Last reviewed: 31 October 2026

Quick answer

For a successful Malaysian family, moving to Australia is not just a visa application. The visa decides when you can live and work here, but the timing of your move also decides when Australia starts taxing your worldwide income, how your Malaysian company and property are treated, what you can buy in Australia, and whether your Wills still work. The best results come from planning these together, before the move, rather than one at a time after arrival.

This guide gives a general overview of the main issues. It is not a substitute for advice on your own situation.

1. Choosing a visa pathway

The Business Innovation and Investment (subclass 188) program, once the usual route for Malaysian business owners and investors, has closed to new applications. Families now usually look at one or more of these pathways:

• National Innovation visa: a permanent visa for people with an internationally recognised record of exceptional achievement, including entrepreneurs and innovative investors. It is by invitation only, after an expression of interest, and the bar is high.
• Employer sponsorship: temporary and permanent employer-sponsored visas, including through an Australian business you establish or acquire, where the role and the business are genuine.
• Skilled visas: points-tested independent, state-nominated and regional visas for professionals whose occupation, age, English and experience fit the current settings.
• Family visas: partner, child and parent visas, which often matter later, for example when bringing parents to Australia.

Visa settings, occupation lists and state nomination criteria change often. Assess your options against the current rules, and consider whether the family will move together or in stages.

2. Becoming an Australian tax resident

Australia taxes its residents on their worldwide income. You can become a resident for tax purposes from the day you arrive to live here, even before you have a permanent visa. The tests look at your circumstances and intentions, not only the number of days you spend in Australia.

Temporary visa holders who are “temporary residents” for tax purposes may have most foreign income and gains excluded from Australian tax. That concession is generally lost once you, or your spouse, become an Australian permanent resident or citizen. For many families, the grant of permanent residency is the point at which the full Australian tax system starts to apply to Malaysian income and assets.

When you become a resident, some foreign assets are generally treated as acquired at their market value at that time for capital gains purposes. Keeping valuations and records from that date can matter years later. Australia and Malaysia have a double tax agreement, but it does not remove the need to plan.

3. Your Malaysian company, trust and property

Many Malaysian business owners keep their company, family property and investments in Malaysia after moving. That is usually possible, but once you are an Australian resident:

• income and gains of foreign companies you control may be attributed to you under Australia’s controlled foreign company rules;
• distributions from foreign trusts, and transfers into them, can have special tax consequences;
• loans from, and payments by, your private company may need care;
• rent and sale proceeds from Malaysian property become part of your Australian tax picture.

Some steps, such as paying out dividends, restructuring shareholdings or settling a trust, are often better considered before you become resident. Your Malaysian accountant and an Australian adviser should look at this together.

4. Moving money: source-of-wealth and bank checks

Australian banks, lenders, real estate agents, accountants and lawyers must verify identity and, increasingly, the source of funds. From 1 July 2026, Australia’s anti-money laundering laws extended to many lawyers, accountants and real estate agents. Expect to explain where the money for a property purchase or investment came from: business profits, the sale of a property, an inheritance or a gift from a parent.

Good preparation helps. Gather company accounts, sale contracts, tax returns and bank records before the money moves. Large transfers that cannot be traced to their source can delay a settlement or a bank account opening.

5. Buying a home after you arrive

Whether you can buy, and what extra taxes you pay, depends on your visa:

• Temporary residents (for example on a student or employer-sponsored visa) are generally “foreign persons”. They usually need approval before buying residential property, and from 1 April 2025 they are generally banned from buying established homes, a ban the Government has announced will run until 30 June 2029, with limited exceptions. New homes and off-the-plan apartments can usually be bought with approval.
• Permanent residents and citizens are generally not foreign persons for these rules, and in Victoria are generally not foreign purchasers for the additional duty.

Victoria charges foreign purchasers additional stamp duty and an absentee owner land tax surcharge. Buying in a family company or trust can make the structure itself “foreign”. Timing a purchase around the grant of permanent residency, and choosing whose name to buy in, can make a real difference.

6. Wills in both countries

Once your life and assets are split between Malaysia and Australia, one Will may no longer be enough. Many families need two coordinated Wills: a Victorian Will for Australian assets and a Malaysian Will for Malaysian assets, drafted so that neither accidentally revokes the other. For Muslim families, succession to Malaysian assets is also governed by Islamic law, so the planning needs care on both sides.

It is also worth putting in place Australian enduring powers of attorney, especially if a parent will divide time between the two countries, and reviewing who should act as executor.

7. Citizenship later on

Malaysia generally does not allow dual citizenship for adults, and voluntarily acquiring another citizenship can lead to loss of Malaysian citizenship. Before applying for Australian citizenship, consider the consequences for Malaysian land, inheritance, and business interests, and get advice on Malaysian law.

A timing checklist

Common mistakes

• Treating the move as a visa matter only, and looking at tax after arrival.
• Paying a migration agent before checking which pathways are realistic for your profile.
• Moving large sums without records that show where the money came from.
• Signing a contract for an established home while still on a temporary visa.
• Making a new Australian Will that accidentally revokes a Malaysian Will.

Frequently asked questions

Is there still a business or investor visa for Malaysians?

The Business Innovation and Investment (subclass 188) program has closed to new applications. The National Innovation visa is now the main pathway for exceptional entrepreneurs and innovative investors, but it is by invitation only after an expression of interest. Many business owners instead look at employer-sponsored or skilled visas. Which pathway fits depends on your profile.

When do I become an Australian tax resident?

Often from the day you arrive to live in Australia, but it depends on your circumstances and intentions. Temporary visa holders may have most foreign income excluded from Australian tax, but that generally ends once you or your spouse become a permanent resident or citizen.

Can I keep my Malaysian company and property after moving?

Usually yes, but Australian tax rules can reach income and gains from overseas companies, trusts and property once you are resident. The structure should be reviewed before you become resident, not after.

Can I buy a home in Melbourne as soon as I get my visa?

It depends on the visa. Temporary residents are generally foreign persons and are currently banned from buying established homes, with limited exceptions. Permanent residents are generally not treated as foreign persons for these rules.

Do I need a Will in Australia if I already have one in Malaysia?

Many families moving to Australia need two coordinated Wills, one for Malaysian assets and one for Australian assets, drafted so that neither accidentally revokes the other.

Will I lose my Malaysian citizenship if I become an Australian citizen?

Malaysia generally does not allow dual citizenship for adults, and acquiring another citizenship voluntarily can lead to loss of Malaysian citizenship. Get advice on Malaysian law before you apply.

How we help

Chua Tan Associates has practised in Melbourne since 1990 and acts for Malaysian and Malaysian-Chinese families on Australian legal matters. We work by video and alongside your lawyers, accountants and private bankers in Malaysia. We help with:

• visa pathways for business owners, investors, professionals and their families;
• planning the legal side of the move with your tax advisers in both countries;
• buying property in Victoria, including timing and ownership structure;
• Victorian Wills, powers of attorney and estate planning for families with assets in both countries.

The first step is a paid 30-minute consultation by video or in Melbourne. Contact us to book.

This article is general information only and is not legal, tax, migration or financial advice. Do not rely on it for your own situation: the law and practice change often, and the right answer depends on your facts. Points about Malaysian law and Malaysian tax are a general overview only; obtain advice from a Malaysian lawyer or tax adviser for matters in Malaysia.

Official sources

• Department of Home Affairs: National Innovation visa
• Department of Home Affairs: visa explorer
• Australian Taxation Office: your tax residency
• Australian Taxation Office: foreign and temporary residents
• Australian Taxation Office: ban on foreign purchases of established dwellings
• State Revenue Office Victoria: foreign purchaser additional duty
• AUSTRAC: anti-money laundering laws cover thousands more businesses

More guides for Malaysian families

• Australian Legal Matters for Malaysian and Malaysian-Chinese Families
• Business and Investor Visas for Australia After the 188 Program Closed
• FIRB Approval for Buyers From Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia
• Buying Australian Property From Overseas

Related reading

• Moving to Australia and Becoming a Tax Resident
• Before You Become an Australian Tax Resident: Trusts and Wills
• Source-of-Wealth Checks Under Australia’s New AML Rules
• Transferring Money to Australia From Overseas: Legal and Tax Guide
• Foreign Owners of Australian Property: Duty Surcharges, Land Tax, FIRB and Capital Gains
• Do You Need Separate Wills for Australian and Overseas Assets?

Chua Tan Associates acts for families and their professional advisers on Australian legal matters with a cross-border dimension, working alongside lawyers overseas. To arrange a confidential consultation, please contact our Melbourne office on +61 3 9602 3988 or submit an enquiry. Advice is available in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.

Justin Chua (蔡智勋), lawyer and mediator, Chua Tan Associates, Melbourne. General information only, not legal advice.