HRDF News Roundup — Week starting 2026-06-15

This is the Monday news roundup for the week starting 15 June 2026. Three items worth flagging for Malaysian HR Managers and L&D Heads: HRD Corp’s revised grant rules come into force today, ATD’s international certificates are now fully claimable, and AI training under SBL-Khas remains robust heading into Q3.

What’s new

• HRD Corp Employer’s Circular No. 2/2026 — New Grant Rules Effective Today. Issued on 7 May 2026 and taking effect on 15 June 2026, the circular revises the terms and conditions for all levy-based training grant schemes (HCC, SBL, SLB, FWT). The headline change: training may only commence 14 calendar days after grant approval. Additional rules include a 90-day window from approval to training start, a complete ban on amending approved grants, no appeals for rejected or expired applications, and a requirement for confirmed (not provisional) training dates at the time of application. Source: HRD Corp Employer’s Circular No. 2/2026, reported by Biztrak.
• ATD–HRD Corp Partnership: 13 International Certificates Now 100% Claimable. The Association for Talent Development (ATD) announced on 3 June 2026 that it has formalised a partnership with HRD Corp to advance workplace learning in Malaysia. Thirteen ATD certificate programmes have been recognised as 100% claimable through HRD Corp-authorised local training providers. The partnership covers talent development, instructional design, and human performance improvement credentials. Source: PR Newswire, ATD press release dated 3 June 2026.
• AI Training Claimability Under SBL-Khas: 2026 Rates Confirmed. Multiple registered training providers have confirmed that Applied AI for Business Users courses — covering practical use of tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, and AI-assisted spreadsheets — remain fully claimable under SBL-Khas. Current approved rates sit at up to RM10,000 per day per trainer for group training, with SMEs (fewer than 200 staff) eligible for 100% SBL-Khas subsidy. Individual rate caps are RM1,750 per day per participant. Provider registration with HRD Corp and a minimum 6-hour programme duration remain mandatory. Source: Multiple HRD Corp-registered providers, corroborated by CorporateTrainingMY and Pertama Partners.

Why it matters for your training claims

The Circular No. 2/2026 rules represent the most significant procedural tightening of the grant application process in several years. The 14-day waiting period is the change that will catch employers off-guard: you can no longer book a course, submit the grant on Friday, and run the cohort early the following week. Every training date in your H2 calendar now needs to be planned with at least 15 working days of lead time before the application goes in, plus a further two weeks before the first trainer enters the room. The rule on confirmed dates — no provisional bookings — adds additional rigidity at the scheduling stage.

The ban on amending approved grants is a harder constraint than it first appears. Under the old rules, a change of venue or a trainer swap could be handled through an amendment. From today, any such change requires cancelling the existing grant and submitting a fresh application, which restarts the 14-day clock. Employers who rely on a single named trainer should identify backup trainers now and check that all backups hold their own HRD Corp registration.

On the opportunity side, the ATD partnership and the confirmed SBL-Khas rates for AI training point to a well-funded Q3 for L&D teams. The 100% subsidy available to SMEs for AI-focused cohorts is a meaningful budget lever. Organisations that have been watching AI training from the sidelines are likely to move quickly once they understand that the subsidy ceiling is real and the course categories — prompt engineering, AI for business users, Copilot adoption — are solidly within scope.

What to do next

1. Audit your H2 training calendar against the new 14-day rule. Any cohort scheduled within four weeks should be reviewed immediately: check whether the grant application window is still viable under the new terms, and whether training dates are confirmed (not provisional) in your records.
2. If you have an active grant that needs a venue, trainer, or date change, act before the change forces a cancellation. Under the new rules, any unapproved deviation during claim submission may trigger a rejection. Contact your training provider to align on whether a cancellation-and-resubmit is faster than trying to work within the approved details.
3. Review your AI training budget for Q3. If your headcount is under 200, check your SBL-Khas balance and confirm your training provider holds current HRD Corp registration. An Applied AI for Business Users cohort structured at two days delivers RM3,500–RM5,600 of claimable value per participant at current rates — worth calculating against your remaining levy before the financial year closes.

Based in Penang — delivering nationwide. Contact [email protected] to scope your next HRDF-claimable cohort.