Persons providing services as tourist guides to be licensed
(1) No person shall act, or hold himself out, as a tourist guide unless he is licensed under this Part.
(2) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding seven thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both, and in the case of a continuing offence, shall, in addition, be liable to a daily fine not exceeding five hundred ringgit for each day the offence continues to be committed.
Register
The Commissioner shall cause to be kept and maintained a register of licensed tourist guides.
Application for licence and qualification of applicants
(1) Any application for a licence under this Part shall be made in writing to the Commissioner in such form as may be determined and it shall contain, or be accompanied by, such information and documents as may be prescribed.
(2) No person shall apply to be licensed under this Part unless—
(a) he has undergone a course or courses of training and passed the tests of proficiency conducted by the Commissioner or any body authorized in writing by the Commissioner to conduct a course of training and tests of proficiency for tourist guides;
(b) he has completed any other course recognized by the Commissioner as being equivalent to a course referred to in paragraph (a); or
(c) it appears to the Commissioner, with due regard to the character, qualifications and experience of such person, that he is competent to be a tourist guide.
Grant of licence
(1) Upon receiving an application under subsection 23(1), the Commissioner shall consider the application and may, where he is satisfied of the suitability of the applicant and upon payment of the prescribed fee, grant a licence with or without conditions.
(2) The Commissioner shall enter the name of every person who has been granted a licence under subsection (1) in the register and issue to that person an authorization card in such form as may be prescribed.
(3) The Commissioner may refuse to grant a licence to any person without assigning any reason thereof.
(4) Where the Commissioner refuses to grant a licence, he shall immediately notify the applicant in writing of his refusal.
Validity of licence
A licence granted by the Commissioner under this Part shall, unless sooner revoked, be valid for a period of not exceeding three years from the date the licence was granted.
Authorization card
(1) An authorization card issued to a licensed tourist guide under subsection 24(2)—
(a) shall be worn conspicuously whenever the licensed tourist guide is on duty, conducting any tour or when he is attending any course as required under section 27;
(b) shall not be worn by any person other than the person to whom it was issued.
(2) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding five thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both.
Duties imposed upon licensed tourist guides
(1) A licensed tourist guide shall attend further courses of training and pass further tests of proficiency for tourist guides as may be required by the Commissioner.
(2) A standard form of dress as may be prescribed shall be worn by every licensed tourist guide while on duty or conducting tours.
(3) A licensed tourist guide shall comply with a standard code of ethics as may be prescribed.
Suspension or revocation of licence
(1) If any licensed tourist guide—
(a) has made any misrepresentation or has failed to disclose any fact at the time of applying for a licence, and such misrepresentation or non-disclosure would have influenced the Commissioner to license him in pursuance of section 24;
(b) has failed to attend or successfully complete such further courses of training or pass such further tests of proficiency as may be required;
(c) has failed to wear the authorization card or has allowed any other person to wear the authorization card in contravention of section 26;
(d) has acted in contravention of the provisions of this Act;
(e) has contravened any of the conditions of his licence imposed under subsection 24(1) or the code of ethics referred to in subsection 27(3);
(f) is, in the opinion of the Commissioner, incapable by reason of illness or otherwise of acting as a tourist guide;
(g) has not performed the functions of a tourist guide for a continuous period of six months; or
(h) has been convicted of any offence involving dishonesty, fraud or moral turpitude,
the Commissioner may suspend the licence granted under section 24 and withdraw the authorization card for such period as may be determined or revoke the licence and remove the name of the licensed tourist guide from the register or, where the licence has expired, refuse to renew the licence:
Provided that the Commissioner may not suspend, revoke or refuse to renew the licence of the licensed tourist guide in any of the circumstances mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (g) without first giving the tourist guide concerned an opportunity to be heard.
(2) Where the Commissioner suspends, revokes or refuses to renew a licence, he shall immediately notify the tourist guide concerned in writing of his decision.
Effect of suspension or revocation of licence
(1) Any licensed tourist guide whose licence has been suspended pursuant to section 28 shall not during the period of suspension act as a tourist guide.
(2) Any licensed tourist guide whose licence has been revoked shall immediately cease to act as a tourist guide in any circumstances.
(3) Every licensed tourist guide whose licence has not been renewed or has been revoked pursuant to section 28 shall return the licence and the authorization card to the Commissioner, subject to section 30, not later than fourteen days from the date on which the notice of refusal to renew or revocation is served on him.
(4) Any person who contravenes this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding seven thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both, and in the case of a continuing offence, shall, in addition, be liable to a daily fine not exceeding five hundred ringgit for each day the offence continues to be committed.
Right to appeal
(1) Any licensed tourist guide who is aggrieved—
(a) by the refusal of the Commissioner to renew his licence; or
(b) by the suspension or revocation of his licence under section 28,
may appeal in writing to the Minister within fourteen days from the date on which the notice of refusal to renew, suspension or revocation is served on him.
(2) The decision of the Minister shall be final and conclusive.
(3) Where the Minister confirms the decision of the Commissioner, the licensed tourist guide shall, within seven days from the date of the confirmation, return the licence and the authorization card to the Commissioner.
(4) Any person who contravenes subsection (3) shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding five thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both, and the court shall retain the licence and the authorization card and forward them to the Commissioner.
Surrender of licence and authorization card
A licensed tourist guide may surrender his licence by forwarding his licence and his authorization card to the Commissioner with a written notice of its surrender and the surrender shall take effect on the date the Commissioner receives the licence and authorization card.
Source: Laws of Malaysia, Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia (lom.agc.gov.my). Not a copy of the Gazette printed by the Government Printer (Interpretation Acts 1948 and 1967, s 61).
