For Malaysia's large informal and gig workforce, retirement savings have long been a gap in the social safety net. The EPF's i-Saraan scheme is designed to fill it, and 2026 brought meaningful enhancements worth understanding.
i-Saraan is a voluntary contribution scheme run by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF, or KWSP) for people without a fixed monthly income — the self-employed, informal-sector workers, small business owners and freelancers. Members contribute what they can, and the government adds a matching incentive on top of their savings.
The headline change for 2026 is a more generous incentive rate. Effective January 1, 2026, the government's special incentive rose from 15% to 20% of a member's total voluntary contributions in the year. That incentive is capped at RM500 a year, with a lifetime ceiling of RM5,000 or until the member turns 60, whichever comes first. The higher rate means savers earn a larger top-up for the same contribution.
Alongside this, the government introduced a new track called i-Saraan Plus, also from January 1, 2026, tailored specifically for e-hailing and p-hailing drivers — a fast-growing segment of the gig economy. Under i-Saraan Plus, the government matching is higher, at up to RM600 a year, with a lifetime cap of RM6,000. To earn the full RM600, a member must contribute at least RM3,000 in the year.
The distinction is straightforward: standard i-Saraan continues to serve self-employed and informal workers broadly, while i-Saraan Plus is the enhanced option aimed at ride-hailing and delivery drivers. Both sit within a wider package of EPF enhancements announced in Budget 2026 and taking effect at the start of the year.
For workers outside traditional employment, the schemes offer a structured, government-supported way to build retirement savings — a quiet but significant part of Malaysia's social policy heading into 2026.
