PM: No registration fees for students setting up businesses from Jan 1

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16 PUTRAJAYA- Prime Minister Najib Razak(pic) hosts Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena at the Prime Minister's Office at 1000 (0200 GMT)

KUALA LUMPUR: Students from public and private institutions of higher learning intending to set up a business will be exempted from paying business registration fees with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) from next Jan 1, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak (pic) said.

The Prime Minister said the exemption under the Registration of Businesses Act was aimed at encouraging young entrepreneurs to take advantage of the RM10mil grant allocated by the SSM.

The grant will be disbursed over the next 10 years or RM1mil per year, he said during a talk show at SSM’s Online Networking Entrepre­neurs Carnival yesterday.

Najib took part in the carnival as a panel member in a talk-show format chat on stage.

He advised young entrepreneurs to adopt the online business platform to enable them to reach wider market access.

Besides quality of their products, creativity was an important factor if they want their business to succeed, he said.

“Online entrepreneurs must create distinctive brands so that their products will be well received by consumers,” he added.

Najib said the agenda to empower the digital world had been high on the Government’s priority list, as seen in the recent launch of the world’s first Digital Free Zone.

The Digital Free Zone would be introduced in Malaysia next year and is expected to boost the digital economy sector.

“The initiative is unique and had never been done by any country.

“Another initiative is the high-speed broadband, which I have undertaken since the time I was the deputy prime minister. We will try to double up the speed with half the price,” he said.

Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin said the students were eligible for a one-time business registration either under a sole proprietorship (business name in their own name as per identity card or a trade name) or partnership using a trade name for a period of one year only.

Registering sole proprietorship using personal name costs RM30 while registering using trade name costs RM60 per annum.

“This is to encourage students to become entrepreneurs while they are still studying,” he said, adding that there were now 42,000 online businesses registered with SSM.