SST increased to 8 pct, capital tax at 10 pct and luxury goods introduced

KUALA LUMPUR: A number of taxation reform measures will be implemented next year to expand the country's revenue base and at the same time not burden the majority of the people.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the tax collected by the government is one of the lowest in Asean at 11.8 per cent of gross domestic product compared to Singapore (12.6 per cent) and Thailand (16.4 per cent).

Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said the government plans to increase the service tax rate to 8.0 per cent instead of 6.0 per cent and this does not include services such as food and beverages, and telecommunications.

"The government will also expand the scope of taxable services to include logistic services, brokerage, underwriting and karaoke," he said when presenting Budget 2024 in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Anwar said the government will enforce the implementation of capital gains tax for the disposal of unlisted shares by local companies based on the net profit at a rate of 10 per cent from March 1, 2024.

The government is also considering the exemption of capital gains tax on the disposal of shares related to certain activities such as approved initial public offering (IPO), internal restructuring and venture capital companies subject to specified conditions.

Anwar said the government will enact new legislation to tax certain luxury goods such as jewellery and watches based on the threshold value of the goods.

-- BERNAMA