The much anticipated Budget 2018 is being tabled today. Here are the key updates from CompareHero.my.

The total allocation for Malaysia’s Budget 2018 is RM280.25 billion (Budget 2017 was RM260.8 billion.)

No More Toll Collection from 1 Jan 2018 At

• Toll plaza Batu 3, Shah Alam, Selangor
• Toll plaza Sg.Rasau, Selangor
• Toll plaza Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah
• Toll Plaza Eastern Dispersal Link Expressway (EDL), Johor

For Civil Servants

•  RM 1,500 special payment to all civil servants. This payment will be given twice, RM1,000 in early January 2018, and another RM500 by next year’s Aidil Fitri.

• Pregnant civil servants (5 months above) allowed to go home 1 hour earlier.

• Armed Forces Housing blueprint will see 40k housing units built in phases.

• 10K Housing 1Malaysia Civil Servant-PDRM will be built for the police force, prices will be in line with their salary.

Tax Exemptions

• 2% tax income reduction from 5% reduced to 3% for those within income range RM20k – RM70k.
• Reduction from 10% to 8% income tax for those within income range of RM35k – RM50k.

BR1M

• RM6.8 billion allocated to benefit the current 7 million BR1M recipients who will continue to receive aid in 2018. Amount of BR1M handout remains the same as the current amount.

For Healthcare

• Malaysians pay RM10 for haemodialysis. RM50 million allocated for haemodialysis assistance with a RM100 subsidy from the total cost of RM110 per treatment session.

For Women

• 90 days mandatory period of maternity leave proposal for private sector, an increase from the current 60 days

For Parents with Children

• The Local Authority must ensure all new office buildings will have childcare facilities, beginning at KL.

• Malaysian children born between Jan 1, 2018-2022 will be given RM200 to begin their initial savings through the Amanah Saham unit.

For Students

• RM2.4 billion allocated to UiTM, with student enrollment target of 250k by 2020

• PTPTN borrowers who wishes to continue their studies to the next level can combine their diploma and degree, or degree and master’s loan and start repayment after graduating.

• RM100 schooling aid per pupil for school students from low-income families which will benefit 3.2 million students.

• RM250 Book Voucher Assistance for students at IPT and in Form Six will continue to be given, which will benefit 1.2 million students.

For entrepreneurs & agriculture

• Convenient loan of RM120 million for 1k FoodTracker 1Msia entrepreneurs, 1Msia Mobile Food Kiosk through Bank Rakyat & BSN, government to subsidized 4% from interest rate of the loan.

• RM50 million will be allocated via TEKUN for the Indian community to provide loan schemes, to benefit 35k Indians.

• SME corp allocated RM200 million to provide Malaysian’s with training programs, grants and soft loans.

• RM6.5 billion allocation for farmers, fishermen, paddy farmers, breeders and rubber tappers.

• RM200 monthly allowance for paddy farmers (3 months) while waiting for harvesting season with an allocation of almost RM150 million.

On the Overall Economy [Budget 2018]

• Pulau Pangkor declared free tax zone, but excludes alcohol, tobacco and vehicles.

• The government will accelerate the construction of the MRT3 also known as Circle Line, expected to be completed by 2025, ahead of the initial plan in 2027.

• Income per capita of Malaysians was RM27,819 in 2010 and is estimated to increase to RM42,777 in 2018.

• In the first half of 2017, Malaysia’s economic growth was at 5.7% (the estimation last year was between 4-5%).

Budget 2018 theme : “Memakmur Ekon Yang Inklusif, Mengimbang Keunggulan Duniawi & Ukhrawi Demi Mensejahtera Kehidupan Rakyat, Menuju Aspirasi #TN50”

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• Private investment is expected to reach RM260b in 2018

Recap of Budget 2017

Last year, the total allocation for Budget 2017 was RM260.8 billion, and Malaysia’s economy growth for 2017 was estimated to be at 4% – 5%. Aside from that, the Transformasi Nasional 2050 (TN50), which is an initiative to plan for the future of Malaysia between the period of 2020 to 2050 was also introduced.

Prior to the tabling of the budget, Malaysians had a chance to submit their suggestions and vote for what they hoped to get from #bajet2018 at an interactive microsite. Among the popular suggestions were:

• to increase salary and allowance for civil servants
• 2 month bonus to civil servants
• remove renewal fees for driving license
• special allowance for teachers
• revise the rebates for income tax
• specialized hospitals for children

See also: Bajet 2018: Will the Rakyat Get What They Want?

The post Latest Updates: Bajet (Budget) 2018 Malaysia appeared first on Financial News and Advice in Malaysia.