SQE in Malaysia

SQE in Malaysia: SQE or CLP for the Malaysian Bar

A Malaysian can qualify as a solicitor of England and Wales through the SQE, and Kuala Lumpur is on the SRA’s list of cities it aims to include for SQE1 and the SQE2 written papers. Whether that title then stands in for the CLP is not settled. The Legal Profession Qualifying Board lists "Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales" as a qualification that makes someone a qualified person, but the entry dates from 2009 and the Board has published nothing about solicitors who qualified through the SQE.

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Malaysia and the route to England and Wales, where every SQE2 oral assessment is held.

2009: year the Qualifying Board’s entry for "Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales" took effect, before the SQE existed
9: months of pupillage in Malaysia that every qualified person still serves before admission (Legal Profession Act 1976)
35.4%: CLP pass rate for 2025, 326 of 921 candidates, as announced by the Qualifying Board’s chairman and reported by The Star
15: months of post-qualification work the SRA asks of a Malaysian advocate and solicitor applying for an SQE2 exemption

In short

Can the SQE replace the CLP in Malaysia?

Facts checked against the regulators’ own pages. Last updated 12 November 2026.

Not confirmed either way. The Legal Profession Qualifying Board’s list of qualifications that make someone a "qualified person" includes "Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales", awarding body the Solicitors Regulation Authority, effective 1 October 2009. The entry carries no condition and names no route.
That entry is older than the SQE, and the Board has published nothing about solicitors who qualified through it. The title is listed on its face. It is neither confirmed nor restricted for the SQE route, so get the Board’s answer in writing before you rely on it.
Where the title counts, it replaces the CLP and nothing else. Admission still needs Malaysian citizenship or permanent residence, nine months’ pupillage in Malaysia, and the Bahasa Malaysia Qualifying Examination or an exemption from it.
Holding the title means being admitted in England and Wales, not only passing the exams: SQE1, SQE2, two years of qualifying work experience and the SRA’s character check.
Kuala Lumpur is on the SRA’s list of cities it aims to include for SQE1 and the SQE2 written papers. The SQE2 oral assessments are held only in England and Wales.
A Malaysian advocate and solicitor has no agreed exemption. SQE1 is sat, and an individual SQE2 exemption can be applied for with 15 months of post-qualification work.

The question that matters

SQE or CLP: does an English solicitor skip the CLP?

What the Legal Profession Qualifying Board has published, what it has not, and what to ask it.

Under the Legal Profession Act 1976, admission as an advocate and solicitor is open to a "qualified person". Section 3 defines one as someone who passed the final LL.B examination of one of four named universities, someone who "is a barrister-at-law of England", or someone holding another qualification the Board has declared sufficient. The Board is the statutory body that decides, and it publishes its list of qualifying qualifications.

The Qualifying Board’s entry for English solicitors, read 12 November 2026

What the list shows	Entry
Qualification	"Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales"
Awarding body	Solicitors Regulation Authority
Effective date	1 October 2009
Conditions attached	None shown
Route named (LPC and training contract, QLTS or SQE)	None
Other UK titles on the list	Barrister-at-Law of the four Inns of Court, and "Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Judicature of England" from The Law Society, both from 1 June 1977
Anything about the SQE on the Board’s website	Nothing found. The pages in the portal menu and the 2026 CLP Guidelines were checked for "SQE" and "Solicitors Qualifying" on 12 November 2026.

On its face, the entry covers any admitted solicitorIt names the title, not how the title was earned.
It has not been confirmed for the SQE routeThe entry took effect in 2009 and the SQE began in 2021. The Board has published neither a confirmation nor a restriction since.
Silence on a website is not a decisionIt tells you what the Board’s site shows. It does not prove that no decision has been made, in either direction.
Extra conditions could not be ruled outThe Board’s page attaches none to the solicitor title, but this guide could not check whether any is applied in practice, for example about the underlying degree.

If the title is accepted, what it saves

One step: the CLP. Section 11 of the Act still requires a qualified person to be a citizen or permanent resident of Malaysia, to be of good character and to have served pupillage in Malaysia, which section 12 sets at nine months. The Bahasa Malaysia Qualifying Examination also remains: an oral examination before a three-member panel (fee RM350), unless you hold a certificate of exemption, which a credit in Bahasa Malaysia at SPM level supports (fee RM150). Sources: Legal Profession Act 1976, as published by the Board and the Board’s FAQ.

If you are not admitted in Malaysia

An English solicitor without Malaysian admission is a foreign lawyer there. Under Part IVA of the Act a foreign lawyer may practise in an international partnership, a qualified foreign law firm or a Malaysian law firm only if registered by the Bar Council, and only in the permitted practice areas. Separately, a foreign lawyer may enter Malaysia to advise a client on law that does not involve Malaysian law for no more than sixty days in a calendar year, with immigration authorisation for each stay.

The comparison

CLP route or English solicitor route, step by step

For a Malaysian with a UK law degree who wants to end up at the Malaysian Bar. This is about admission to the High Court in Malaya: admission in Sabah and Sarawak is not covered here.

The Palace of Justice in Putrajaya — Photo: Trebz · CC BY 2.0 · Cropped/resized for layout, with light brightness, colour and sharpness adjustments; WebP export.

The CLP route and the English solicitor route for a UK-law graduate

Step	CLP route	English solicitor route (SQE)
Who can enter	Malaysian citizens and permanent residents (and Brunei citizens) with a recognised UK, Australian or New Zealand LL.B, or one of certain listed local degrees.	The SRA’s admission criteria contain no nationality or residence condition.
Degree	On the Board’s list and within its 2026 Guidelines, which set rules on SPM credits, A-levels or STPM, length of study, core law courses and full-time study.	A degree in any subject, or an equivalent level 6 qualification. It is needed for admission, not to sit the exams.
Examinations	Five papers: General Paper, Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure, Evidence and Professional Practice.	SQE1 (two papers, FLK1 and FLK2) and SQE2 (written and oral), on the law of England and Wales.
Sittings and place	Main examination in July. A supplementary examination in October for candidates with a conditional pass.	SQE1 in January and July, SQE2 four times a year. Kuala Lumpur is on the SRA’s list for SQE1 and SQE2 written. The SQE2 oral assessments are in England and Wales only.
Work experience before the title	Not an entry requirement in the Board’s Guidelines. Pupillage comes after the CLP.	Two years of qualifying work experience, full time or equivalent. It can be gained in Malaysia and need not cover English law, but a solicitor of England and Wales or a compliance officer for legal practice must confirm it.
What passing gives you	You are a qualified person.	After the SRA’s character and suitability check, admission as a solicitor of England and Wales. In Malaysia that title is listed by the Board and unconfirmed for the SQE route.
Still to do for the Malaysian Bar	Nine months’ pupillage, the Bahasa Malaysia Qualifying Examination or an exemption, and citizenship or permanent residence.	The same three, if the Board accepts the title.
What is changing	The Government has told Parliament that a New Bar Course will replace the CLP, expected in 2028 or in 2029 at the latest, as reported.	SQE1 has a new format from January 2027: see the SQE 2027 changes.

Read the two columns as different journeys, not as a long road and a shortcut. The CLP route is one examination and then pupillage. The English route is two examinations and two years of work before the title exists, and its last step into Malaysian practice rests on an entry that pre-dates the SQE.

Kuala Lumpur is the only Malaysian city on the SRA’s list for SQE1 and SQE2 written, which the SQE site calls "illustrative only": the cities for a sitting are confirmed when booking opens. The SQE2 oral assessments are held in London, Cardiff, Manchester and Birmingham, in the same assessment window as the written papers, so a candidate without an exemption makes one trip. Booking, identification and visas are on the SQE from outside the UK.

Sources: the Board’s CLP introduction, CLP Guidelines 2026, SRA, the SQE route, SRA, qualifying work experience and SQE booking windows.

The numbers

CLP pass rates, and the course due to replace the CLP

Two sets of CLP figures were made public in 2026. They are counted differently and cannot be set against each other.

CLP pass rates made public in 2026, each with its basis

Year and basis	Pass rate	Who gave the figure
2025, end of year	35.4% (326 of 921 candidates)	The Board’s chairman, the Attorney General, at the CLP convocation on 30 April 2026, as reported by The Star
2024, end of year	30.24%	The same speech, as the comparison for 2025
2026, main examination only	19% full passes (158 of 826 candidates)	Deputy Minister M. Kulasegaran in the Dewan Rakyat on 20 October 2026, as reported by Bernama
2025, main examination only	21% full passes	The same parliamentary answer, on the same basis

Compare 35.4% with 30.24%, and 19% with 21%. Never one pair with the other.
The main-examination figures count full passes at the main sitting. They leave out the supplementary examination, and the final 2026 results were due in November 2026.
There is no quota. The Deputy Minister told the Dewan Rakyat that the pass mark is 40 in each subject and that candidates are assessed on merit. The Board’s own FAQ says it "does not seek to fail any candidate".
The same answer said most candidates were common-law graduates from the UK, Australia and New Zealand who had not prepared adequately for the Malaysian-law content, and that the CLP relies on written examinations alone, with no required preparatory course.

Both sets reached the public through press reports of official statements, which is why each is attributed here: The Star, 30 April 2026 and Malay Mail, 20 October 2026.

The SQE is not the easy alternative. At the July 2026 sitting 42% of SQE1 candidates passed, and the report does not break results down by country. The two examinations test different law on different candidates, so the percentages are not a like-for-like comparison. Source: SQE1 July 2026 statistical report.

The CLP is due to be replaced

The Government has told Parliament that a New Bar Course will replace the CLP: a Conversion Course followed by a Legal Practice Postgraduate Certificate. In a written reply reported on 5 October 2026, the Minister said it is "expected to be implemented in 2028 or at the latest in 2029". The Board set up a task force on 27 April 2026, and the treatment of current CLP candidates was still under study. In June 2026 the Deputy Minister described a three-month online Conversion Course, then a six-month certificate, then pupillage. Sources: The Star, 5 October 2026 and The Vibes, June 2026.

No official text of the new course was read for this guide, and how it will treat people who already hold a UK professional title has not been confirmed. A plan built on avoiding the CLP has a short shelf life either way, so ask the Board about the new course in the same letter.

Your degree

University of London LLB and UK degrees: CLP rules, SQE rules

The CLP has detailed rules about which degree you hold and how you studied for it. The SQE asks for a degree in any subject.

How the same degree is treated for the CLP and for the SQE

Your degree	For the CLP	For the SQE
LL.B from a UK university on the Board’s list	Accepted, if the 2026 Guidelines are met. The list has 38 UK universities, eight of them added with effect from 1 January 2026.	A UK degree in any subject meets the SRA’s degree requirement.
University of London LLB (External)	Accepted as an express exception to the rule against distance and part-time degrees, on conditions: completed within six years of registration, with at least a Lower Second.	A UK Level 6 degree awarded by the University of London. The SRA does not name it: see the SQE after a University of London LLB.
Twinning degree with a Malaysian provider	Accepted only as 1+2 or 2+1, with the Malaysian provider and programme accredited by the MQA. A degree taught wholly in Malaysia (3+0) is not within that wording.	The SRA asks for a degree at UK level 6 or its equivalent. Check yours on the SRA’s degree page.
UK degree taken at a branch campus in Malaysia	Case by case. The University of Reading Malaysia LL.B is recognised for the cohort registered from September 2019.	The same test as any other degree: UK level 6 or its equivalent.
A degree that is not in law	Not an entry route. The CLP is for holders of a recognised LL.B or a listed local degree.	Accepted. The SQE route has no law-degree requirement.

The Board’s Guidelines for UK, Australian and New Zealand law graduates took effect on 1 April 2026. Their main requirements, which the University of London LLB must meet as well:

SPM credits: three if you registered for the degree before 5 June 2018, five if on or after.
Two A-level passes in one sitting, or the STPM equivalent, obtained before starting the degree. AS levels are not accepted.
A degree of at least three academic years, completed within six years.
At least twelve law courses, including six core courses (Contract, Tort, Constitutional, Criminal, Land, Equity and Trusts) passed without a compensated pass.
For the University of London LLB: seven years to complete if you registered before 1 September 2016, a Third allowed only if you registered before 31 December 2001, and every component completed under the programme’s own structure.

A UK degree does not by itself make a Malaysian a qualified person: a UK LL.B holder passes the CLP or holds one of the listed professional titles. That is why the solicitor entry matters to graduates whose degree falls outside the Guidelines, and why the Board’s written confirmation should come before the plan.

The University of London lists six LLB teaching centres in Malaysia: Advance Tertiary College in Kuala Lumpur and in Penang, Brickfields Asia College in Petaling Jaya, Crescendo International College in Ulu Tiram, SEGi College Sarawak in Kuching and UOW Malaysia KDU College in Shah Alam. Kuala Lumpur is the one Malaysian city on the SRA’s list, so a student in Penang or Kuching should plan to travel for SQE1 as well. Sources: the Board’s list of degrees recognised for the CLP, CLP Guidelines 2026 and University of London, LLB.

Law students studying together in a Kuala Lumpur college library

Already called

SQE2 exemption for Malaysian advocates and solicitors

The SRA’s entry for Malaysia in its exemption finder, as updated on 24 September 2026.

No agreed exemptionThe entry for "Advocate and Solicitor" says you can apply for an individual SQE2 exemption.
What you sendProof of your professional qualification, a reference showing at least 15 months of legal work after qualifying as a Malaysian advocate and solicitor, and proof of your referee’s own qualification.
SQE1 is satThe SRA calls SQE1 exemptions "very rare" and says only one has been granted since 2021.
No qualifying work experienceThe two-year requirement does not apply to qualified lawyers.
£265, and apply firstThat is the SRA’s application fee. It decides within 180 days of a complete application, and it will not exempt an assessment you have already failed or are waiting on.
English is shown separatelyA lawyer exempt from SQE2 shows either that their professional qualification was assessed in English, or a Secure English Language Test such as IELTS Academic UKVI at 7.5 overall.

With the exemption, a Malaysian lawyer’s whole examination is SQE1, and Kuala Lumpur is on the list of cities for it. Without it, SQE2 means the written papers and one trip to England or Wales for the oral assessments. Look up the entry in our SQE2 exemption finder by jurisdiction and read how to apply for an SQE exemption. Sources: SRA, SQE exemptions and SRA, English or Welsh language proficiency.

Costs

What the SQE costs from Malaysia, in ringgit

The SRA’s fees are the same in Kuala Lumpur as in London. Add one trip to England or Wales for the SQE2 oral assessments, unless you hold an SQE2 exemption.

In pounds, with Malaysian ringgitsMYR

Paid to the SRA, the same wherever you sit

SQE1 assessment feeFLK1 and FLK2, paid to the SRA’s assessment provider when you book£2,006RM10,800
SQE2 assessment feeWritten and oral, paid when you book SQE2£3,086RM16,700
Both assessments£5,092RM27,500

Preparing with FQPS

FQPS SQE1 RevisionA month, no minimum term, cancel anytime£79RM427
FQPS SQE2 PreparationA month, includes 6 live 1:1 mocks with a solicitor£189RM1,020

SRA fees are for assessments from September 2026. FQPS prices include VAT. MYR figures are a guide at the European Central Bank rate of 12 November 2026: you pay in pounds, and your card provider sets the final rate.

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Ways to pay

Preparing with FQPS

Preparing for the SQE from Malaysia

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How the mentor works

Work experience gained in Malaysia

Two years of legal work in Malaysia can count as qualifying work experience, but a solicitor of England and Wales has to confirm it. Where none works in your firm, a solicitor outside it can confirm the work after reviewing it.

QWE confirmation for overseas work

SQE2 oral practice before the trip

The SQE2 plans include live 1:1 mocks with a qualified solicitor, covering the oral and the written stations, with written feedback.

The SQE2 course

The January 2027 format

SQE1 changes format in January 2027. The free FLK1 and FLK2 mocks you get on sign-up are already in the new format.

The SQE 2027 changes

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Who studies with us

A UK course with students well beyond the UK

FQPS is online from the first revision card to the last mock, so where you live changes your time zone and nothing else.

29: countries our paying students’ cards were issued in, in the 12 months to November 2026
44%: of those students paid with a card issued outside the UK

Lit: the UK and 14 of the other countries, among them France, United States, Singapore, Germany, South Korea, Türkiye.

I received my results a few weeks ago and am thrilled to share that I passed!

MarceauxMalaysia, read the review on Trustpilot

Seven months of prep was plenty, and audiobooks made studying actually enjoyable.

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Honestly, it is value for money.

Yosheel Bala BangarooCanada, read the review on Trustpilot

These are three of our reviews, chosen because the reviewers are outside the UK. Read every FQPS review on Trustpilot, good and bad. Country counts are from our payment records on 12 November 2026.

An honest view

When the SQE is the wrong choice for a Malaysian candidate

We would rather you chose the right route than our course.

You want to practise Malaysian law and your degree meets the CLP rules. The CLP is the Qualifying Board’s own route. The SQE route into Malaysian practice rests on a 2009 entry that the Board has not restated since the SQE began.
You are taking the SQE only to avoid the CLP. Even if the Board accepts the title, pupillage, the Bahasa Malaysia examination and the citizenship or permanent residence rule all remain, and the title itself needs two years of qualifying work experience first.
You are neither a Malaysian citizen nor a permanent resident and want Malaysian admission. The Act requires one or the other, whichever qualification you hold.
You expect to practise in Malaysia on the English title alone. Without Malaysian admission you are a foreign lawyer: registration by the Bar Council and permitted practice areas only, or sixty days a year of advice that does not involve Malaysian law.
You are a Malaysian advocate and solicitor counting on your call to cover SQE1. It will not, and the SQE2 exemption is an individual application, not an automatic one.
You cannot travel to England or Wales and have no SQE2 exemption. The oral assessments are held nowhere else.

Questions

The SQE, the CLP and Malaysia: common questions

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Is the SQE recognised in Malaysia?

Not by name. The Legal Profession Qualifying Board’s list of qualifications that make someone a qualified person includes "Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales", effective 1 October 2009, with no condition and no route named. The Board has published nothing about solicitors who qualified through the SQE, so the title is listed on its face and is neither confirmed nor restricted for that route. Ask the Board for written confirmation before relying on it.

Can I skip the CLP by qualifying as an English solicitor?

Possibly, but it is not confirmed for solicitors who qualified through the SQE. The solicitor title is on the Qualifying Board’s list under an entry dated 2009, which pre-dates the SQE. Even where the title counts, it replaces only the CLP: you would still need Malaysian citizenship or permanent residence, nine months’ pupillage and the Bahasa Malaysia Qualifying Examination or an exemption.

Can I sit the SQE in Kuala Lumpur?

Kuala Lumpur is on the SRA’s list of cities it aims to include for SQE1 and the SQE2 written assessments. The list is illustrative, and the cities for each sitting are confirmed when booking opens. The SQE2 oral assessments are held only in London, Cardiff, Manchester and Birmingham.

What is the CLP pass rate in Malaysia?

Two figures were made public in 2026, on different bases. The Qualifying Board’s chairman said 326 of 921 candidates passed in 2025, a rate of 35.4%, up from 30.24% in 2024. Separately, a Deputy Minister told the Dewan Rakyat that 19% of candidates (158 of 826) obtained a full pass in the 2026 main examination, against 21% in 2025 on the same main-examination basis, which leaves out the supplementary examination. The two sets cannot be compared with each other.

Is the CLP being replaced?

The Government has told Parliament that a New Bar Course, made up of a Conversion Course and a Legal Practice Postgraduate Certificate, will replace the CLP. A written reply reported on 5 October 2026 said it is expected in 2028 or in 2029 at the latest. The treatment of current CLP candidates was still under study.

Can I sit the CLP with a University of London external LLB?

Yes, on conditions. The Qualifying Board recognises the University of London Bachelor of Laws (External) as an express exception to its rule against distance and part-time degrees. It must be completed within six years of registration with at least a Lower Second, and the general entry requirements on SPM credits, A-levels or STPM and core law courses still apply.

Do Malaysian lawyers get an exemption from the SQE?

There is no agreed exemption. A Malaysian advocate and solicitor can apply to the SRA for an individual SQE2 exemption with a reference showing at least 15 months of post-qualification legal work. SQE1 has to be sat: the SRA says SQE1 exemptions are very rare and that only one has been granted since 2021.

Can an English solicitor practise in Malaysia without being called to the Malaysian Bar?

Only as a foreign lawyer. The Legal Profession Act 1976 requires a foreign lawyer to be registered by the Bar Council to practise in an international partnership, a qualified foreign law firm or a Malaysian law firm, and limits the work to permitted practice areas. A foreign lawyer may also enter Malaysia to advise on law that does not involve Malaysian law for up to sixty days in a calendar year.

Do I need to be a Malaysian citizen to be called to the Malaysian Bar?

The Legal Profession Act 1976 requires a qualified person to be either a Federal citizen or a permanent resident of Malaysia to be admitted as an advocate and solicitor. Holding an English solicitor title does not change that.

Other routes to the English title

SQE after a University of London LLBWhat each country’s regulator does with the external LLB, and where you can sit the SQE from there.

SQE in SingaporeNot a route to the Singapore Bar: what the English title does do there, the 11 approved UK universities, and SQE2 exemptions.

SQE in Hong KongSQE or PCLL, PCLL places by provider, the foreign lawyer register, and the OLQE route from English to Hong Kong solicitor.All 15 international guidesWhere you can sit, what has to be done in the UK, and a guide for each country.

Sources for this page (25)

Each source was read on or before 12 November 2026. Rules change: check the regulator's own page before you act on anything here. This page is general information, not legal or immigration advice. FQPS Academy is an independent SQE preparation provider, not affiliated with or endorsed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority or Kaplan. The SQE and SOLICITORS QUALIFYING EXAMINATION trade marks are the property of and are used under licence from the Solicitors Regulation Authority.