Owen KLCA PLT managing partner Datin Christine Koh suggested reviewing personal, medical and child reliefs, among others, saying some existing limits had remained unchanged for several years despite rising living costs.
“For example, the RM9,000 personal relief was last increased from RM8,000 in 2010 and has remained unchanged. Given today’s cost of living, it is time for this to be reviewed,” she said.
The scope for medical expenses, she said, should also be broadened to include genuine medical conditions that require treatment.
Koh said child relief should also be reviewed, adding that the RM2,000 limit was last increased in 2016.
She also suggested that subscriptions to AI platforms could be considered under lifestyle relief.
Koh proposed expanding the RM1,000 domestic tourism relief to include accommodation again.
“Relief for food waste grinders and CCTVs is a good initiative and the limit could be increased and expanded to cover solar and other household energy-saving equipment.”
For single-income households, she pointed out that spouse relief was only RM4,000, compared with the taxpayer’s RM9,000 personal relief.
“This should be reviewed and benchmarked against the personal relief.
“The limit should also be reviewed for childcare and kindergarten fee relief as the cap of RM3,000 per year may not even cover one child’s childcare fees, let alone families with more than one child.”
She further proposed a special tax incentive for parents in the first year after the birth of a child.
“Businesses could also be encouraged to employ and train fresh graduates through incentives such as a double deduction on their remuneration for the first three years,” she said.
KPMG senior tax policy adviser Dr Veerinderjeet Singh said reliefs had been expanded and widened over the years to cover more healthcare costs, including caregiving for parents and the elderly.
“If there is an increase in reliefs, it could be in terms of healthcare and taking care of parents,” he said, adding that this would be particularly relevant to the M40 group.
He also said that there could be improvements to the sales and service tax, particularly for healthcare-related expenses.
“Overall, this year’s Budget may not see dramatic changes, although there may be greater focus towards tax administration and giving respective authorities the capacity to generate more revenue,” he said.
“We would probably see a Budget that is balanced but slightly expansionary and friendly to the people.”
Moving forward, Veerinderjeet proposed creating separate categories for personal tax reliefs based on an individual’s family circumstances.
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This could include a flat amount for single individuals, with higher reliefs for married couples with children and those who also care for their parents, given their heavier financial commitments.
“Although the intention of giving reliefs is to help the relevant taxpayers, we need to make it simpler, easier to access, easier to claim.
“Hence, you don’t need to go back to evidence, just go based on your personal economic circumstances,” he said.
Budget 2027 is scheduled to be tabled in Parliament on Friday.
