KUALA LUMPUR: The Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (IRB) has advised taxpayers not to ignore letters or emails on the Special Voluntary Declaration Programme they received.
In a statement released today, the IRB said taxpayers who received the letter or email regarding the programme should take immediate action by reviewing their tax records and declare all their income and expenses within the offer period of Nov 3, 2018, to June 30, 2019.
"This is to ensure that they enjoy the imposition of a low penalty rate of only 10 and 15 per cent on the amount of tax payable.
The voluntary declaration made within the period will also be accepted in good faith without further inquiry from the IRB," the statement said.
When tabling Budget 2019 in Parliament, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng announced that the Special Voluntary Declaration Programme was part of the government's initiative on tax reforms to encourage taxpayers to voluntarily declare their income and subsequently reduce the leakage of revenue.
Meanwhile, according to the statement, the IRB was currently in the process of sending out the letters and emails to more than 8.3 million registered taxpayers.
Among the criteria of taxpayers who will receive the letters or emails are registered taxpayers who have yet to submit their Income Tax Return Form (BNCP) and registered taxpayers who have failed to submit their BNCP in a regular manner (some years are missing).
In addition, registered taxpayers who have submitted BNCP but are found to have tax compliance issues such as under-declaration of income or over-claiming on tax relief.
"After the programme expires on July 1, 2019, further checks may be done by IRB through audits or investigation and a higher penalty of between 80 and 300 per cent will be imposed," said the statement.
In the meantime, for the avoidance of being duped by third parties over the implementation of the programme, taxpayers who receive the letter or e-mail notification may seek further confirmation.
Taxpayers may visit nearby IRB offices or contact the IRB’s Hasil Careline at 1-800-88-5436 or 603-7713 6666 (from overseas); or send an inquiry email to: pengakuansukarela@hasil.gov.my -- BERNAMA