Strata management bodies cannot fully block access for defaulting owners, ministry says
Joint management bodies and strata management corporations in Malaysia may still impose administrative restrictions on owners who fail to pay maintenance charges, but they cannot completely deny them access to their own units. This position follows a Court of Appeal ruling on 26 Oct 2026 and comes as the government reviews the legal framework to strengthen the collection of arrears without affecting owners’ fundamental rights.
Highlights
- JMBs and MCs may take action 14 days after an arrears notice is issued, including deactivating electronic access devices and suspending access to shared facilities.
- Minister Nga Kor Ming stressed that management bodies cannot completely deny defaulting owners the right to access and enjoy their units.
- Management bodies must provide reasonable and safe alternative access, including entry through the security post and use of a regular lift or service staircase.
This article was translated from the original. Read the original version by our correspondent here.
Limits on enforcement measures and legal recourse
As reported by The Edge Malaysia, Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming said JMBs and MCs may take action 14 days after an arrears notice is issued under the Strata Management Regulations 2015. This may include deactivating electronic access devices, requiring registration in a visitors’ book and suspending access to shared facilities.However, he stressed that these restrictions must not go so far as to deny owners the right to access and enjoy their own units. In a written parliamentary reply to Jimmy Puah Wee Tse in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday, delivered on his behalf by Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek, Nga referred to the Court of Appeal’s ruling in the case of SL Land Sdn Bhd and Foong Wei Ching v JMB Sentral Bazar Nilai.
Nga said management bodies must provide a reasonable and safe alternative means of access. For example, an owner whose lift access card has been deactivated must still be allowed to enter the development through the security post and use a regular lift or service staircase to reach their unit.
He said the use of parking bays on common property may be suspended, but vehicles must still be allowed to enter temporarily to drop off passengers or goods before being parked outside the premises.
In our earlier article on the Court of Appeal ruling interpreting the status of a commission partner under the Partnership Act 1961, we explained that a lawyer named as a commission partner could be held liable for a firm’s debts. The case arose from a condominium sale and purchase transaction involving an unpaid balance, and the ruling is seen as potentially broadening the scope of liability for law firms and professional partnerships in Malaysia.
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