“There are 878,279 non-Malaysian licence holders, including 18,710 permanent residents,” Loke told reporters at a press conference.

He said that while these foreigners were entitled to apply for and hold Malaysian driving licences, they would not benefit from the government’s fuel subsidy.

“All this while, our government has been subsidising petrol for almost 900,000 foreigners,” he said.

He added the BUDI95 initiative, which kicked off today, ensures that the subsidy is channelled only to Malaysians.

He also said the decision to bar foreigners from purchasing subsidised fuel would result in significant savings for the government.

“From this group alone, we will save billions of ringgit every year.”

Under the BUDI95 initiative, citizens aged 16 and above with valid driving licences are eligible for the subsidised rate, with verification through MyKad, the same mechanism used for the distribution of Sumbangan Asas Rahmah aid.

Malaysians are entitled to 300 litres of subsidised RON95 petrol a month, although e-hailing services are exempted from this limit.

Foreigners will be charged RM2.60 per litre for RON95 for the month of October. In November, the price will be floated.

Checks for BUDI95 qualification can be done online from Thursday through www.budimadani.gov.my, at BUDI95 customer service centres or the Setel and CaltexGO apps.