If you have an unpaid National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loan, and if you have plans to travel abroad, then this is for you.
The Government is detailing plans to reinforce overseas travel restrictions on PTPTN borrowers who have failed to repay their loans.
The Government details the categories of PTPTN borrowers who will be barred from travelling overseas
According to the Budget 2026 summarised document, two categories of borrowers will be blacklisted and barred from travelling abroad.
- Borrowers earning more than RM6,000 per month and having arrears of more than five years
- Borrowers who work abroad
At the end of 2024, the total outstanding debt from borrowers who have never made any repayments or have not paid consistently exceeded RM11 billion.
Of this amount, more than RM5 billion is debt from borrowers who have not paid even a single sen to PTPTN.
Free PTPTN education for children of low-income families
On Friday (10 October), during the tabling of Budget 2026, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed that 5,800 children from low-income families studying at public universities (IPTA) will get free PTPTN education, with an allocation of RM120 million.
Students from low- and middle-income families who graduate with a First-Class Honours Bachelor’s degree at IPTA will also have their PTPTN loans waived. Anwar also mentioned the travel restrictions for those who fail to repay their loans.
Last year, the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) revealed that over 430,000 PTPTN borrowers, and many of them who have worked for decades, are not paying off their loans.
What do you think of the travel restrictions?
Also read : PTPTN: Some Loanees Have Retired But Yet to Settle Debt, Over 430K Borrowers Haven’t Paid a Single Sen
