Malaysians who have seen their household TNB electricity usage increase due to the recent hot weather and haze season will get additional relief on their TNB electricity bills.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has announced that the government is extending electricity bill protection for domestic consumers from the current 600kWh threshold to 800kWh per month.
The temporary measure applies to electricity consumption from September until 31 December 2026.
Under the expanded protection, domestic users consuming up to 800kWh per month will be exempted from the Automatic Fuel Adjustment (AFA), Retail Charge and Sales and Service Tax (SST).
According to Anwar, the move was introduced as an immediate measure to address the current cost-of-living pressures. He said the recent haze and hotter weather have resulted in higher electricity consumption among some households, pushing their monthly usage beyond the previous 600kWh threshold and resulting in unusually higher bills.
AFA, Retail Charge and Sales Tax exemption up to 800kWh
Previously, domestic consumers had to keep their monthly electricity consumption at 600kWh or below to be exempted from AFA and the RM10 Retail Charge.
Under the latest temporary measure, this threshold has been increased to 800kWh per month, effectively giving households an additional 200kWh of headroom.
That represents a 33% increase from the previous 600kWh threshold and could be particularly useful for households which have seen higher electricity consumption due to increased air-conditioning usage. There’s a trend of increased electricity usage at home as more people tend to stay indoors due to the current haze situation.
The exemption also covers Sales and Service Tax. Under the current electricity tariff structure, domestic users consuming more than 600kWh per month are subject to 8% Service Tax.
With the latest announcement, domestic consumers using up to 800kWh per month will be exempted from AFA, the Retail Charge and SST for electricity consumption from September until 31 December 2026.
Anwar said the government will continue monitoring fuel costs and current energy market conditions to ensure future electricity tariff decisions take into account affordability and the cost of living, security of electricity supply and the sustainability of the energy sector.
What is AFA and how does it impact your bill?
The Automatic Fuel Adjustment or AFA was introduced in July 2025 under the new electricity tariff structure for Peninsular Malaysia, replacing the previous Imbalance Cost Pass-Through (ICPT) mechanism.
Unlike ICPT, which was adjusted every six months, AFA is adjusted on a monthly basis to reflect changes in electricity generation costs.
These costs can be affected by factors such as fuel prices, including coal and gas, as well as foreign exchange movements.
When actual generation costs are lower, AFA can result in a rebate for consumers. When generation costs increase, AFA becomes a surcharge.
Over the past year, AFA has shifted significantly from a sizeable rebate to a surcharge.
In November 2025, TNB domestic users enjoyed a rebate of 8.90 sen/kWh. Meanwhile for September 2026, consumers have to incur a surcharge of 3.67 sen/kWh.
Here are the AFA rates over the past 12 months:
- October 2025: -6.50 sen/kWh
- November 2025: -8.90 sen/kWh
- December 2025: -6.42 sen/kWh
- January 2026: -4.99 sen/kWh
- February 2026: -2.77 sen/kWh
- March 2026: -2.15 sen/kWh
- April 2026: -0.47 sen/kWh
- May 2026: +1.38 sen/kWh
- June 2026: +2.59 sen/kWh
- July 2026: +3.59 sen/kWh
- August 2026: +3.80 sen/kWh
- September 2026: +3.67 sen/kWh
The current forecasts indicate that AFA is expected to remain a surcharge for the rest of 2026.
- October 2026: +3.36 sen/kWh forecast
- November 2026: +2.81 sen/kWh forecast
- December 2026: +5.48 sen/kWh forecast
If the forecast holds, AFA is expected to ease slightly in October and November before increasing sharply to 5.48 sen/kWh in December.
The higher generation costs come amid continued volatility in global energy markets. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has increased pressure on energy prices, which can have an impact on electricity generation costs.
With the expanded AFA exemption, households consuming up to 800kWh per month will be shielded from the surcharge until the end of 2026.
For more information about TNB bills, you can refer to their explainer here.
