Govt gives six-month grace period for e-invoice implementation from Aug 1

Inland Revenue Board (IRB) chief executive officer Datuk Abu Tariq Jamaluddin.— AZLINA ABDULLAH/The Star

CYBERJAYA: The government has agreed to give six-month grace period to taxpayers from the date of mandatory implementation of e-Invoicing which started on Aug 1, said Inland Revenue Board (IRB) chief executive officer Datuk Abu Tariq Jamaluddin.

He said the grace period was given to ensure the smooth implementation of e-Invoicing.

"It is given to taxpayers for six months from the date of mandatory implementation of e-Invoices to issue consolidated e-Invoices for all transactions.

"Through the grace period, the IRB allows all activities or industries to only issue consolidated e-Invoices," he said at a special press conference on the implementation of e-invoices here today.

Abu Tariq said the IRB allows any transaction description to be entered in the "Product or Service Description" field, and if there is an e-Invoice request from the buyer, the seller is also allowed to only issue a consolidated e-Invoice without issuing an e-Invoice for each transaction.

He said that during the six months, there would be no prosecution action under Section 120 of the Income Tax Act 1967 against non-compliance with the e-Invoicing rules provided that the taxpayer has complied with the consolidated e-Invoicing requirements.

"This grace period is expected to give taxpayers enough time to ensure the full implementation of e-Invoicing which is more effective. It covers all aspects such as system availability, smooth business operations and change of management in business," he said.

Meanwhile, he said the government will recognise taxpayers who successfully implement e-Invoices according to the set timeline by providing a reduction in the capital allowance claim period from three years to two years.

He said the reduction in the capital allowance claim period will be given for the purchase of ICT equipment and computer software packages with effect from Assessment Year (AY) 2024 to AY 2025.

The IRB had informed that the first phase of e-Invoicing will start on Aug 1 involving companies with annual income or sales exceeding RM100 million.

The second phase will involve companies with annual income or sales exceeding RM25 million to RM100 million, according to the IRB. - Bernama