> Quick view: checked on 29 October 2026 against APAD's driver-requirements page (27 April 2026), Grab Malaysia's sign-up, PSV and road-tax pages, Grab's daily insurance table, and Bernama and FMT reports on Budget 2027. Platform terms change often, so re-read your platform's own page before you pay for anything.
E-hailing is still one of the quickest ways for a Malaysian with a car to earn on their own hours, but the paperwork is real. Four separate documents have to be valid at the same time, and your road tax follows whichever one expires first. Here is each one in the order you will meet them.
Who is allowed to drive
APAD's knowledge base, updated on 27 April 2026, is blunt: only Malaysian citizens may drive on a Malaysian e-hailing platform, and the driver must be registered with a licensed operator, hold a valid PSV licence and drive a car with an active EVP. APAD's page gives Grab and AirAsia Ride as examples, and inDrive and Maxim were confirmed as licensed in 2025.
Platforms add their own rules. Grab asks for:
- age 21 to 69, with a blue MyKad
- a class D or DA competent driving licence valid for more than one year
- a car under 14 years old at registration, because the Transport Ministry's limit is 15 years and the car needs at least a year left
- a background check, and the compulsory GrabAcademy online training
You do not need to own the car. Grab accepts a borrowed or family car if you are named on the insurance cover note or the policy covers all drivers.
Step 1: the PSV licence from JPJ
The PSV (public service vehicle) vocational licence is still required in 2026. JPJ's 2026 enforcement list keeps "no PSV licence" as an offence. What disappeared was the theory test, which the Transport Minister scrapped in April 2023.
The route, per Grab's PSV page:
- Get the JPJ L8A medical check done at a clinic. The result is valid for a year.
- Take the PSV course at a Grab Driver Centre (Petaling Jaya, Penang, Johor Bahru) or at a driving institute. Clear any outstanding summonses first.
- Collect the L2C training certificate, valid for one year.
- Register at a JPJ office in the same state you trained in, with your MyKad, licence, L8A and clinic receipt, L2C, car registration details and a 25 by 32mm photo. UTC counters do not process PSV.
Grab refunds institute training up to RM100 in the Klang Valley, RM120 in Penang and RM150 in Johor Bahru, once you finish 30 trips. JPJ does not publish the PSV card fee on a page we could read, so budget a little extra.
Step 2: the EVP, which the platform applies for
The e-hailing vehicle permit is issued by APAD in Peninsular Malaysia and by LPKP in Sabah and Sarawak. You do not apply yourself: the platform submits it after you sign up. Grab says the EVP is worth RM160 and that it pays both the application and the yearly renewal. Approval takes about five working days in the Peninsula, around a month in Sarawak and about two months in Sabah.
Step 3: Puspakom, once the car is three years old
Cars three years old and above need a Puspakom periodic inspection for e-hailing (listed as Berkala e-hailing), then every 12 months. Taxis go every six months. Grab refunds a new driver's first inspection, RM70, after 30 completed trips within 30 days. Bookings run through Puspakom's online portal.
Step 4: e-hailing insurance
Ordinary private car insurance does not cover paid rides. You need either an annual e-hailing policy or a daily one. Grab's in-app Daily E-Hailing Insurance only charges on days you go online:
- Chubb RM7.00 a day (rate from 6 March 2026), RM20,000 personal accident cover
- Etiqa RM7.00, RM15,000
- Zurich RM7.50, RM50,000
- Allianz RM7.50 and Generali RM7.50 (from 1 July 2026), RM10,000 each
To claim, you must have been online with at least RM10 in your credit wallet. Grab tells drivers to renew in this order every year: EVP, then Puspakom, then insurance, then road tax.
Budget the daily cover as a real cost. Observers quoted by the New Straits Times and Paultan in June 2026 put the industry benchmark at about RM3.26 a day in 2022 and around RM5.50 in 2025, against today's RM7 to RM7.50. Driving 25 days a month at RM7.50 comes to RM187.50 a month, or RM2,250 a year, before fuel or maintenance. That is why driver groups welcomed the insurance help in the Budget 2027 package, though as of 30 October no amount or claim method for it has been announced.
PERKESO and the Gig Workers Act
Since the Gig Workers Act 2025 (Act 872) took effect on 31 March 2026, platforms deduct 1.25% of each completed job and pay it to PERKESO. The default plan costs RM13.10 a month. The cover is real: on 12 May 2026 PERKESO confirmed that the family of an e-hailing driver killed on the MEX highway qualified for benefits even though his old voluntary membership had lapsed.
What Budget 2027 adds
Tabling Budget 2027 on 9 October, the Prime Minister announced a RM160 million package jointly funded with Grab from 2027. Bernama reports it is expected to lift the median e-hailing driver's net monthly income by up to RM227, through help with maintenance, insurance and PERKESO contributions. The government will also match EPF contributions of up to RM600 a year, capped at RM6,000 over a lifetime. Minimum rates are still with the Gig Consultative Council, so treat the RM227 as a projection, not a promise.
