KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): The Cost of Living Aid (BSH), formerly known as the 1Malaysia People's Aid (BR1M), will only be paid out after Chinese New Year, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Next year's Chinese New Year falls on Feb 5.

He said more time is needed to gather the information on the eligible recipients as the government is using a new approach.

"I'm being told that it (BSH) will only be paid after Chinese New Year, but it will definitely be paid," he told reporters at the Parliament lobby here today.

During the tabling of Budget 2019, Guan Eng announced that the BSH cash transfer has been revised to RM5 billion and is targeted at 4.1 million recipients for 2019, compared with the reported RM6.8 billion for more than 7.2 million recipients under the previous administration for 2018.

He added that under BSH, households with monthly income of RM2,000 and below will receive a grant of RM1,000, households with monthly income from RM2,001 to RM3,000 will receive RM750, while households with monthly income from RM3,001 to RM4,000 will receive a RM500 each.

On top of this, the government will introduce an additional BSH of RM120 for each child aged 18 years and below to be limited to four people, except those with disabilities or handicapped, who are not limited to their age.

Last year, under the BR1M programme, households earning less than RM3,000 received RM1,200 while households earning between RM3,000 and RM4,000 received RM900 each.