# Signboard Licence: DBP Vetting and the Bahasa Malaysia Rules

> Every council requires Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka to certify your signboard wording — but the size rule layered on top differs by council, and the DBKL rule is not the one most guides describe.

- Category: business
- Language: en
- Status: published
- Updated: 2026-08-14
- Canonical: https://negaraku.md/en/business/signboard-licence-malaysia

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Most guides tell you that Kuala Lumpur is the city where Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka has to
approve your signboard wording, as though it were a KL quirk.

It is not. DBKL, MBPJ, MBSA and DBKK all require it, each in its own published words. The
thing that genuinely differs between councils is not *whether* DBP vets your sign — it is
the **size rule** the council layers on top afterwards. And the Kuala Lumpur size rule is
not the one that gets repeated.

## Where the requirement comes from

The enabling power is **s.102(c) of the Local Government Act 1976**: by-laws "to regulate,
license, restrict, prevent or remove the exhibition of advertisements". The Sarawak
equivalent is s.91(b) of the Local Authorities Ordinance 1996; in Sabah it sits in s.49(1)
of the Local Government Ordinance 1961.

In Kuala Lumpur the operative instrument is the **Undang-Undang Kecil Iklan (Wilayah
Persekutuan) 1982, P.U.(A) 187/1982**, as amended by **P.U.(A) 364/1985**.

Note carefully where the duty sits. **DBP certification is not itself a statutory
obligation on your business.** The by-law requires the advertisement to be in Bahasa
Malaysia; the council then requires a DBP endorsement as an application document. DBP
verifies. The council compels.

## The DBP step

The service is **DBP Sah Bahasa**, run through DBP's portal at `dbpsahbahasa.my` and
linked from DBP's own official page. Published fees are **RM60 per council** for
advertisements — outdoor billboards, pillar advertisements, electronic advertising — and
**RM30 per council** for signage, which covers business premise signs, banners, bunting,
posters, vehicle wraps, notices and labels.

The per-council pricing matters: if you have outlets under three different councils, that
is three submissions. DBP's client charter puts the turnaround for the online service at
**three working days** (the legacy counter standard was one working day), so build that
into your timeline before fabrication.

All four councils name the requirement explicitly. DBKL asks for one colour signboard
visual certified by DBP. MBPJ requires DBP spelling endorsement for every advertisement
illustration and links the portal directly. MBSA names DBP with its phone numbers and
portal, and reserves the right to reject a visual **even after DBP has certified it** if
the council considers it unsuitable. DBKK requires the visual to be referred to DBP for
certification.

## The Bahasa Malaysia rule — and the KL misreading

The Kuala Lumpur by-law, as reproduced with its gazette citations in DBP's own procedure
document, says three things:

1. An advertisement shall be in Bahasa Malaysia, either alone or together with another
   language.
2. The Bahasa Malaysia words and letters shall be given priority **in colour and in a more
   prominent position** than words or letters in any other language used, and the size of
   the other language **shall not exceed** that of the Bahasa Malaysia.
3. A registered firm, society or company name that consists of or includes non-Malay words
   **need not be translated**.

Read limb 2 precisely. It is a **ceiling on the other language**, not a floor requiring
Bahasa Malaysia to be larger. Equal size complies. DBKL's own portal wording is
correspondingly qualitative — Bahasa Melayu to be prioritised in size, colour and position
— and **no percentage appears anywhere**.

That distinction matters because other councils *do* publish percentages, and those
percentages get quoted as though they were national law.

| Council | Published rule |
| --- | --- |
| **DBKL** | Priority in colour and position; the other language must not exceed the Bahasa Malaysia size. No percentage |
| **MBPJ** | Bahasa Malaysia lettering **30% larger** than other languages, prioritised in position, correct grammar |
| **MBSA** — premise signs | Company **activity** stated in Bahasa Malaysia, **5% larger than the company name** and positioned above it |
| **MBSA** — bunting and banners | Bahasa Malaysia **30% larger** than other languages and prioritised in position |
| **DBKK** | Bahasa Malaysia required, alone or with another language. No size or position rule published |

MBSA adds a restriction the others do not: foreign scripts other than English, Mandarin and
Tamil are not permitted at all, and Jawi is encouraged.

**There is no nationwide percentage.** Four councils produced four positions. Any guide
quoting a single figure for Malaysia is generalising from one council.

## How fees are computed

Three different bases, which is itself the point.

- **DBKL** — per square metre, priced from the first square metre with an increment
  thereafter, with separate schedules for lamp-post advertisements, temporary displays,
  balloons and banners, each carrying its own deposit.
- **MBPJ** — per square metre with an eight square metre threshold, then increments. The
  security deposit equals the approved licence fee, is charged once at first approval, and
  is refundable when the sign comes down.
- **MBSA** — **flat per unit** for bunting and banners rather than by area, with the permit,
  pole, sticker and deposit itemised separately, and a maximum display period of one month.
- **DBKK** — per square metre per year, with streamers priced per piece per day and banners
  converted to a daily rate.

**One anomaly worth flagging before you budget.** MBPJ's own October 2024 composite-licence
guide sets out two tables in sequence. The standard premise-signboard table prices as
expected — unlit **RM100 a year** (up to 8 m²) plus RM10 per extra m², lit **RM150 a year**
plus RM15 per extra m². But the logo-type table immediately below it **inverts** that:
unlit **RM200 a year** plus RM20 per extra m², lit **RM150 a year** plus RM15 per extra m²
— so an unlit logo sign is priced *above* the lit one. DBKL's premise signboard table is
reported to invert the ordering the same way, but its per-square-metre fee schedule is no
longer reachable at its published URL, so the DBKL figure still needs council confirmation
before you rely on it.

## What happens if you put one up anyway

Section 102(c) expressly includes the power to **remove** an advertisement, which is the
statutory basis for a takedown. Section 104 caps by-law penalties at a fine up to
**RM2,000**, imprisonment up to one year, or both, plus **RM200 for each day** the offence
continues after conviction — and DBKL's business licensing by-law mirrors that ceiling
exactly.

In practice the lever councils reach for first is not prosecution. It is **forfeiture of
the deposit** when a sign is not removed.

## Common mistakes

- **Fabricating the signboard before DBP certifies the wording.** The certified visual is
  an application document; a fabricated sign that fails vetting is a sunk cost.
- **Assuming DBP approval is the end of it.** MBSA reserves the right to reject a visual it
  considers unsuitable despite DBP certification.
- **Applying the 30% rule in Kuala Lumpur.** The KL by-law caps the other language at the
  Bahasa Malaysia size; it sets no percentage.
- **Translating your brand name.** A registered company, firm or society name in another
  language need not be translated.
- **Applying for the signboard licence alone in Petaling Jaya.** MBPJ will not accept it
  without an accompanying premise licence application.

## What's next

Draft the wording first, run it through DBP Sah Bahasa for every council you have premises
in, and only then get quotes for fabrication. Then read your own council's size rule off
its own page — because the four we checked disagreed with each other.

## Sources

- Local Government Act 1976 (Act 171) — https://www.doa.gov.my/doa/resources/info_doa/akta171_kerajaan_tempatan_1976.pdf (Attorney General's Chambers)
- DBP Sah Bahasa — https://dbp.gov.my/dbp-sah-bahasa/ (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka)
- Tatacara Pengesahan Bahasa — https://eseminar.dbp.gov.my/dokumen/tatacara1.pdf (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka)
- Syarat Am dan Keperluan Dokumen bagi Permohonan Iklan Papan Tanda Premis — https://www.mbpj.gov.my/sites/default/files/syarat_am_dan_keperluan_dokumen_bagi_permohonan_iklan_papan_tanda_premis.pdf (MBPJ)
- Permit Iklan — https://mbsa.gov.my/ms-my/mbsa/perkhidmatan/permit/Halaman/permit_iklan.aspx (MBSA)
- UUK Iklan (Wilayah Persekutuan) 1982 — scanned gazette copy — https://www.dbkl.gov.my/files/senarai-perundangan/subsidiari/(8)--uuk-iklan-(wp)-1982.pdf (Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur)
- Panduan Permohonan Lesen Komposit Premis dan Iklan (Okt 2024) — https://www.mbpj.gov.my/sites/default/files/panduan_permohonan_lesen_komposit_premis_dan_iklan_okt2024.pdf (MBPJ)
- Garis Panduan dan Syarat-Syarat Permohonan Lesen Iklan Papan Tanda Premis — https://elesen.dbkl.gov.my/elesen3/UploadControl/Portal/Garis%20Panduan%20Iklan%20Papan%20Tanda-Papan%20Tanda.pdf (Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur)
- Piagam Pelanggan — https://dbp.gov.my/piagam-pelanggan/ (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka)
- Senarai Perundangan (subsidiary by-laws index) — https://www.dbkl.gov.my/info-korporat/senarai-perundangan/ (Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur)
- Lesen Komposit (Perniagaan / Perindustrian) — https://www.mbsa.gov.my/ms-my/mbsa/perkhidmatan/pelesenan/Halaman/lesen_komposit.aspx (Majlis Bandaraya Shah Alam)

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