KUALA LUMPUR: The closing date for new registrations/updates for the Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat (BPR) has been extended from Feb 15 to 25, said Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.
He said in a statement today this was to ensure that only those eligible would receive the BPR as well as taking into account the current Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented in most parts of the country.
Those who need to make new applications are those who have never received the Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) 2020 or the Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) B40 and whose household incomes are RM5,000 and below per month.
“This includes the newly vulnerable groups who are eligible to apply following a change in their income status due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“With the process for new registrations/updates in place, some of those whose applications were not approved and never received the BPR still have a chance to submit their applications for verification again,” he said.
BSH 2020 and BPN B40 recipients who were successful previously need not make a new registration or updates if there are no changes to their information.
Tengku Zafrul said the first phase of the BPR payment would be expedited to the end of this month as announced under the Malaysian Economic and Rakyat's Protection Assistance Package (Permai) on Jan 18, while payment under Phase 2 is expected to be made in early May.
Thus far, the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has received almost 550,000 new applications that need to be verified and cross-checked in the system, and the process also involves 25 government agencies, including the National Registration Department and IRB to ensure only those eligible are approved to receive the BPR.
BPR applicants can refer to the frequently asked questions (FAQ), which can be uploaded at the
official BPR portal, for more details.
