Do I Need a Noise Risk Assessment (NRA) in Malaysia?

A Noise Risk Assessment (NRA; penaksiran risiko bunyi bising) is mandatory for any Malaysian workplace where employees may be exposed to excessive noise above 82 dB(A). Under the Occupational Safety and Health (Noise Exposure) Regulations 2019, every employer must first check for excessive noise using this checklist; where it may be present, a DOSH-registered noise risk assessor must carry out the NRA.

Need a DOSH-registered assessor? Request an NRA quotation.

What is a Noise Risk Assessment (NRA) under Malaysian law?

A Noise Risk Assessment is the assessment an employer must arrange when its identification shows that any employee may be exposed to excessive noise (bunyi bising berlebihan). The Regulations require the employer to appoint a noise risk assessor (penaksir risiko bunyi bising) who is registered with the Director General of Occupational Safety and Health. The assessor measures noise with IEC-compliant equipment and gives the employer a report with findings and recommendations.

DOSH and its code of practice use “NRA” for the person, the Noise Risk Assessor. Many employers use “NRA” for the assessment itself. In this Guide, “NRA” means the assessment and “assessor” means the person.

The Occupational Safety and Health (Noise Exposure) Regulations 2019 [P.U.(A) 60/2019] (Peraturan-Peraturan Keselamatan dan Kesihatan Pekerjaan (Pendedahan Bising) 2019) were made under section 66 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 [Act 514]. They were gazetted on 1 March 2019 and came into operation on 1 June 2019.

DOSH’s Industry Code of Practice for Management of Occupational Noise Exposure and Hearing Conservation 2019 (the ICOP) was issued under section 37 of the Act as guidance on how to comply with the Regulations. Under section 38, an approved industry code of practice is admissible in evidence in proceedings under the Act or its regulations. The ICOP explains how to comply; it is not the Regulations themselves.

Do I need a noise risk assessment? Malaysia’s two-step decision path

An NRA is mandatory wherever employees may be exposed to excessive noise. The Regulations set out two steps: identify (Regulation 3), then assess (Regulation 4). Every employer does step 1, at least once a year. Employers whose identification shows that employees may be exposed to excessive noise must then do step 2.

The Regulations apply to places of work covered by OSHA 1994. Since 1 June 2024, the Act applies to all places of work throughout Malaysia, including the public services and statutory authorities, except the work listed in its First Schedule (domestic employment, the armed forces, and work on board ships governed by the merchant shipping ordinances). The duty is not limited to factories.

Step 1: every employer identifies excessive noise. Regulation 3(1) requires every employer to identify whether employees may be exposed to excessive noise at the place of work, in the manner determined by the Director General. DOSH’s ICOP asks employers to do this for each area of the workplace, by activity or work process, using the Checklist for Identification of Excessive Noise in its Appendix 1. The checklist has 10 yes/no questions, and a “Yes” to any of them indicates possible excessive noise. Involve the affected employees and people who know the work.

Under Regulation 2, “excessive noise” means any one of these:

Measure	Excessive noise means
Daily noise exposure level (corrected to an 8-hour working day)	Exceeding 82 dB(A)
Daily personal noise dose	Exceeding 50%
Maximum sound pressure level	Exceeding 115 dB(A) at any time
Peak sound pressure level	Exceeding 140 dB(C)

Step 2: if employees may be exposed, appoint a registered assessor. Under Regulation 4(1), where the identification shows that any employee may be exposed to excessive noise, the employer must appoint a noise risk assessor to carry out a noise risk assessment. DOSH’s ICOP says to appoint the assessor within one month of identifying excessive noise. That one-month point is about appointing the assessor, not finishing the assessment.

Use this quick self-check:

#	Question	If “yes”
1	Is this a place of work covered by OSHA 1994 (not domestic employment, the armed forces or covered shipboard work)?	The Noise Exposure Regulations 2019 apply
2	Have you done the yearly excessive-noise identification for each area or process?	If not, do it now
3	Is a raised voice needed to talk to someone about one metre away?	Possible excessive noise: go to 7
4	Are noisy power tools or machinery (for example drills or air compressors), impact tools or explosive-powered tools used?	Possible excessive noise: go to 7
5	Do staff notice reduced hearing over the day, complain of noise or ringing ears, or struggle to hear instructions or warning signals? Are hearing protectors already used for some work?	Possible excessive noise: go to 7
6	Does manufacturer information show levels greater than 82 dB(A) or a 140 dB(C) peak? Does your latest NRA show exposure above the noise exposure limit?	Possible excessive noise: go to 7
7	Any “yes” from 3 to 6?	Appoint a DOSH-registered noise risk assessor (the ICOP says within one month)
8	Has machinery, equipment, process, work, control measures or operation changed since the last identification, or has the Director General directed you?	Re-identify, and assess again if excessive noise is possible
9	Is your last NRA close to five years old?	Arrange the review

Questions 3 to 6 summarise the ICOP’s Appendix 1 checklist.

Re-identify every year or after a change. Regulation 3(2) requires the employer to re-identify whether employees may be exposed to excessive noise if there is a change in the machinery, equipment, process, work, control measures or operation that may expose them to excessive noise; not more than one year after the previous identification; or if the Director General directs. DOSH’s ICOP gives examples of change: installing, modifying or removing machinery; a change in workload or operating conditions likely to change noise levels significantly; building changes likely to affect noise levels; and changes to how long employees spend in noisy areas. Where re-identification shows possible excessive noise, the ICOP says a noise risk assessment should follow.

Who can carry out an NRA, and what happens during one?

The Regulations require the noise risk assessor to be registered with DOSH.

Under the ICOP, an assessor’s registration lasts for a maximum of three years and must be renewed. Before you appoint anyone, ask for their DOSH registration details and certificate, and confirm the registration is current. A phone app or an unregistered colleague cannot do the NRA.

At MESH, our team of DOSH-registered Noise Risk Assessors carries out initial or area noise monitoring and personal noise monitoring. In MESH’s practice, following the ICOP method, an NRA runs like this (durations depend on the site and complexity):

1. Scoping. You complete the Checklist for Identification of Excessive Noise for each work unit and share machinery, equipment and layout drawings. We scope the areas and similar exposure groups (SEGs) and send a quotation.
2. DOSH notification. Under the ICOP, our assessor notifies the DOSH state Director at least 14 days before the assessment.
3. Area monitoring. Spot measurements at noise sources and work areas with a calibrated sound level meter. The results become a noise map on your site layout.
4. Personal noise monitoring. Full-shift dosimetry on the most-exposed employee in each SEG, with observation and validity checks.
5. Evaluation. Personal results are compared with the noise exposure limit in Regulation 6, and existing controls and hearing protectors are reviewed.
6. Report and presentation. The Regulations require the assessor to give you the report, with findings and recommendations, within one month of completing the assessment. Findings are presented to management, and under the ICOP the assessor also submits a summary report to the Director General within 30 days.
7. Follow-on support (optional). Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP) training, and audiometric testing, which we can arrange and quote for.

DOSH’s ICOP colour-codes the noise map like this:

Colour zone	Sound pressure level
White	≤ 82 dB(A)
Yellow	> 82 dB(A) to 85 dB(A)
Red	> 85 dB(A) to 115 dB(A)
Purple	> 115 dB(A) or > 140 dB(C)

After an NRA you should hold: the completed identification checklist for each area; the NRA report (noise map, personal exposure results by SEG and control recommendations); a list or map of hearing protection zones; a list of employees for annual audiometric testing; and a record of telling exposed employees and of the actions you took. The ICOP asks employers to keep the report at or near the premises it covers and make it available to management, the safety and health committee and the authorities.

What is the difference between 82 dB(A) and 85 dB(A)?

The two numbers do different jobs. 82 dB(A) is part of the excessive noise definition that drives identification and the NRA. 85 dB(A) is part of the noise exposure limit (had pendedahan bising) that drives noise reduction, hearing protection zones and audiometric testing.

Level	What it is	What it triggers
Daily exposure exceeding 82 dB(A), or dose exceeding 50%	Excessive noise (Regulation 2)	Identification leads to an NRA (Regulation 4). Where the report shows excessive noise: information, training on hearing protectors at least once a year, and supervision of noise controls (Regulation 5)
Daily exposure exceeding 85 dB(A), or dose exceeding 100%	Noise exposure limit (Regulation 6(1)(a))	Practicability assessment and control hierarchy (Regulation 6), hearing protection zones (Regulation 8), annual audiometric testing (Regulation 9)
Maximum level exceeding 115 dB(A) at any time, or peak exceeding 140 dB(C)	Part of both the excessive noise definition and the limit (Regulations 2 and 6(1)(b)–(c))	Everything in both rows above

Audiometric testing under the Regulations is tied to exposure above the Regulation 6 limit, not to the 82 dB(A) figure.

What must the employer do after the NRA report?

The Regulations set these duties:

• Within 14 days of receiving the report, tell exposed employees the findings and recommendations (Regulation 4(6)).
• Within 30 days of receiving the report, carry out the recommendations (Regulation 4(7)).
• Information and training: where the report shows excessive noise, give information on the effects of noise and on audiometric testing, train employees on hearing protectors at least once a year, and supervise noise controls (Regulation 5). You may request a Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP) Awareness training from us. 
• Reduce exposure above the limit: first assess whether engineering or administrative control is practicable, then follow the order in Regulation 6(4): engineering control; engineering plus administrative control; administrative control; then other effective measures, which must include personal hearing protectors. Write a report on that assessment.
• Hearing protectors (pelindung pendengaran diri): suitable and efficient, inspected, maintained and available, able to bring exposure below the limit when worn properly, and approved by the DOSH-SIRIM.
• Hearing protection zones: mark areas above the limit “HEARING PROTECTION ZONE” (“ZON PERLINDUNGAN PENDENGARAN”), demarcate them with warning signs so far as practicable, provide hearing protectors there and make sure everyone in the zone wears them (Regulation 8).

Audiometric testing applies to employees above the limit:

Requirement	What the Regulations say
Who is tested	Employees the NRA report shows are exposed above the Regulation 6 limit, every year (Regulation 9(1))
Where	An audiometric testing centre (pusat ujian audiometrik) approved by the Director General; an occupational health doctor interprets the audiogram (Regulation 9(2)–(3))
When	Within three months of starting work in an area above the limit (Regulation 10(1)(b))
Conditions	At no cost to the employee, after at least 14 hours of quiet (no exposure above 80 dB(A)) without hearing protectors (Regulation 10)
Results	The centre reports to the employer within 30 days; the employer tells the employee within 21 days; retest within three months for a temporary standard threshold shift (Regulation 9(7)–(9))
Notification	Notify the nearest DOSH office within 7 days of receiving a report showing occupational noise-induced hearing loss, hearing impairment or permanent standard threshold shift (Regulation 9(10)(a))

DOSH’s ICOP also describes a Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP) with five components: noise risk assessment, noise reduction measures, audiometric testing, information, instruction and training, and recordkeeping. It asks the employer to appoint a Hearing Conservation Administrator (HCA) and to review the HCP once a year. The Regulations themselves do not use the term “HCP”. In MESH’s practice, we support HCP training and can arrange and quote for audiometric testing.

Penalties. Under the penalty clauses in the duty regulations of OSH (Noise Exposure) Regulations 2019, a person convicted of an offence is liable to a fine not exceeding RM10,000, imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or both.

How do you stay compliant after the first NRA?

Duty	How often	Where it comes from
Review the NRA	Not more than five years after the previous NRA, or when the Director General directs	Regulation 4(8)
Re-identify excessive noise	Not more than one year after the previous identification; after a change in machinery, equipment, process, work, control measures or operation; or when the Director General directs	Regulation 3(2)
New assessment after a change	Where re-identification shows possible excessive noise	DOSH’s ICOP

Regulation 3(2) sets the yearly identification without an exception for areas already assessed, so keep it going even when an NRA report already exists, and calendar the five-year review from the date of the last NRA.

The Regulations also require you to keep records (Regulation 11):

• NRA report: not less than 30 years.
• Audiometric testing reports: for as long as the employee works for you, plus five years after they leave.
• Change of owner: if another person takes over the business, hand over the records; the new owner keeps them for the same periods.
• Disposal: at the end of these periods, give the Director General at least three months’ written notice before disposing of records, and transfer them if asked.

Common mistakes to avoid:

• Assuming “we are not a factory, so no noise duty”. The duty follows OSHA 1994 coverage, not the factory label.
• Skipping the yearly identification because nothing seems to have changed.
• Using a phone app or an unregistered person instead of a DOSH-registered assessor with IEC-compliant equipment.
• Treating 85 dB(A) as the only number and ignoring the 82 dB(A) excessive noise trigger.
• Filing the report without telling employees within 14 days or acting within 30 days.
• Handing out earplugs before assessing engineering and administrative controls.
• Relying on noise limits or procedures from before the 2019 Regulations.

If your identification checklist flags possible excessive noise, MESH’s team of DOSH-registered Noise Risk Assessors can scope area and personal noise monitoring and quote your NRA. Download the checklist from the NRA page, fill it in for each work unit, and upload it with your machinery and layout drawings. Pricing is quote-based, and we provide a free NRA quotation within 24 hours. Request an NRA quotation.

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