Tax exemption may be extended

PETALING JAYA: The government may extend the sales tax exemption for new vehicles to help the automotive industry, which faced many challenges during the lockdown, says Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.

The Transport Minister said the government had introduced a series of stimulus packages for economic recovery, with one of them being the extension of the period for vehicle sales tax exemption for the purchase of new vehicles to June 30.

“The government is currently considering the proposal to extend the exemption, and a decision will be announced soon,” he said in a recorded statement at the Federation of Motor and Credit Companies Associations of Malaysia (FMCCAM) annual general meeting here yesterday.

Its president Datuk Tony Khor urged the government to extend the exemption beyond June 30.

He said there had been delays in the delivery of vehicles caused by the disruption to global supply chains and the shortage of chips.

Extending the exemption, he said, would lead to more potential car buyers.

The scheme was originally scheduled to end on Dec 31, 2020, but has been extended three times, with the latest until the end of this month.

Khor also urged the Road Transport Department (JPJ) to look into the possibility of facilitating same day delivery of used cars after the loan is approved.

“FMCCAM is also proposing to JPJ to consider reducing the road tax by 75% for vehicles that are more than 15 years old, 50% for vehicles that are more than 10 years old, and 25% for vehicles that are five years old,” he said.

Dr Wee said despite the obstacles and challenges, the industry must continue to find ways to improve the situation.

“We welcome initiatives that will help economic recovery, and we will look into the matter to see if the Transport Ministry can help facilitate this proposal.“On the proposal to reduce road tax for cars that are more than 10 years old, the matter must be looked at holistically to ensure the outcome will benefit the majority,” he added.

Dr Wee also said he chaired the JPJ Integrated Digitalisation Blueprint briefing at the Transport Ministry in April to look for the best approach to digitising JPJ processes.

“The ministry is exploring options for JPJ to go digital and choose the best ecosystem that is sustainable and able to benefit people the most.

“Specifically, the Transport Ministry is exploring options to digitise and allow more core services to be done online.

“We want initiatives that will benefit individuals and businesses by making it easier to complete their transactions,” he said, adding that the ministry had launched etesting, an automated driving test and training system to improve JPJ’s delivery and driving test systems.

“The e-aduan@jpj is another platform launched to provide various services to clients and stakeholders as well as efficiently manage complaints of various services.

“More services will be made available online in future to improve efficiency and delivery.

“As always, the Transport Ministry is open to dialogue, and welcomes feedback from all of you to provide the best services for the people,” he said.