Reliefs & tax saving · Can I claim it? · RM2,500
Can I claim my laptop, phone or internet bill? The RM2,500 lifestyle relief, explained
Yes, mostly. Malaysia's lifestyle tax relief lets you claim up to RM2,500 a year for a personal computer, smartphone or tablet, books, your internet bill and self-improvement courses, for yourself, your spouse or your child. It is a closed list though: sports gear and gym membership now sit in a separate RM1,000 relief, and a few common purchases, like sports shoes, do not qualify under either one.
What actually counts toward the RM2,500
LHDN's lifestyle relief (Item 9 on the official relief table) covers four things, for you, your spouse or your child, and nothing outside this list:
Books, journals, magazines and newspapers. Any similar printed or subscribed publication, as long as it is not banned reading material.
A personal computer, smartphone or tablet. The catch is right there in LHDN's own wording: not for business use. Buy it for your freelance work and it belongs on your business expenses instead, not here.
Your internet bill. The monthly subscription has to be under your own name, so a bill still in a parent's or a roommate's name will not count.
Self-improvement or skill-improvement course fees. Personal development courses, not the professional certification courses that fall under the separate education-fee relief.
Books, a laptop, twelve months of Wi-Fi and an online course can easily add up to well over RM2,500. The relief only pays out on the first RM2,500 of it, so it pays to know what actually belongs in this bucket before you start counting receipts.
What sits where
Counts under the RM2,500
Item 9, closed list
- Books, journals, magazines, newspapers
- Computer, smartphone or tablet (personal use)
- Your internet bill (own name)
- Self-improvement course fees
Doesn't count here
Common mistakes
- Sports equipment and gym membership (separate RM1,000 relief)
- Sports shoes and attire (neither relief covers them)
- Groceries, clothing, general shopping (never claimable)
- Gadgets bought for business use
The mistake most blogs still make
A lot of tax articles still say the RM2,500 lifestyle relief covers "books, computers, internet and sports equipment or gym membership." That was true once, but Budget 2025 split sports out into its own RM1,000 relief with a wider scope: sports equipment, facility rental or entrance fees, competition registration and gym membership, coaching or training fees. The two are separate pots now, an extra RM1,000 on top of the RM2,500, not inside it, and the same receipt can only go in one.
Sports shoes: claimable under neither relief
This is the one that trips people up, because it feels like it should obviously fall under "sports equipment." It does not. LHDN's definition of sports equipment specifically excludes sports attire, which includes running shoes, jerseys and swimwear. And the RM2,500 lifestyle relief has never covered clothing of any kind either. So a new pair of running shoes is not claimable under the sports relief, and it is not claimable under the general lifestyle relief as a fallback. It simply sits outside both.
Self, spouse or child, not your parents (unless it's sports)
The general RM2,500 relief covers purchases for yourself, your spouse or your child. It does not extend to your parents. If you buy your father a tablet, that receipt has nowhere to go under this relief.
The separate RM1,000 sports relief is wider on this one point: it explicitly extends to parents too. So a badminton racquet, a gym membership or a sports-facility booking for your mother or father can still qualify, just under the sports relief, not the general one.
It's one shared pot, not several
RM2,500 is a single combined ceiling across all four categories, not RM2,500 each. Spend RM1,800 on a laptop and you only have RM700 left for books, internet and everything else combined for the rest of the year. There is also no carrying forward: whatever you do not use by 31 December is gone, it does not roll into next year. For the full picture of every other relief you can claim, see the tax relief checklist.
A worked example
Hafiz earns RM95,000 a year. After his automatic RM9,000 individual relief and RM4,000 EPF relief, his chargeable income sits at RM82,000, inside the 19% band. Over the year he buys a laptop for personal use, pays his home internet bill and takes an online course.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Laptop (personal use) | RM1,600 |
| Internet bill (12 months) | RM1,200 |
| Books and an online course | RM500 |
| Total spent | RM3,300 |
| Claimable (capped at RM2,500) | RM2,500 |
What the RM2,500 is worth to Hafiz, in the 19% band
That RM2,500 sits entirely inside his 19% band, so it is worth RM475 in tax saved. The last RM800 he spent, past the cap, saves him nothing further this year.
What to do next
Keep every receipt for a computer, phone, tablet, book, internet bill or course fee, even after you hit the cap, LHDN can still ask to see them for 7 years. If you are a freelancer or sole proprietor, decide up front whether a laptop is a business asset or a personal lifestyle claim, it can only be one. And if you are buying something sport-related for a parent, claim it under the RM1,000 sports relief instead, the general lifestyle relief will not take it.
Working out where your other reliefs stand matters just as much as this one. Our free tax calculator totals up your reliefs and your chargeable income at the current LHDN rates so the number you put on your form is file-ready.
Frequently asked questions
Can I claim my laptop if I also use it for freelance work?
No. LHDN's own wording says “not for business use.” If it's a genuine work tool, claim it instead as a business expense or capital allowance on your Form B, not as a lifestyle relief. The same laptop cannot sit in both.
Is gym membership part of the RM2,500?
No. Gym membership, sports equipment, facility rental and competition fees now sit in a separate RM1,000 sports relief, on top of the RM2,500. They shared one pot years ago; Budget 2025 split them for good.
Can I claim running shoes under either relief?
No. LHDN's sports equipment definition specifically excludes sports attire, including shoes, and the closed list for the RM2,500 relief has never included clothing. Running shoes fall outside both.
Can I buy something for my parents under this relief?
Not under the RM2,500 general relief, that one only covers you, your spouse or your child. The separate RM1,000 sports relief does extend to parents, so sports-related purchases for them can still qualify there.
What happens to unused relief if I don't spend RM2,500?
It's gone. Reliefs never carry forward to the next year, so there's no point holding onto receipts hoping to catch up later.
