Malaysia on track to implement GST next year

MALAYSIA Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan yesterday tabled the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill 2014 in Parliament, putting it on track for implementation in a year.

During the 2014 Budget in October, the government had proposed introducing the value-added tax at an initial 6 per cent on April 1, 2015 as part of reforms to broaden the tax base and help balance the national budget.

The broad-based consumption tax is seen as more equitable, but also necessary given Malaysia's over-reliance on petroleum income and low income tax paying population of one million people out of a total of 30 million.