IGCSE Malay 0546 in 2028 and the End of First Language Malay 0696: What Changes and What to Do

Cambridge IGCSE Malay 0546, also known as Malay as a Foreign Language, moves to a revised syllabus that is first examined in June 2028. IGCSE First Language Malay 0696 goes the other way: Cambridge is withdrawing it, and June 2027 is its last exam.^[1] If you sit 0546 in June 2027, your papers stay as they are. From June 2028, every paper is out of 40 marks and the reading paper is entirely multiple choice.

The change reaches a lot of Malaysian students. In the June 2026 series, schools in Malaysia made over 74,000 Cambridge entries, and Malay as a Foreign Language was again the most popular Cambridge IGCSE subject in the country.^[2]

This guide sets out what the 2028 syllabus changes in each paper, who is affected by the end of 0696, which Cambridge Malay qualification is left, how an IGCSE Malay grade relates to SPM Bahasa Melayu, and how to prepare. It is built from Cambridge's syllabuses, specimen papers and exam calendar, and from UPU and SPA documents, all linked in the notes. Afterkelas is an online tuition company, not a Cambridge centre, so your school's exams officer has the final word on entries.

When does the new IGCSE Malay 0546 syllabus start?

The year of your exam decides your syllabus, not the year you start the course. Cambridge puts it in one line on the 0546 page: "The syllabus year refers to the year in which the examination will be taken."^[3] A student who starts a two-year IGCSE course in September 2026 and sits in June 2028 is in the first group on the new syllabus.

Both syllabuses are examined in the June series only, so a Malaysian candidate gets one sitting a year. In June 2026, the 0546 speaking test window ran from 1 March to 30 April. The other three papers followed on Monday 4 May (Reading), Thursday 14 May (Writing) and Monday 25 May (Listening), all in the morning session, whose Key Time Definition Cambridge's name for the point in a timetabled session by which candidates must be in the exam or under full supervision, so that no one can pass on what is in the paper. Speaking tests have no Key Time. in Malaysia is 9:00 am (01:00 GMT).^[4] Those dates come from the June 2026 series and show the usual pattern; the June 2027 dates may differ.

For June 2027, Cambridge's calendar says the final timetable reaches schools at the end of October 2026, entries open in mid-November 2026, and most entries are due in February 2027. IGCSE results for the June 2026 series were released on 18 August 2026.^[5] Cambridge has not announced the June 2027 results dates.

One more change is further off. Cambridge's digital exam roadmap lists IGCSE Malay 0546 among the subjects launching on-screen exams in 2029, with availability expanding region by region, and it says the roadmap is subject to change.^[6] Ask your school before you count on a digital option in Malaysia.

What changes in IGCSE Malay 0546 from June 2028?

The shape of the qualification stays. You still take four compulsory papers, one for each skill, each worth 25% of the grade, graded A* to G. The changes are in the marks, the reading paper, the speaking preparation and the writing mark schemes.^[7]

What stays the same

• The four assessment objectives, one for each skill, at 25% each.
• The five topic areas: everyday activities, personal and social life, the world around us, the world of work, and the international world.
• The grammar list, and the target level: CEFR A2 Definition The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages has six levels, from A1 to C2. Cambridge describes A2 as Basic User and B1 as Independent User. with some elements of B1.
• The vocabulary list. No words changed, but the list is now a separate spreadsheet on the 0546 page instead of pages in the syllabus.
• No dictionaries in any paper, and no carrying speaking marks forward to a later series.

Paper 2 Reading: no more written answers

Under the current syllabus, two of the six question groups ask for short answers written in Malay about longer texts, worth 23 of the 45 marks. From 2028 you no longer write answers in your own words in the reading paper: every answer is chosen from options printed on the page. Cambridge says it made the change "to reduce the need for written responses in a reading paper".

In Cambridge's 2028 specimen paper, the texts for groups 3 to 6 come in a separate insert. The gap-fill options are ordinary words: verbs, nouns, adjectives, frequency words such as biasanya and jarang, and joining words such as tetapi and walaupun. The right answer depends on what the whole sentence means, so reading around the gap matters more than spotting a word you know.^[8]

Paper 3 Speaking: notes are allowed while you prepare

The test itself is unchanged. After a greeting of about 30 seconds that is not marked, you do one role play of about two minutes, answering five questions from the teacher-examiner, then two topic conversations of four minutes each. The role play is marked out of 10, 2 marks for each question, and the two conversations together out of 30: 15 for communication and 15 for quality of language.

The change comes in the 10 minutes before the test, when you study the role-play card under supervision. From 2028 you may make notes on a separate sheet of paper (not on the card itself). You hand them to the teacher-examiner before the test starts, you cannot use them during it, and the centre keeps them until certificates are issued. The current syllabus says plainly: "Candidates are not allowed to make notes."

The 2028 mark scheme also spells out a full-mark role-play answer: the information is fully communicated, the language suits the situation and, if you use a verb, "the time frame is clear and appropriate". Cambridge's 2028 specimen instructions add that topic conversation 1 is on a sub-topic from areas A or B and topic conversation 2 on one from areas C, D or E, and that in the role play "brief answers, as long as they complete the task fully, can be awarded two marks".^[9]

Paper 4 Writing: the same tasks for fewer marks

Until 2027, Question 2 is marked on one set of criteria over five levels. From 2028 Cambridge marks it on two sets over four levels, "to align with current mark scheme principles". In the 2028 specimen mark scheme, full task-completion marks in Questions 2 and 3 need every task done. Skip one bullet point and the answer can still reach the top band, but not the top mark.

What happens to IGCSE First Language Malay 0696?

0696 is the Cambridge IGCSE for students whose first language is Malay. Cambridge offers it only in administrative zones 4 and 5, and Malaysia is in zone 5. It is a different exam from 0546: two papers of two hours each, Reading and Directed Writing, and Composition, worth 50 marks apiece. It tests standard Malay, with Tatabahasa Dewan as the main grammar reference.^[10]

Cambridge told schools in October 2024 that it was withdrawing 0696, and the notice on its 0696 page gives June 2027 as the last assessment.^[11] Its syllabus changes guide says withdrawals follow consultation with centres, and it lists no replacement for 0696.

Which Cambridge Malay qualifications are left after June 2027?

One: IGCSE Malay 0546. Cambridge's O Level subject list has no Malay syllabus, and neither does its AS & A Level list.^[12] For a Malaysian student, the other Malay qualification to weigh is SPM Bahasa Melayu (1103), a national exam set by Lembaga Peperiksaan, not by Cambridge.

Who is affected, and what should you do now?

If you are sitting 0696 in June 2027

You sit the last series, and there is no resit after it. 0696 is a linear qualification, so you cannot retake one paper on its own, and from 2028 the syllabus no longer exists. If you sat 0696 in June 2026 and want a higher grade, June 2027 is your one chance to retake it. Cambridge's deadline for most June 2027 entries falls in February 2027, and your school may set an earlier date of its own. Under the current syllabuses you also cannot enter 0546 and 0696 in the same series, so June 2027 is a choice of one or the other.

If Malay is your first language and you sit IGCSE in 2028 or later

0696 will be gone by your exam year. The remaining Cambridge option, 0546, was written for learners of Malay as a foreign language and is pitched at CEFR A2 with some elements of B1, far below the first-language competence 0696 asks for. The 2028 syllabus has no rule that keeps first-language speakers out, but whether your school enters you is its decision. If you are Malaysian and a public university or a government job is a possibility, the grade that counts is SPM Bahasa Melayu, as the next section explains.

If you start IGCSE Malay 0546 in 2026 or 2027

If your exam is in June 2028 or later, prepare for the 2028 to 2030 syllabus from the start. Cambridge says textbooks endorsed for the syllabus from 2022 can still be used if you take the changes into account. Past papers from 2022 onwards remain good practice for listening, speaking and writing, where the tasks have not changed. For reading, use the 2028 specimen paper, because four of the six question groups have new formats. If you sit in June 2027, you stay on the current syllabus, with written answers in Paper 2 and no notes in the speaking preparation.

If you run or choose a school's Malay course

From 2028 a school that wants a Cambridge Malay course has one syllabus, 0546. Schools that taught 0696 to first-language speakers need a new plan for those students, whether that is 0546, SPM Bahasa Melayu or both. Cambridge has published the 2028 specimen papers, says it is developing a scheme of work and other classroom resources, and will add Example Candidate Responses after the first exam in 2028.

If you are a private candidate

Both syllabuses accept private candidates. You register with a centre that accepts them, not with Cambridge, and the centre sets its own fees and deadlines. In Malaysia, Cambridge lists the British Council among the offices that take private entries.^[13] Cambridge also says you "must be able to meet the full requirements of any assessment for which you are entered". Every 0546 candidate takes Paper 3, which a teacher-examiner conducts and records during the speaking window, so check that your centre runs the 0546 speaking test for private candidates before you pay.

1. 1 Pick your June series
2. 2 Find a centre that takes private candidates
3. 3 Check it runs the 0546 speaking test
4. 4 Register before the centre's deadline
5. 5 Sit Paper 3, then Papers 1, 2 and 4

Does IGCSE Malay count as SPM Bahasa Melayu for UPU or a government job?

No. Public universities and the civil service ask for a credit in SPM Bahasa Melayu itself. UPU's circular for SPM leavers applying for the 2026/2027 intake asks for a pass in Sejarah and an SPM credit in Bahasa Melayu, within at least five credits for an Asasi (foundation) programme or at least three for a diploma at a public university.^[14] The circular for applicants holding A Level, the IB Diploma, AUSMAT and similar qualifications still asks for an SPM credit in Bahasa Melayu and a pass in Sejarah on top of them, and a credit from SPM Ulangan also counts.^[15]

The Public Service Commission (SPA) sets the same bar for government posts: a credit, at least grade C, in Bahasa Melayu at SPM or SVM level, or a qualification the Government recognises as equivalent.^[16] We found no government document that names IGCSE Malay as that equivalent, so get written confirmation from SPA before you rely on one.

So a Malaysian student at an international school who might want a public university place or a government post should plan to sit SPM as a private candidate (calon persendirian), with Bahasa Melayu and, for UPU, Sejarah. SPM Bahasa Melayu has its own speaking test, which our SPM speaking test guide explains. Private colleges and universities abroad set their own entry rules, so check the requirements of the places you are aiming for.

How to prepare for the IGCSE Malay 0546 papers

The advice below follows what the syllabus and the 2028 specimen papers reward. It is written for the June 2028 papers, and most of it holds for June 2027 too.

Paper 1 Listening

You hear every recording twice and mark your answers on the question paper first. At the end you get six minutes to shade them onto a separate multiple choice answer sheet in soft pencil (Cambridge recommends B or HB), and only the answer sheet is marked, so practise the transfer against the clock. Questions 35 to 37 ask for two true statements out of five and are worth 2 marks each, so get used to shading exactly two letters.

Paper 2 Reading

This paper leans on vocabulary. Cambridge's June 2024 examiner report noted that candidates with a wider vocabulary did well in reading because they recognised synonyms.^[17] Work through Cambridge's 2028 vocabulary list by topic area, but expect words that are not on it: the syllabus calls the list a guide and asks students to learn to work out unknown words from context. Then sit the 2028 specimen paper in one hour, paying most attention to the gap fill in group 4 and the eight-statement matching in group 5, which have no direct equivalent in the 2022 to 2027 papers.

Paper 3 Speaking

Use the 10 minutes to plan the role play, not to write a script. The card gives only the situation; the five questions come from the teacher-examiner. On Cambridge's 2028 specimen card 1, you are planning a trip to the zoo, and the teacher plays your friend:

The first three questions want short facts. The fourth moves into the past and the fifth into the future, with a reason. Have a past-tense answer ready, with telah, sudah or pernah, and a future one with akan and kerana, and jot those words in your notes. A short answer can earn the full 2 marks if it completes the task.

In the topic conversations, the top band for communication asks you to develop ideas and opinions often and to justify and explain some answers, and the examiner report says the same, so back each opinion with a reason and an example. Quality of language rewards "a wide range of the structures listed in the syllabus", so practise ones from the grammar list, such as lebih ... daripada, paling, bukan sahaja ... malah, and walaupun ... namun.

Paper 4 Writing

Answer every bullet point in Questions 2 and 3, because full task-completion marks need all of them, and keep close to the word guide: about 80 to 90 words, then about 130 to 140. Question 3 carries 25 of the 40 marks, and 9 of those are for range. The specimen mark scheme gives the top range band to extended, well-linked sentences and a wide range of simple and complex structures. Give Question 3 the largest share of the hour.

Frequently asked questions

When is the first exam on the new IGCSE Malay 0546 syllabus?

June 2028. The revised syllabus covers the June 2028, 2029 and 2030 exams. Students who sit in June 2027 still use the 2025 to 2027 syllabus.

Is IGCSE First Language Malay 0696 being discontinued?

Yes. Cambridge is withdrawing 0696, and its last exam is in June 2027. Cambridge told schools in October 2024 and has named no replacement syllabus.

What is the difference between IGCSE Malay 0546 and 0696?

0546 is for students learning Malay as a foreign language, aimed at CEFR A2 with some elements of B1, and tests listening, reading, speaking and writing in four papers. 0696 is for students whose first language is Malay and has two papers of two hours each: Reading and Directed Writing, and Composition.

What changes in the IGCSE Malay 0546 papers from 2028?

Every paper is out of 40 marks. Paper 2 Reading becomes all multiple choice and matching, with no written answers. Paper 4 Writing falls from 45 to 40 marks, with new mark schemes for Questions 2 and 3. In Paper 3 Speaking you may make notes during the 10 minutes of preparation. Paper 1 Listening does not change.

Can I sit IGCSE Malay 0546 in November?

No. 0546 is examined in the June series only. The speaking test comes before the other papers: in June 2026 its window ran from 1 March to 30 April 2026.

Does an IGCSE Malay grade count as an SPM Bahasa Melayu credit?

No. UPU's circulars for the 2026/2027 intake ask for an SPM credit in Bahasa Melayu for public university programmes, and SPA asks for a credit in Bahasa Melayu at SPM or SVM level, or a qualification the Government recognises as equivalent. We found no government document that treats IGCSE Malay as that equivalent.

Can I take IGCSE Malay 0546 as a private candidate in Malaysia?

Yes. The syllabus accepts private candidates. You register through a centre that accepts them, such as the British Council, and pay the centre's fees. Check first that the centre runs the 0546 speaking test, because every candidate has to take it.

Are dictionaries or notes allowed in IGCSE Malay 0546?

Dictionaries are not allowed in any paper. From 2028 you may make notes during the speaking preparation time, but you hand them in before the test and cannot use them while you speak.

Are there specimen papers for the 2028 IGCSE Malay syllabus?

Yes. Cambridge's 0546 past papers page has the 2028 specimen papers and mark schemes, the listening audio and transcript, and the specimen speaking materials.

Is there a Cambridge O Level Malay?

No. Cambridge's O Level subject list has no Malay syllabus, and neither does its AS & A Level list, so after June 2027 IGCSE Malay 0546 is the only Cambridge Malay qualification.