Not Time To Implement Capital Gains Tax On Disposed Shares, Says Deputy Minister

The Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying has stated that the government doesn’t think that the time is right to implement Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on the disposal of shares of listed companies.

A report from The Sun stated that Lim explained that this approach is taken so that the local stock exchange can continue to be competitive.

The same report also continued stating that two bills involving tax were passed in the Dewan Negara yesterday, the Income Tax Bill (Amendment) 2024 and Labuan Business Activity Tax Bill (Amendment) 2024.

Lim stated that the former is designed to amend the Income Tax Act 1967 (Act 53), which includes the addition of nine clauses to enhance tax policy and administration.

The proposed enhancements included in the bill includes the implementation of the CGT, the implementation of the e-invoice, and tax administration amendments.

Lim also added that the CGT’s implementation is following best practices internationally, and it will help broaden the tax base.

Meanwhile, the implementation of the e-invoice will help in shoring up leakages while also improving the efficiency of tax administration in dealing with the shadow economy.

It should be noted that the high value goods tax has also been postponed indefinitely, while the low value goods tax came into force in January of this year.