This year, the Malaysian government has set a tax filing deadline of 30 April 2026. There’s also a 15-day grace period for Malaysians who prefer e-filing, so you have about two months to do it. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t prepare in advance, especially if you don’t have a habit of properly tracking your receipts and invoices.
Moreover, there are changes to the tax relief you can claim this year. With that said, below are the claimable tax reliefs for individual Malaysians in 2026.
Tax reliefs for 2026
Individual
If you fall under the below, the listed amount gets deducted from your taxable income. It’s automatically applied after filling in the initial pages of the BE form.
- Individual and dependents – RM9000
- Disabled individual – RM7000
- Unemployed spouse or alimony payments – RM4000
- Disabled spouse – RM4000
Housing
You can claim tax relief for housing loans for a home with a price within the range listed below. Note that this only applies to the first home you own, with the sales and purchase (S&P) agreement signed between 1st January 2025 to 31 December 2027.
- Residence of up to RM500000 – RM7000
- Residence priced between RM500001 and RM750000 – RM5000
- First home ownership (for housing loans) – RM7000
Education
Claimable if you are currently taking the level of courses listed below. But for undergraduate courses, it must be a course in: Law, accounting, islamic financing, technical, vocational, industrial, science, or technology.
- Undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctorate courses – RM7000
- Skill enhancement and personal development courses – RM2000
Medical
This one is pretty self-explanatory. Any medical expenses in the category below can be claimed, provided you have the invoice or receipt.
- Individual, spouse, and child – RM10000
- Vaccination – RM1000 limit
- Dental treatment and examination – RM1000 limit
- Medical examination – RM1000 limit
- Diagnosis, prevention, or rehabilitation for a child with learning disabilities (below 18 years old) – RM6000 limit
- Parents and grandparents – RM8000
- Full medical check-up and vaccination – RM1000 limit
- Equipment to support a disabled individual – RM6000
Lifestyle
Another straightforward category that most urban Malaysians can claim (via Internet bill). Electric vehicle owners also benefit if they have installed a charging outlet in their home.
- Reading material, Internet subscription, PC/smartphone/tablet – RM2500
- Sports equipment, gym memberships, etc – RM1000
- EV charging facilities and domestic food waste composting machine – RM2500
Child relief
This category applies for any Malaysian who has children. Unlike the education category, there’s no restriction on what tertiary courses your child must take.
- Purchase of breastfeeding equipment – RM1000
- Child care centre or kindergarten fees – RM3000
- SSPN scheme – RM8000
- Unmarried child (below 18) – RM2000
- Unmarried child (over 18) receiving tertiary education – RM8000
Insurance and contributions
This one is a no-brainer. If you are employed and have purchased a life insurance plan, the first three apply to you.
- Life insurance – RM4000
- EPF – RM4000
- SOCSO – RM350
- Deferred Annuity and Private Retirement Scheme (PRS) – RM3000
Travel
A new category added for year of assessment 2025. This tax relief essentially incentivises Malaysians to travel or visit local attractions, which would help boost the local tourism industry.
- Tickets to local attractions, cultural spots, and more – RM1000
Are you taxable?
For those who have just started joining the workforce, Malaysian residents earning an annual gross income of more than RM 37,333 must file income tax with the Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri (LHDN). That applies to permanent or contract employees and self-employed individuals (i.e, Grab drivers), while businesses have different requirements. And if you’re taxable, there should be an amount of payable tax (PCB – Potongan Cukai Bulanan) listed on your monthly pay slip.
What happens if you forget?
You don’t want to miss the deadline for filing your taxes because you would get a fine. According to the LHDN website, penalties are issued for non-compliance with income tax, e-invoicing, and RPGT (Real Property Gains Tax), and more. The penalties include fines, tax surcharges and imprisonment, depending on the offence.
For instance, a 10% surcharge is imposed on your payable tax amount if you don’t pay your taxes before the deadline. In addition, failure to submit your income tax return form will land you either a fine of RM200 to RM200000, imprisonment of up to 6 months, or both. You can find the list of penalties on the LHDN website.
How to do your tax e-filing
Doing e-filing for the first time? No worries, you can refer to the step-by-step guide we made last year. Of course, we will add or update the article if there are any relevant changes. Also, note that you have to select ‘2025’ for the year of assessment. For the full list of available tax relief, check this LHDN webpage here.
Have you started organising your receipts and bills? What’s your number one problem when it comes to filing taxes in Malaysia? Let us know in the comments below, and stay tuned to TechNave for more articles like this.
