrant” means a person who is the object of the act of smuggling of migrants, regardless of whether that person participated in the act of smuggling of migrants; “receiving country” means a country into which a trafficked person or a smuggled migrant is brought as part of an act of trafficking in persons or smuggling of migrants, as the case may be; Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants 9 “transit country” means a country from which, or into or through which, a trafficked person or a smuggled migrant, as the case may be, is brought or travels through by land, sea or air or temporarily remains in as part of an act of trafficking in persons or smuggling of migrants; “trafficked person” means any person who is the victim or object of an act of trafficking in persons; “officer of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency” has the same meaning assigned to it by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Act 2004 [Act 633]; “Labour Officer” means a Labour Officer appointed under section 3 of the Employment Act 1955 [Act 265] or section 3 of the Sabah Labour Ordinance [Sabah Cap. 67] or section 3 of the Sarawak Labour Ordinance [Sarawak Cap. 76]; “immigration officer” has the same meaning assigned to it by the Immigration Act 1959/63 [Act 155]; “Officer of customs” has the same meaning assigned to it by the Customs Act 1967 [Act 235]; “Social Welfare Officer” means any Social Welfare Officer in the ministry or department responsible for welfare services and includes any Assistant Social Welfare Officer; “Protection Officer” means any officer appointed under section 43; “enforcement officer” means any officer specified in subsection 27(1) or any public officer appointed under subsection 27(1a); “medical officer” means a registered medical practitioner in the service of the Government and includes a registered medical practitioner in any teaching hospital of a University; “permanent resident” has the same meaning assigned to it by the Courts of Judicature Act 1964 [Act 91]; 10 Laws of Malaysia Act 670 “trafficking in persons” means all actions of recruiting, conveying, transferring, acquiring, maintaining, harbouring, providing or receiving, a person, for the purpose of exploitation, by the following means: (a) threat or use of force or other forms of coercion; (b) abduction; (c) fraud; (d) deception; (e) abuse of power; (f) abuse of the position of vulnerability of a person to an act of trafficking in persons; or (g) the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to obtain the consent of a person having control over the trafficked person; “conveyance” means any vehicle, vessel, ship, aircraft, or any other mode of transport whether by air, sea or land; “smuggling of migrants” means— (a) arranging, facilitating or organizing, directly or indirectly, a person’s unlawful entry into or through, or unlawful exit from, any country of which the person is not a citizen or permanent resident either knowing or having reason to believe that the person’s entry or exit is unlawful; and (b) recruiting, conveying, transferring, concealing, harbouring or providing any other assistance or service for the purpose of carrying out the acts referred to in paragraph (a); “Protection Order” means an order made by a Magistrate for the care and protection of a trafficked person under paragraph 51(3)(a); “premises”