Marriage Migration And Discriminatory Citizenship Rights

We recommend that ASEAN member states:

1. Ensure that every child with at least one Malaysian parent are granted citizenship, irrespective of the gender, parents’ marital status, or the child’s place of birth.

2. Standardise immigration policies and citizenship laws to ensure a clear, dignified pathway for non-citizen spouses. Introduce consistent and transparent visa and residency frameworks across all member states.

3. Ensure that non-citizen spouses, independent of their spouse’s citizenship, can access independent permanent residency (PR) and employment rights as well as have equal access to banking, property ownership, and public services. Remove existing employment and financial restrictions.

4. Enhance embassy and consular support for couples to facilitate the registration of marriages and births.

5. Simplify visa and PR application processes to reflect ASEAN’s commitment to a people-centred community.

Thematic Group Organisations

1. Family Frontiers 

2. Foreign Spouses Support Group Malaysia (FSSG)

3. Statelessness and Dignified Citizenship Coalition Asia Pacific (SDCC-AP)

4. Nationality For All (NFA) 

For further details regarding this thematic cluster, kindly direct your inquiries to:

Name: Bina / Nathasvari (Family Frontiers)

Email: bina.r@familyfrontiers.org / nathasvari@familyfrontiers.org