DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT 1994

Domestic Violence 1 LAWS OF MALAYSIA REPRINT Act 521 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT 1994 As at 1 July 2023 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF LAW REVISION, MALAYSIA UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968 2023 WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 1 04/08/2023 4:11 PM 2 Act 521 Laws of Malaysia DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT 1994 Date of Royal Assent … … Date of publication in the Gazette Latest amendment made by Act A1538 which came into operation on … … … … 24 June 1994 … … 7 July 1994 … … 1 January 2018 Previous Reprint First Reprint WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 2 … … … … 2006 04/08/2023 4:11 PM Domestic Violence 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 521 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT 1994 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Part I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and application 2. Interpretation 3. Act to be read together with Penal Code, etc. Part Ia EMERGENCY PROTECTION ORDER 3a. Emergency protection order 3b. Service of emergency protection order 3c. Substituted service for emergency protection order 3d. Proof of service of emergency protection order 3e. Contravention of emergency protection order 3f. Record of applications and emergency protection orders Part II INTERIM PROTECTION ORDER AND PROTECTION ORDER WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 3 4. Interim protection order 5. Protection order 6. Orders that may be included in protection order 04/08/2023 4:11 PM 4 Laws of Malaysia Act 521 Section 7. Powers of arrest 8. Contravention of protection order 9. Making or renewing orders upon contravention of protection order Part III COMPENSATION AND REHABILITATION PROGRAMME 10. Compensation 11. Rehabilitation programme, etc. Part IV PROCEDURE ON INTERIM PROTECTION ORDERS AND PROTECTION ORDERS 12. When interim protection order may be sought 12a. Ex parte application for interim protection order 12b. Setting aside an interim protection order 13. When protection order may be sought 13a. Application for protection order 14. Filing in of application 15. Application on behalf of child or incapacitated adult 16. Record of applications and orders 17. Proof of service of protection order 17a. Substituted service Part V MISCELLANEOUS 18. Information on offences involving domestic violence 18a. Seizable offences 19. Duties of enforcement officers 20. Regulations WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 4 04/08/2023 4:11 PM Domestic Violence 5 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 521 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT 1994 An Act to provide for legal protection in situations of domestic violence and matters incidental thereto. [1 June 1996, P.U. (B) 226/1996] BE IT ENACTED by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: Part I PRELIMINARY Short title and application 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Domestic Violence Act 1994. (2) This Act shall apply to all persons in Malaysia. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “alternative residence” means the premises or accommodation which the victim is or has been compelled to seek or move into as a result of domestic violence; “child” means a person below the age of eighteen years who is living as a member of the offender’s family or of the family of the offender’s spouse or former spouse, as the case may be; WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 5 04/08/2023 4:11 PM 6 Laws of Malaysia Act 521 “court” means— (a) in respect of criminal proceedings involving allegations of domestic violence, the court competent to try the actual offence with which the accused is charged; (b) in respect of civil proceedings for compensation under section 10, the court competent to hear such claims in tort; “Director General” means the Director General of Social Welfare and includes the State Director of Social Welfare of each of the States; “domestic violence” means the commission of one or more of the following acts: (a) wilfully or knowingly placing, or attempting to place, the victim in fear of physical injury; (b) causing physical injury to the victim by such act which is known or ought to have been known would result in physical injury; (c) compelling the victim by force or threat to engage in any conduct or act, sexual or otherwise, from which the victim has a right to abstain; (d) confining or detaining the victim against the victim’s will; (e) causing mischief or destruction or damage to property with intent to cause or knowing that it is likely to cause distress or annoyance to the victim; (ea) dishonestly misappropriating the victim’s property which causes the victim to suffer distress due to financial loss; (eb) threatening the victim with intent to cause the victim to fear for his safety or the safety of his property, to fear for the safety of a third person, or to suffer distress; WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 6 04/08/2023 4:11 PM Domestic Violence 7 (ec) communicating with the victim, or communicating about the victim to a third person, with intent to insult the modesty of the victim through any means, electronic or otherwise; (f) causing psychological abuse which includes emotional injury to the victim; (g) causing the victim to suffer delusions by using any intoxicating substance or any other substance without the victim’s consent or if the consent is given, the consent was unlawfully obtained; or (h) in the case where the victim is a child, causing the victim to suffer delusions by using any intoxicating substance or any other substance, by a person, whether by himself or through a third party, against— (i) his or her spouse; (ii) his or her former spouse; (iii) a child; (iv) an incapacitated adult; or (v) any other member of the family; “emergency protection order” means an order issued under section 3a; “enforcement officer” means a police officer or social welfare officer; “incapacitated adult” means a person who is wholly or partially incapacitated or infirm, by reason of permanent or temporary physical or mental disability or ill-health or old age, who is living as a member of the family of the person alleged to have committed the domestic violence, and includes any person who was confined or detained by the person alleged to have committed the domestic violence; “interim protection order” means an order issued under section 4; WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 7 04/08/2023 4:11 PM 8 Laws of Malaysia Act 521 “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for social welfare; “other member of the family” means— (a) (i) an adult son or daughter; or (ii) a father or mother, of the offender; or (b) (i) a brother or sister; or (ii) any other relative, of the offender who in the opinion of the court should, in the circumstances of that family, be regarded as a member of the family; “police officer” has the same meaning assigned to it in the Police Act 1967 [Act 344]; “protected person” means a person who is protected under a protection order; “protection order” means an order issued under section 5; “relative” means a person who is related through the full-blood or half-blood, or through marriage or adoption, including de facto adoption; “safe place” means any home or institution maintained or managed by the Ministry or Department responsible for welfare services or by any other agency or voluntary organization approved by the Minister for the purposes of this Act; “shared residence” means the premises at which the parties are, or have been, living together as members of the same household; “shelter” means any home, institution or any other suitable place of which the occupier or owner is willing to receive a victim temporarily; WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 8 04/08/2023 4:11 PM Domestic Violence 9 “social welfare officer” means a social welfare officer of the Ministry or Department responsible for welfare services and includes an assistant social welfare officer; “spouse” includes a de facto spouse, that is to say, a person who has gone through a form of ceremony which is recognized as a marriage ceremony according to the religion or custom of the parties concerned, notwithstanding that such ceremony is not registered or not capable of being registered under any written law relating to the solemnization and registration of marriages; “victim” means a victim of domestic violence. Act to be read together with Penal Code, etc. 3. This Act shall be read together with the Penal Code [Act 574] or any other written law involving offences relating to domestic violence. Part Ia EMERGENCY PROTECTION ORDER Emergency protection order 3a. (1) A social welfare officer duly authorized in writing by the Director General may, in an application involving a complaint of domestic violence referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of the definition of “domestic violence” under section 2, issue an emergency protection order. (2) An application for an emergency protection order may be made at any time whether or not an interim protection order or a protection order has been previously made or an application for an interim protection order or a protection order is still pending. (3) An application for an emergency protection order shall be made ex parte by— (a) the victim; (b) the victim’s counsel; or WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 9 04/08/2023 4:11 PM 10 Laws of Malaysia Act 521 (c) in the case where the victim is a child or an incapacitated adult, the guardian, relative or person responsible for the care of such child or incapacitated adult, or a social welfare officer other than an authorized social welfare officer. (4) An application for an emergency protection order may be made in any district where— (a) the victim resides; (b) the person against whom the protection is sought resides; (c) the alleged domestic violence occurred; or (d) the victim is placed temporarily. (5) Upon receipt of the application for an emergency protection order, the application shall be heard by the authorized social welfare officer immediately and the issuance of the emergency protection order, if any, shall be made, where practicable, within two hours after the application is made. (6) For the purpose of an application for an emergency protection order, a police report relating to the domestic violence is not required. (7) The authorized social welfare officer, in making an emergency protection order under subsection (1), may issue one or more of the following orders: (a) prohibiting the person against whom the order is made from using domestic violence referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of the definition of “domestic violence” under section 2 against his or her spouse or former spouse, a child, an incapacitated adult or any other member of the family, as the case may be; (b) prohibiting the person against whom the order is made from inciting any other person to commit domestic violence referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of the definition of “domestic violence” under section 2 against his or her spouse or former spouse, a child, an incapacitated adult or any other member of the family, as the case may be; or WJW22/0376 Act 521.indd 10 04/08/2023 4:11 PM Domestic Violence 11 (c) prohibiting the person against whom the order is made from entering any protected person’s safe place, shelter, place of residence, shared residence or alternative residence, as the case may be. (8) An emergency protection order shall be valid for the period of seven days from the date of issuance of the order, and enforceable when a copy of the order is served on the person against whom the order is made in accordance with section 3b. (9) The emergency protection order issued shall not be affected by the issuance of an interim protection order or a protection order. Service of emergency protection order 3b. (1) The authorized social welfare officer who issued the emergency protection order under subsection 3a(1) shall forward a copy of the order, where practicable within ten hours of the issuance of the emergency protection order, to the office