BR1M is a scheme that was established by the Malaysian Government to help the poor. This scheme was first established in 2012. The basic concept behind BR1M scene is to provide financial help to the families and individuals who has low monthly incomes so that they can fight against the living costs that are always rising in Malaysia. The monthly incomes are determined by families and individuals that are earning lesser than the prescribed limit. Ever since its establishment, the amount of BR1M has been routinely increased every year. This scheme is particularly helpful for alleviating the living costs and sundry expenses.

In the recent Budget 2017 presentation, Prime Minister of Malaysia Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has announced that the BR1M scheme will continue and the amount for the pay-outs will be increased.

Eligibility

In order to qualifty for BR1M 2017, you will have to meet the following requirements set by the Government to ensure that you really need the BR1M:

Malaysian citizen
Families with a gross monthly income of less than RM1000
Families with a gross monthly income of less than RM3000
Families with a gross monthly income of between RM3000 to RM4000
Single individuals with a gross monthly income of RM2000 and below
Senior citizens that over 60 years old if they live alone and have a gross monthly income of RM4000 and below
Your name should match your bank account information
Only individual bank accounts are accepted
Joint bank accounts and company bank accounts are not accepted

Payment Amount

The payment amount is as the following:

Families with a gross monthly income of less than RM1000 will be given RM1200
Families with a gross monthly income less than RM3000 will be given RM1200
Families with a gross monthly income of RM3000 to 4000 will be given RM900
Single individuals with a gross monthly income of RM2000 and below will be given RM450
Senior citizens that are over 60 years and with a gross monthly income of RM4000 and below will be given RM1000

Payment Schedule

In contrast to previous year’s payments where the recipients were paid a lump sum amount, the payments for 2017 will be divided in three instalments. The first instalment will be paid in January, the second instalment will be paid in May and the final instalment will be paid in September.

Ways of Disbursement

BR1M 2017 money will be disbursed in two different ways. The first way is through bank deposit where there BR1M payments are directly deposited into the recipient’s bank account. The other way is through payment vouchers for individuals without a bank account. These individuals will be given BR1M vouchers that can be cash out into money at any of the Maybank, CIMB Bank and Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) branches available in Malaysia.

List of Supported Banks

The list of banks that support BR1M 2017 payments are:

Maybank
Public Bank
CIMB Bank
United Overseas Bank (UOB)
Al Rahj Bank
Alliance Bank
Affin Bank
RHB Bank
Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Malaysia (HSBC)
Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia
Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN)
Agro Bank
Bank Rakyat
Hong Leong Bank
Citibank
General Bank
Mualamat Bank

How to Apply

The registration for BR1M 2017 and for existing BR1M recipients to update their information is open from the 5th of December to 31st of December 2016. Any individual can check his or her application status by visiting the BR1M official website.

Existing BR1M recipients do not need to reapply but they are advised to update their personal information including their current address and bank account information to ensure that the payment of BR1M is smooth.

BR1M application forms can be filled in and submitted at the counters of the following places:

State Secretary of Pejabat (SUK)
Revenue Service Centers
Resident and District Office of Pejabat
Federal Development Department of Pejabat (JPP)

For those that wants to apply or update their personal information conveniently without having to visit the places mentioned above, they can do so on the Inland Revenue Board Malaysia Official Online Portal. Please note that application forms that are delivered using fax and email will not be acceptable.

Required Documents

The required documents to be attached with the BR1M application form are as the following:

A copy of birth certificate
A copy of MyKad, national identity card
An attested copy of death certificate or divorce certificate if the candidate is widowed, divorced, single mother or single father

According to a news report, it is said that as many as 7 million recipients will benefit from the increased payment amounts from BR1M 2017 scheme and a total of RM6.8 billion has been allocated for this cause. In an interview by Mingguan Malaysia, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that BR1M scheme is a form of targeted subsidy that could avoid wastages when compared to the previous fuel subsidies that do not take into account of monthly income levels.