I am Priscilla, a Malaysian woman married to a French national, and I have three children. Two of my children who were born in France are still awaiting Malaysian citizenship, and hold French passports. I have a son aged four, who was born in Malaysia and holds Malaysian citizenship.

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I lived in France from 2009 to 2015. Throughout my time in France, I remained in close and frequent contact with the Embassy of Malaysia in Paris, yet was never informed of my limited rights to confer citizenship, even when I gave birth to my eldest daughter in 2010, and second daughter in 2012. With the exception of the six years in France, my entire life has been spent in Malaysia.

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In September 2015, I returned to Malaysia when my husband and I separated. It was at this point that I was made aware of the citizenship provisions that prohibited me from passing on my Malaysian citizenship to my two children, Juliette and Abigail. On 2 December 2015, I had submitted applications for citizenship under article 15(2) [of the Federal Constitution] for both my daughters. On 28 February 2019, I received notification that the Minister of Home Affairs had rejected both applications. During this period of waiting, I received no updates or notification on the progress of the applications despite contacting the Ministry of Home Affairs numerous times. On 15 April 2019, I submitted applications for citizenship for my daughters for the second time. I have yet to receive a decision.

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In order to acquire 90-day tourist visas for both of my daughters, they had to exit and re-enter the country every 90 days to acquire new visas. Between 2015 and 2017, my daughters and I had made nine trips. Each trip had cost approximately RM4,000, making it an estimated total of RM36,000 spent on visa runs alone. I, as a single mom, had to take on two jobs to keep up with the costs. In 2016, when I was unable to take time off work, my daughters overstayed their tourist visas by three days and were fined RM100 each. At the time, I made appeals to the Department of Immigration but was eventually forced to entrust a friend to make the visa run on my behalf, with my two daughters.

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I had to endure harsh comments from officers during the many visits to Government offices on visa matters, including questions on the legitimacy of my marriage, suggestions that I should remarry my former husband (the divorce was finalised on 28 June 2017), and requests for proof of maternity via a DNA test.

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In 2018, I enrolled my daughters in an international school, and have since been able to secure a yearly student visa for them. The cost to apply for a student pass is RM60 per student per year paid to the Government, which requires medical insurance for which I pay RM1,454 yearly. Each student pass requires me to also pay RM550 to the school; thus far totalling RM5,500. In February 2021, amidst the Government-mandated Movement Control Orders in their location of residence (mandated due to the heightened exposure to COVID-19), both their student passes were still required to be renewed.

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Further, both are enrolled in an international school because of the many hurdles they face, as non-citizens, in accessing public schools. Due to this, I am required to pay a substantial amount each year for their education: from 2017 to 2021, I paid RM135,730 for the eldest daughter and RM173,148 for the younger daughter. This is a cost that would have otherwise been free if they were able to obtain my Malaysian citizenship as their Malaysian mother. Our family is left in a vulnerable position especially at this time during the pandemic, when my industry of employment, hospitality, has been severely crippled, causing me to lose my job.

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I do not receive financial support from my former husband for Juliette and Abigail’s schooling or medical insurance — both of which they cannot access at affordable rates in Malaysia. I worry that if I cannot afford international school, my children would go uneducated, causing me to lose custody. On top of that, I also do not receive the social welfare schemes offered by the Government for my children, such as the economic stimulus package offered to support the public during the pandemic.

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I am suffering from extreme financial hardship because of the citizenship laws that prevent me from conferring my nationality to my children, just because I am a woman. Every year my daughters’ visas need to be processed, and I have to pay for private schooling and exorbitant healthcare rates. This country is supposed to be protecting me, yet as a single Malaysian mother, I am put in a situation of extreme vulnerability and insecurity, and in constant fear of losing my children.