Last weekend, Prime Minister Najib Razak has announced that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) exemption on prepaid reloads will continue to take place next year. The exemption (sort of) originally took place from 1 January 2016 as part of Budget 2016’s implementation.
That being said, the announcement by PM sounds slightly confusing to us because the actual implementation which is still in place at the moment does not involved direct exemption. In fact, it was fondly referred to by many including the PM himself during Budget 2016’s tabling two years ago as the GST rebate.
https://twitter.com/PMOMalaysia/status/810823434561171456
Under the current implementation, GST is not applied to the reload coupon itself but the amount would be deducted when users redeem it before being credited back to them within 24 hours. If it is an actual exemption from GST, it might be more proper and clearer if prepaid reload is included into the list of zero rated or exempt supplies.
Meanwhile, we have reached out to related government agencies as well as several telcos for their take on this matter. So, stay tuned.
(Source: Bernama and Office of The Prime Minister)
