Why this isn’t something two households can agree between themselves
The FDH-specific page frames the rule as a condition of employment, one of the same list of conditions that governs the pass she holds: “Ensure that the FDH does not change employment or change employers without the permission of the Immigration Department of Malaysia.” That’s permission-based wording, not a flat ban — it implies a route exists for Immigration to grant that permission, without spelling out what that route is.
The general Foreign Worker page, covering the six standard sectors a domestic helper placement doesn’t fall under, states the same underlying principle more bluntly: “change of employers or employment sectors is not allowed.” Read together, the honest position is that changing employer is something only Immigration can authorise, not something a household can arrange privately with another family, regardless of which page’s exact wording applies to a given case.
The one exception Immigration actually names
There is a specific, named circumstance where Immigration acts on its own initiative: “Immigration Department of Malaysia has the power to transfer the FDH if she has been persecuted by the original employer to a new employer, on humanitarian grounds even without the consent of the original employer.” This is a protective mechanism aimed at a specific situation — persecution by the original employer — not a general transfer-request process available for any reason a household or helper might want to change employers.
Outside that named exception, no official source found describes a routine application process, required documents, or a timeline for a change of employer initiated for an ordinary reason (a household relocating, a helper wanting a different placement, or similar). That’s a genuine gap in what’s publicly documented, not a sign the process doesn’t exist — it means confirming the actual steps directly with Immigration rather than assuming a standard process that isn’t described anywhere.