The Full Requirements Guide: Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) 2026

Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah, better known as STR, is the Malaysian government’s main cash-aid programme for low- and middle-income households, run by the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) under Budget 2026.

If your household earns below a certain threshold, you’re likely eligible — but the amount you receive, and even how you receive it, depends heavily on which category you fall into. Here’s exactly what determines that.

1. Who Qualifies: Income Thresholds by Category

There’s no single income cutoff for STR — eligibility is split into three household types, each with its own limit.

• Isi Rumah (Household): Married couples, or single parents/widows/widowers with a qualifying child, with a combined household income of RM5,000 or below.
• Warga Emas Tiada Pasangan (Elderly without a spouse): Malaysians aged 60 and above without a spouse, with income of RM5,000 or below.
• Bujang (Single): Malaysians aged 21 to 59 (or persons with disabilities aged 19 to 59), not enrolled as a full-time student, with income of RM2,500 or below.

All applicants must be Malaysian citizens residing and working in Malaysia, holding a valid MyKad.

Practical step: if your household income sits between RM2,501 and RM5,000, you almost certainly fall under Isi Rumah rather than Bujang — this distinction changes both your payment amount and how it’s disbursed.

2. How Much You Actually Get

This is where STR gets easy to misunderstand, because in 2026 not every category is paid the same way.

• Isi Rumah and Warga Emas receive their support as direct STR cash, credited to a bank account (the recipient’s or their spouse’s).
• Bujang no longer receives STR as direct cash in 2026. Instead, the equivalent support arrives through SARA (Sumbangan Asas Rahmah) — a monthly, cashless MyKad credit.

On top of STR, nearly all recipients also receive monthly SARA credit, and the annual total differs depending on whether you’re registered as miskin or miskin tegar under eKasih:

SARA credit is loaded onto your MyKad and can only be spent cashlessly, on essential items like rice, cooking oil, eggs, and basic groceries, at registered MyKasih supermarkets and kedai runcit. Separately, a one-off SARA Penghargaan of RM100 goes to all Malaysians aged 18 and above, regardless of STR status.

Practical step: don’t assume your STR amount is your total support — check your MySTR account for both your STR cash schedule and your monthly SARA credit balance, since they’re managed and disbursed separately.

3. How to Apply or Update Your Details

Applications run year-round, but timing still matters if you want to be included in an earlier payment phase.

• Applications and updates are submitted through the MySTR portal, accessible via the official STR website.
• New applicants without a MySTR account need to register first before applying.
• If you’re paper-filing instead, forms can be submitted at LHDN branches, Urban Transformation Centres, or by registered post to the STR Secretariat in Putrajaya — fax and email submissions aren’t accepted.
• Required supporting documents typically include your MyKad, proof of income, and your child’s birth certificate where relevant.

Practical step: if you’ve already been approved in a previous year but haven’t updated your details in three years, renew your application early — inactive records risk being excluded from the next phase.

4. Payment Phases and Appeals

STR is disbursed in phases across the year, and missing a cutoff simply pushes you to the next one rather than disqualifying you.

• Phase 1 payments for 2026 began around 20 January, with SARA credit for most categories starting between early January and early February depending on category.
• Phase 2 payments, covering roughly 5.2 million recipients, began from 10 March 2026.
• If your application isn’t approved in an earlier phase, you can file a rayuan (appeal) through the MySTR portal, generally without needing to upload documents unless requested — approved appeals are paid starting from the next available phase, not retroactively for phases already disbursed.

Practical step: log into MySTR periodically even after approval — payment schedules, phase status, and any request for supporting documents all appear there first, before any other announcement.

This guide reflects official STR and SARA information published by LHDN and the Ministry of Finance as of mid-2026. Payment schedules, thresholds, and phase dates are updated periodically by the government — always confirm your specific status through the official MySTR portal.