LIM: SST LIST WILL BE ADJUSTED BY YEAR END
Govt will consider people’s feedback, says finance minister
THE list of items affected by the Sales and Service Tax (SST) will be reviewed and changes will be made by year end, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said yesterday.
He said the government would consider the views of the people.
He cited prawns as one of the items that could be affected by the changes, saying the item fell under SST because the seafood was lumped together with abalone.
He said bicycles and motorcycles under 250CC were not affected by SST even though their accessories were.
“We will study all this. We have been going around listening to feedback from the people,” he said after a briefing on SST.
“Some are asking that certain items be taken off the list.
“Be patient. Give us some time and we will make the changes by year end.”
Lim said there was bound to be confusion with the implementation of SST yesterday.
“We have no choice. We need to implement SST or we will be operating on a deficit.”
On the uproar over some nasi kandar restaurants applying the six per cent SST, he urged people to stay calm.
He said eateries that exceeded the RM1.5 million income threshold annually were required to do so.
He said even Customs officers were demanding to know why these restaurants were imposing SST.
“I hope the patrons understand. These restaurants have exceeded the threshold.
“Don’t fault these outlets. They are just being responsible and following the law.”
Lim said free-trade zones, special areas and tax-free areas, such as Langkawi, were not subjected to SST.
He said telecommunication companies must ensure that customers get the full RM10 reload amount.
“We have issued a directive.” On why some phone users were only getting RM9.43 of credit for a RM10 reload, he said: “This is a technical issue which needs to be ironed out. We will find out why it is happening.”