PERKESO’s 24-Hour Coverage Scheme (SKBBK): What Every Employer and Payroll Team Must Do Before 1 June 2026
From the June 2026 contribution month, every employee covered under Act 4 will be protected around the clock — not just at work. Here is what changes, what it costs, and the steps your payroll process needs to get right.
Social security in Malaysia has historically drawn a sharp line: PERKESO protected employees against accidents and illness connected to their work, while what happened outside the workplace was someone else’s problem. The expansion of the 24-Hour Coverage Scheme erases that line. With the gazetting of the Employees’ Social Security (Amendment) Act 2026 [Act A1788] and PERKESO Employer Circular No. 2 of 2026, employees will now be covered 24 hours a day for accidents that have nothing to do with their job — including the single largest source of disability claims in the country, road accidents.
For employers and the practitioners who run their payroll, this is not merely a policy headline. It introduces a new contribution line, a new deduction on every payslip, and a fresh compliance obligation that carries real penalties if mishandled. This article explains the change in plain terms and sets out exactly what needs to happen before the scheme takes effect.
What the SKBBK actually is
The scheme has two names that you will see used interchangeably. Skim LINDUNG 24 Jam (the “24-Hour Coverage Scheme”) is the public-facing name; Skim Kemalangan Bukan Bencana Kerja or SKBBK (the “Non-Employment Injury Scheme”) is the technical name that appears in the legislation and on contribution schedules. Both refer to the same thing.
The purpose is straightforward: to provide comprehensive, round-the-clock social security protection by covering accidents that are not work-related. The clearest example is the daily commute and the road accidents that come with it, but the principle extends to any non-occupational accident an employee suffers while the scheme is in force.
In one sentence The SKBBK extends PERKESO protection beyond the workplace so that a covered employee is protected against non-work accidents 24 hours a day, funded by a small contribution borne entirely by the employee. |
Who is covered
The coverage net is wide and deliberately simple to administer:
All employees covered under Act 4 (the Employees’ Protection Scheme / LINDUNG Pekerja) must be registered and contributed under the SKBBK. If they are already in the PERKESO system, they are in.
Anyone employed under a contract of service or apprenticeship, subject to the standard wage ceiling of RM6,000 per month.
No age limit applies. This is an important departure — coverage continues for as long as the person keeps working, including past the age of 60. Older employees who were previously only on the Employment Injury (Second Category) basis are now drawn into SKBBK as well.
Watch the multiple-employer rule An employee who works for more than one employer must elect a single employer to contribute under the SKBBK. PERKESO will announce the mechanism for this election. Until then, flag any moonlighting or dual-employment cases in your payroll population so you are ready to act rather than over-contributing across two employers. |
The contribution: small number, important details
The SKBBK contribution is 0.75% of wages and is borne entirely by the employee. The employer contributes nothing to this particular scheme — but the employer remains fully responsible for deducting it correctly and remitting it on time. That distinction matters: the cost sits with the employee, the liability sits with the employer.
Seen alongside the existing PERKESO contributions, the picture is:
Scheme | Employer | Employee |
Employment Injury Scheme | 1.25% | – |
Invalidity Scheme | 0.50% | 0.50% |
24-Hour Coverage Scheme / SKBBK | – | 0.75% |
The 0.75% is only the starting point. The employee rate is designed to step up in phases, and employers should plan on the basis that it will rise over time:
Phase | Employee Rate | Status |
Phase One | 0.75% | Effective 1 June 2026 |
Phase Two | 1.00% | Date to be set by PERKESO |
Phase Three | 1.25% | Date to be set by PERKESO |
The timing of Phase Two and Phase Three is left to PERKESO to determine and announce. The practical takeaway is to treat the SKBBK rate as a variable in your payroll configuration rather than hard-coding 0.75% in a way that is painful to change later.
First Category vs Second Category
Which contribution schedule applies depends on the employee’s age and history with PERKESO — the same logic that already governs Employment Injury and Invalidity contributions:
First Category (Employment Injury + Invalidity + SKBBK): for employees who first join PERKESO, or are contributed for the first time, below the age of 55.
Second Category (Employment Injury + SKBBK, no Invalidity): for employees who had already reached 55 when they first joined PERKESO, or who have reached 60 and are still working.
In both categories the SKBBK employee contribution is calculated on the same wage bands set out in the Third Schedule. The contribution schedules in PERKESO’s circular already build the 0.75% into the totals, so the easiest control is to reconcile your payroll output against the published Third Schedule rather than computing the percentage by hand.
A worked example
Consider an employee aged 35 (First Category) earning RM4,000 a month. The numbers move as follows once the scheme takes effect:
Item | Before 1 June 2026 | From 1 June 2026 |
Monthly wages (capped at RM6,000) | RM4,000 | RM4,000 |
Employment Injury (employer) | RM49.40 | RM49.40 |
Invalidity (employer + employee) | RM19.75 + RM19.75 | RM19.75 + RM19.75 |
24-Hour Coverage / SKBBK (employee) | Nil | RM29.65 |
Total remitted to PERKESO | RM108.65 | RM138.30 |
The employee now sees an additional RM29.65 deducted from net pay, and the total remitted to PERKESO for this employee rises accordingly. It is a modest sum, but multiply it across a full workforce and it becomes a line that finance, payroll and employees will all notice — which is exactly why clear internal communication matters.
Note: figures are illustrative and drawn from the Third Schedule wage bands. Always confirm against the official schedule for the employee’s exact wage band and category.
Your pre-June 2026 action plan
The mechanics are manageable if approached methodically. The following sequence covers the essentials:
Confirm no re-registration is needed for existing staff. PERKESO will rely on current records. Existing employees do not need to be registered again.
Register new hires through ASSIST 2.0. Any employee who starts after the effective date must be registered via the ASSIST 2.0 portal in the prescribed manner.
Update your payroll system. Add the SKBBK as a distinct employee-side deduction at 0.75%, configured so the rate can be changed when later phases take effect.
Show it separately on the payslip. Employers must ensure both the employer’s and employee’s contribution deductions are recorded on the salary slip and given to the employee. A clearly labelled SKBBK line avoids disputes.
Identify dual-employment cases. Flag employees with more than one employer and prepare for the single-employer election once PERKESO publishes the process.
Brief your employees. Because the contribution comes out of their pay, employees should understand what the deduction is and what protection it buys. A short note with the June payslip goes a long way.
Pay on time. Contributions can be paid online via FPX or internet banking from the June 2026 contribution month onward, with the deadline unchanged — on or before the 15th of the following month.
Why getting this right is not optional
Failure to comply is an offence under the law. PERKESO is entitled to recover unpaid contribution arrears and to impose Interest on Late Payment of Contributions (Faedah Caruman Lewat Bayar, FCLB). Critically, that exposure can extend to periods after an employee has left, where the employer failed to make the required deductions during the period of service. Legal action, fines and other penalties under the Employees’ Social Security Act 1969 [Act 4] are all on the table.
The practitioner’s risk to manage Because the SKBBK contribution is the employee’s money but the employer’s legal duty to deduct and remit, the highest-risk scenario is silent under-deduction — the system simply not picking up the new line. The arrears and FCLB then accrue quietly until a PERKESO audit surfaces them. A one-time payroll reconciliation in June 2026 against the Third Schedule is the cheapest insurance you can buy. |
The bigger picture
Viewed beyond the payroll mechanics, the SKBBK is a meaningful expansion of Malaysia’s social safety net. Road accidents are a leading cause of death and long-term disability, and for the first time the resulting income loss and medical costs fall within a structured social security scheme rather than landing entirely on the affected family. For employers, the administrative burden is light relative to the protection it delivers to their workforce.
For accounting and payroll professionals, the value you add is in execution: configuring the deduction correctly, communicating it clearly, reconciling against the official schedule, and never missing the 15th. Handled well, the transition in June 2026 should be uneventful — which, in compliance, is exactly the outcome you want.
Sources & references
PERKESO Employer Circular No. 2 of 2026 (PERKESO.600-2/4/1(35)), dated 28 April 2026.
Employees’ Social Security Act 1969 [Act 4], Third Schedule.
Employees’ Social Security (Amendment) Act 2026 [Act A1788], gazetted 5 March 2026.
Enquiries: PERKESO Customer Service — perkeso@perkeso.gov.my or 1-300-22-8000.
This article is provided for general educational purposes and reflects the position as set out in the PERKESO circular referenced above. It does not constitute professional or legal advice. Employers should confirm the current contribution schedules and effective dates with PERKESO and seek professional advice for their specific circumstances.
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