KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22 — The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (Motac) is in discussions with the Ministry of Finance to allow travel agents to use insurance guarantees as an option in addition to bank guarantees.
The goal is to provide consumers with better protection and rebuild trust, following complaints against several Umrah travel operators.
Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing announced this at the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) Membership Summit 2026.
He clarified, however, that the change is not immediate and discussions are still ongoing.
“I have been talking to the minister of finance to look into this and allow travel agents/tour operators to use insurance guarantee,” he said.
In a statement on January 18, Motac said it was reviewing the existing requirement for Umrah package operators to provide a minimum bank guarantee of RM250,000, due to increasingly serious and frequent cases of consumer fraud.
Under the proposed framework, the bank guarantee requirement for large-scale operators will be increased in line with the size and scale of their operations.
Tiong also urged Matta to play an active role in communicating the rationale behind the measures to its members, stressing that the move is not intended to penalise legitimate businesses.
Acknowledging industry concerns over the stricter requirements, he apologised for the inconvenience caused, saying the decision was driven by the high volume of complaints.
Tiong said the enforcement of the bank guarantee requirement, particularly for outbound travel operators, is intended to ensure swift refunds to affected consumers should problems arise.
Meanwhile, he stressed that Malaysia’s tourism industry must not compromise standards and consumer trust in pursuit of growth.
He added that trust is fundamental to tourism’s success, as visitor confidence directly drives repeat visits, recommendations and Malaysia’s global reputation as a destination. — Bernama
