The Finance Ministry has announced refinements to the scope of service tax exemptions in a bid to alleviate the burden on citizens and bolster the competitiveness of the nation's services sector.
The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry will be monitoring the implementation of the increased service tax (SST) to ensure that sectors unaffected by the hike do not attempt to unjustly benefit from the situation.
A total of eight million users of water supply services comprising 87% domestic and 13% non-domestic consumers in Peninsular Malaysia and the Federal Territory of Labuan are exempted from the sales and service tax (SST) hike which came into effect today.
Malaysian hoteliers are hoping foreign tourists will make up for any shortfall in hotel bookings by locals due to higher room rates as a result of the increase in the service tax.
The service tax’s hike from 6% to 8%, effective today, will see consumers paying more for selected services, although the government has said the change will not lead to an economic shock as essentials such as food and telecommunications services will not be affected.
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