MCMC announces two-year moratorium on issuance of new courier service licences

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia has announced a moratorium on the issuance of new courier licences for a period of two years. As a result, authorities will freeze new applications for those intending to obtain a new courier service licence from 14th September 2020 until 15th September 2022.

According to the MCMC, there are currently 109 courier service licence holders that are currently operating in Malaysia as of October 2020. The decision to implement a moratorium is to allow the the government and the postal and courier industry to strengthen the sector to overcome multiple challenges due to the change of technology and market trends. The moratorium is implemented through the licensing powers under the Postal Services Act 2012 and it can be revised at anytime if the need arises.

The move is in parallel with the calls made by the Association of Malaysian Express Carriers (AMEC) which represents 25 major courier companies which include Pos Malaysia, GD Express, Citi-Link and others.

The drafting of an action plan will be implemented through a National Postal and Courier Industry Lab (NPCIL) which will take place for 3 weeks between 2nd to 22nd November 2020, subject to the CMCO situation. The report from the lab will contain action plans to support the strategic development for postal and courier industries which will be published on MCMC’s website for the public to view.

According to the MCMC, the result from the NPCIL is important as the industry serves as a core for eCommerce and digital economy development. The industry face various challenges triggered by the technological boom that resulted in the merger of logistics, eCommerce platforms, eHailing and financial transactions. The last study on postal and courier service was conducted 11 years ago in 2009.

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