Posts use fabricated design for new Malaysian ID to push anti-Chinese claims
- Published on April 24, 2026 at 03:58
- 3 min read
- By Najmi MAMAT, AFP Malaysia
Malaysia's plan to upgrade its identification documents has been targeted by posts falsely claiming the national ID card will no longer include a photograph of the holder, opening it up to misuse. The government has refuted social media posts making the spurious claims, and a legal expert told AFP the inclusion of the holder's photo is required by law.
A purported image showing the design of the new identity cards, featuring the Malaysian coat of arms, flag and a digital thumbprint, was shared on Facebook on April 14, 2026.
"Said to be the new mycard without a photo. Dangerous," says Malay-language text superimposed on the image, misspelling the official name of Malaysia's MyKad national identity card (archived link).
The post claims Chinese nationals who overstayed their visas in Malaysia could be given these new cards to allow them to vote in the next general election and that the new cards would be manufactured by a Chinese company.
The current Malaysian administration under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has been seen as growing closer to China, prompting unease among Malay nationalists who fear a resurgence of Chinese identity in the country (archived link). Ethnic Chinese account for about one-fifth of the Malay-majority nation’s 34 million people (archived link).
AFP has previously debunked the false claim that millions of Chinese nationals were given citizenship in Malaysia.
The same image was shared alongside similar claims about the design of Malaysia's new identity cards elsewhere on Facebook, while another version of the claim shows a purported design where the holder's photo is replaced with a QR code.
Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail announced on January 8 the government would roll out new passports and identity cards later in 2026 as part of periodic updates necessary to ensure the integrity of the documents (archived here and here).
As of April 24, however, the government has not released any official images of the upgraded identity document.
A keyword search on Google found Malaysia's National Registration Department (JPN) called the claims "false" in an April 17 Facebook post (archived link).
"The infographic being shared does not depict the actual design of the new MyKad," the department said, adding that a QR code is just one of the additional features to increase security and facilitate future digital verification.
The post also states the new identity cards will be designed in accordance with the National Registration Regulations (NRR) 1990, which specifies what key information must be displayed on an identity card.
Joshua Wu, a co-deputy chairperson of the Malaysian Bar Council's Constitutional Law Committee, told AFP on April 24 that the inclusion of the holder's photograph is specifically listed in the regulations, referring to a digital version of the document archived by a Malaysian legal publishing company.
"One of the safeguards that are in place to make sure people are eligible to vote for an election would be the photograph of the [identity card] holder," Wu said about the claim that visa overstayers could use the purported cards to vote in general elections.
The constitutional law expert added that another safeguard would be the Election Commission's Electoral Roll, and only individuals on the Electoral Roll are eligible to vote.
"This is a safeguard against fake ICs," he said, noting that Malaysians can check the electoral roll information online (archived link).
AFP has previously debunked other false claims about Malaysia's new identity documents.
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