> Built from PERKESO's own documents, read on 28 September 2026: the LINDUNG 24 Jam scheme page, its English FAQ dated 13 August 2026, the June 2026 FAQ, the new contribution schedule, the benefit-calculation infographic dated 22 July 2026, the opt-in form and the 1 September 2026 opt-back-in notice, plus the Employees' Social Security (General) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (P.U.(A) 206).
For three months this year, a line on Malaysian payslips changed twice. From 1 June 2026 every employee covered by SOCSO started paying an extra 0.75% of salary for a new scheme called LINDUNG 24 Jam. On 8 July the Cabinet made it voluntary for local employees. PERKESO then ran an opt-out window that closed on 31 August. Plenty of people are still unsure which side of that line they ended up on, and whether they should care.
What LINDUNG 24 Jam actually covers
The legal name is the Non-Employment Injury Scheme (Skim Kemalangan Bukan Bencana Kerja, SKBBK). It was created by the Employees' Social Security (Amendment) Act 2026 [Act A1788], with regulations in force from 1 June 2026. Before it, SOCSO's injury cover only paid out for accidents "arising out of and in the course of" your job, plus commuting. (The separate Invalidity Scheme, which pays a pension for long-term invalidity if you meet its contribution conditions, is unchanged.)
LINDUNG 24 Jam fills the other hours. PERKESO's own FAQ examples include a crash while driving home to your kampung for the holidays, falling off your bed, getting hurt playing football or cycling, and injuring yourself fixing something at home. It also states that a road accident is still covered if the police issue a saman or compound, as long as the accident is not a criminal offence. PERKESO estimated about 250,000 workers a year suffer this kind of accident with no SOCSO cover.
What it does not cover:
- Accidents outside Malaysia.
- Accidents at work or on the commute, which stay under the existing Employment Injury Scheme (you cannot claim both for one accident).
- Illness, including diabetes, fever or high blood pressure, and occupational diseases.
- Self-inflicted injuries, fraud, and accidents while committing a crime.
- A month with no salary and no contribution, such as long unpaid leave. Short unpaid absences where you remain on the payroll are still covered.
- Anyone who opted out and has not opted back in.
What it pays
The benefits mirror SOCSO's work-injury scheme: medical treatment (government hospital or clinic, or reimbursement at government rates if you go private), a Temporary Disablement Benefit for certified medical leave of four days or more (counting the day of the accident), a Permanent Disablement Benefit, RM500 a month Constant Attendance Allowance for the severely disabled, physical and vocational rehabilitation, a Dependants' Benefit, an education loan for children, and a RM3,000 funeral benefit.
PERKESO's own worked example for a RM3,000 salary: RM47.20 a day while on medical leave; for a 29-year-old assessed at 100% disablement, a lump sum of RM51,156.54 or RM1,274.40 a month; and RM1,593 a month to dependants (a widow and one child) if the worker dies. On RM1,800 the daily figure is RM28.00; on RM5,000 it is RM79.20. Employer health insurance does not reduce any of this.
What it costs, by salary
The contribution comes out of the employee's pay only. Employers pay nothing extra, because they already fund the 1.25% work-injury scheme. Figures from PERKESO's new contribution schedule (first category, Phase 1):
- RM1,800 salary: RM13.15 a month.
- RM2,500 to RM2,600: RM19.15.
- RM3,000: RM22.15.
- RM4,000: RM29.65.
- RM5,000: RM37.15.
- Above RM5,900: RM44.65, the maximum, because wages are capped at RM6,000.
The rate is set in phases: 0.75% from 1 June 2026 to 31 May 2028, 1.00% to 31 May 2031, then 1.25%. PERKESO's FAQ adds that the later phases are "subject to" their own regulations and effective dates, so treat those as scheduled, not certain.
Where you stand after 31 August
You did nothing: you are covered. PERKESO's FAQ says local employees who did not opt out by 31 August are "automatically activated" and stay in on the "once in, always in" principle.
You opted out: you are not covered for accidents after the opt-out took effect. Your employer can claim back LINDUNG 24 Jam deductions from July 2026 onwards through the ASSIST portal; employees cannot apply for the refund themselves.
June 2026 money: it was compulsory by law before the Cabinet decision and cannot be refunded, even if you later opted out. If your employer did not deduct it in June, PERKESO says the arrears must still be deducted. The upside: anyone who had an accident in June is covered for it, opted out or not.
You are a foreign worker: it remains compulsory. There is no opt-out.
You have two employers: only one deducts. You choose which one at a PERKESO office using the participation form; if you do not, PERKESO assigns one.
Opting back in
From 2 September 2026, employees who opted out can switch back on the LINDUNG Faedah portal (lindungfaedah.perkeso.gov.my) or with the paper participation form. Cover starts from the date and time you submit, not from the start of the month, but the contribution is charged on the full month's salary. PERKESO's example: opting in on 15 September means a September contribution on the whole September wage. The form also carries the "once in, always in" wording, so opting back in is meant to be permanent.
You can check what has actually been deducted on the PRIHATIN portal or app. If your employer is deducting but not paying PERKESO, you can complain to PERKESO. Employers face up to RM10,000 or two years in jail on conviction, although PERKESO gave them a six-month grace period on penalties from the scheme's start.
What the first three months showed
PERKESO released its first numbers at a media briefing on 9 September 2026, after the opt-out window closed:
- 8.5 million workers, or 87.6% of Malaysian employees in the scheme, stayed in. 12.4% opted out.
- Of those who opted out, about 52% earn under RM3,500 a month, and 53% are in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya (Johor 11%, Penang 9%).
- From 1 June to 31 August PERKESO received 6,330 claims, about 69 a day, and paid out RM9.97 million. About 74% of claimants earn under RM3,500.
- Between 9,000 and 10,000 people who had opted out rejoined in the nine days after the opt-back-in facility opened on 2 September.
PERKESO's chief executive also told reporters that an employer cannot dismiss a worker while that worker is receiving LINDUNG 24 Jam benefit payments for an accident. Its strategy deputy has said the income-replacement rate rises from 48% now to 80% once the contribution reaches the full 1.25%.
For foreign workers, where the scheme is still compulsory, the problem is employers not paying. In a 9 October Bernama report, PERKESO said nearly 500,000 registered foreign workers had no LINDUNG 24 Jam contributions made for them since 1 June, which leaves them with no claim if they are hurt. Its Ops Kesan enforcement issued 25,011 compounds worth RM15 million between 2020 and September 2026. A foreign worker can check contributions on the PRIHATIN portal and report a non-paying employer to PERKESO.
What happens next
When it announced the U-turn on 9 July, the Human Resources Ministry said it would review the scheme's direction, effectiveness and sustainability by the end of 2026, and that amendments to the law could follow. So the voluntary status is a Cabinet decision layered on an Act that still says compulsory.
Budget 2027, tabled on 9 October, did not change LINDUNG 24 Jam. The rate, the voluntary status for locals and the opt-back-in route all stay as they are. The PERKESO items in the Budget are for other groups: the government pays 70% of LINDUNG Kendiri contributions for more than 200,000 self-employed people in 17 non-mandatory sectors, there is a 35% PERKESO matching incentive for e-hailing and p-hailing riders (50% if the platform also contributes), and commercial-vehicle drivers get a health-screening voucher of up to RM30 through PERKESO. Until the year-end review reports, the rules in this guide stand.
