Dear Valued Clients,
Welcome to our E-Newsletter May 2018
With the 14th General Election just around the corner, Malaysia is now seeing its best performance among its peers – the emerging Southeast Asian markets. As of now, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index has already outperformed its peers with an 8 % rally this year in dollar terms.
The Malaysian government has developed a business-friendly environment that welcomes international investors and promotes better economic performance. According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2017-2018, Malaysia had improved its competitive standing, from 25th to 23rd out of 137 nations. Furthermore, Malaysia has also improved its standing to 70th position (if compared to 73rd in the previous year) in the Global Liveability Ranking 2017, while moving up to 59th from 65th in 2016 in the Human Development Index 2016.
The continuous domestic demand and rising consumer spending have played a part in supporting the country’s GDP growth. On top of that, the recent improvement in the ringgit position also reflected Malaysia’s economic health. When the economy is doing well, foreign investors will have little appetite for change. Therefore, despite global trade risk, Malaysia is still the favourite destination for foreign investors. All these are the good omens that Malaysian economy is performing well in 2018.
Reminder: Personal Income Tax Deadline
It is that time of the year when the daunting task of filing your income tax dawns upon you. Here is a quick checklist of the filing of personal income tax:
- Be sure you meet the deadline
It would be to your disadvantage to forget the deadline as well as to file your income tax late. The deadline is on 30 April 2018 (manual forms) and 15 May 2018 (e-filing). For self-employed taxpayers, you have until 30 June 2018 to file your returns. - What if you are late?
Please bear in mind that penalties are chargeable for late income tax filing. The penalty fine starts from 10% increment on the tax payable with an additional 5% increment on the balance if payment is not made after 60 days. - Do you know your income tax relief?
Figure out what are the income tax reliefs and maximize them as part of your tax planning strategy. You may start with figuring out your insurance and policies where tax relief for life insurance and EPF is up to RM6 000. Find out more about tax relief and save up more!
Reminders: Polling Day is a Public Holiday
Following the announcement that Malaysia’s polling day is on May 9, it was also announced that May 9 (which is a Wednesday), as an additional public holiday in Malaysia. On a final note, 3E Malaysia continues to focus on expanding our business and we strive to do better for all our customers. We will continue our heritage of leadership in the market we serve and in the communities where we live and work.
Thank you.
Read More in our E-Newsletter May 2018.
