T15 income group study being conducted by Economy Ministry
KUALA LUMPUR: The Economy Ministry is conducting a study on the definition and classification of Malaysia’s top 15% income group (T15), Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong told the Dewan Rakyat today.
He said the government also had data on the country’s middle-income group, although he did not provide further details on the T15 study’s findings or expected completion date.
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“The study on T15, or its classification, is being carried out by the Economy Ministry.
“The government does have data showing the situation of the M40 or middle-income group,” he said.
Liew was responding to a supplementary question from Datuk Mumtaz Md Nawi (PN-Tumpat), who sought an update on the T15 classification study.
Mumtaz also asked whether the government maintained a social registry that could assess households based on their income, living costs, geographical location, family size and financial circumstances.
She said such an assessment could help identify middle-income households that might qualify for targeted government assistance.
Liew said the government aspired to expand the middle class until it became larger than the lower-income population.
“What we hope is that one day, we will have a middle class that is larger than the B40 group.
“That is the aspiration we hope to achieve,” he said.
Earlier, Datuk Adnan Abu Hassan (BN-Kuala Pilah) asked about measures to assist M40 households affected by rising living costs despite no longer qualifying for targeted assistance.
In a supplementary question, he cited Department of Statistics Malaysia figures showing that 511,600 people were unemployed as of August 2026.
He asked whether households experiencing job losses or declining incomes could have their eligibility for assistance reassessed based on their current financial circumstances rather than previous income records.
Liew said recipients whose circumstances had changed could submit appeals daily.
“Every recipient of assistance can appeal if their existing status has changed, and they can submit an appeal every day,” he said.
He also outlined several measures under Budget 2027 aimed at easing financial pressures on middle-income households.
These include increasing individual income tax relief from RM9,000 to RM12,000 and reducing selected personal income tax rates by one percentage point.
The government will also provide two SARA Madani payments of RM100 each, expected to benefit up to 13 million Malaysians, including those in the M40 group.
Other measures include extending electricity subsidy protection to households consuming up to 800 kilowatt-hours (kWh) a month and increasing Back-to-School Assistance from RM150 to RM200 per student.