PUTRAJAYA, Oct 14 — The government is reviewing the criteria for recipients of the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loan repayment exemption for first-degree graduates who achieve excellent results, to ensure only students who truly qualify receive the exemption.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir said the policy review was essential to reassess the actual definition and standards of the first-class category, ensuring its implementation is fairer and more transparent.
The exemption's implementation is now temporarily suspended to give the Higher Education Ministry (MOHE) time to review its terms and conditions, so the policy can continue after the review is completed.
"This review is not to deny the rights of any party. We will review it so that those who truly meet the first-class category are eligible to receive the refund exemption," he told the press after attending the 2025 Malay Language Academic Awards ceremony today.
Zambry added that the reassessment also involved aspects of quality, academic integrity, and the uniformity of terms of reference to ensure fairness between public and private higher education institutions.
"We do not want significant differences between universities, but there must be a solid basis for determining qualifications. This is important because there are more than 390 private higher education institutions nationwide, so the definition of first class needs to be standardised," he said.
For public higher education institutions, monitoring is easier to implement because it is under the direct supervision of the government via the Education Ministry.
Zambry said the policy of granting exemptions to first-class degree graduates will continue after the review and evaluation process is fully completed next year.
During the tabling of Budget 2026 on Friday (October 10), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the government had agreed to exempt PTPTN repayments for all students who obtained a First Class Honours Bachelor's Degree at IPTA from low and middle-income families, which will benefit around 6,000 borrowers with a RM90 million allocation annually.
