KUALA LUMPUR (May 27): Putrajaya unveiled on Monday that its targeted diesel subsidies will provide eligible individuals, and agriculture and commodity smallholders with RM200 per month, and that applications for the subsidies will open on Tuesday.

In a statement, the Finance Ministry (MOF) announced that the targeted subsidies on diesel fuel for users in Peninsular Malaysia, dubbed Program Bantuan Subsidi Madani, or Budi Madani, apply to individual owners of diesel vehicles under the Budi Individu category, as well as small farmers and plantation smallholders under the Budi Agri-Komoditi category.

To be eligible for Budi Individu, applicants must be Malaysian citizens and own diesel-based personal vehicles under 10 years old, registered with the Road Transport Department (JPJ), not classified as luxury vehicles and have active road tax.

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Additionally, applicants’ annual individual or joint income should not exceed RM100,000. Applications will be cross-referenced with Inland Revenue Board data to exclude luxury vehicles less than 10 years old and individuals in the Top-20-Percentile Income (T20) bracket.

For Budi Agri-Komoditi, applicants must already be registered as farmers or smallholders with the relevant agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security or the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities. They must also be active agriculture or commodity smallholders with an annual turnover ranging from RM50,000 to RM300,000.

Applications for the programmes will remain open throughout the year and can be made through https://budimadani.gov.my.

Eligible applicants who apply by June 3 and are approved for cash assistance will receive their first payment by mid-June 2024, with subsequent payments disbursed monthly. Those approved after June 3 will receive their first cash assistance within two weeks, followed by monthly payments thereafter.

The cash assistance will be credited to the individual’s bank account every month, says MOF. Individuals without bank accounts will be able to collect their cash assistance at any Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) branch throughout Peninsular Malaysia.

The Budi Madani programme complements the government's existing efforts to target diesel subsidies through the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living's MySubsidi Diesel system, with nearly 90,000 fleet cards issued to land transport and logistics companies, according to the MOF.

These fleet cards enable eligible companies to buy subsidised diesel, reducing logistics costs and mitigating price increases for the public.

"With the Budi Madani roll-out, the government has expanded the coverage for assistance to individuals and agriculture and commodity smallholders ahead of targeted diesel subsidy implementation," said Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, adding that this aligns with the Ekonomi Madani framework's focus on targeted subsidies for a financially sustainable and competitive Malaysia.

Amir Hamzah emphasised that Putrajaya will undertake an all-of-government approach to ensure the targeted subsidy mechanism for diesel is comprehensive, efficient, and effectively reaches the majority of the rakyat.

On May 21, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that Putrajaya agreed to implement targeted subsidies on diesel in Peninsular Malaysia, aiming to withdraw diesel subsidies from the T20 group and the 3.5 million foreigners in Malaysia, which is expected to save the government RM4 billion a year.

Anwar added that the targeting of diesel subsidies will not affect the B40 and M40 groups and explained that Sabah and Sarawak are excluded from the exercise due to differing consumer behaviours in those states. 

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