The Residential Tenancy Bill study on rental agreements, tenant and owner responsibilities, and enforcement measures is anticipated to be completed in June of this year.
Deputy Local Government Development Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the ministry is currently studying and drafting the Bill because there is no specific law to control the issues that exist in the residential tenancy sector.
He said one of the goals of drafting this Bill is to control the relationship between residential owners and tenants, balance the rights and duties of both parties and create a dispute-resolution institution for parties engaged in residential tenancy transactions.
"In addition, this Bill also provides an action procedure as well as a resolution mechanism should there be any dispute in the tenancy process," he said in reply to a question from Lim Lip Eng (PH-Kepong) during the Dewan Rakyat question-and-answer session yesterday.
Akmal said that the Bill, which has been in the works since 2019, will be presented in Parliament next year.
According to him, the Bill was delayed due to opposition from different quarters on the initial draught.
"For example, it was previously suggested that the security deposit be held by the government when the tenancy agreement is drawn up between the owners and tenants. Fine-tuning was needed to ensure that all parties, including landlords and tenants, are protected," he said.