M’sians relieved to be exempted from Tourism Tax
SIBU: Non-imposition of Tourism Tax is good news for all Malaysians, says Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
“We’ve had to pay GST (Goods and Services Tax) in the last few years and the recent announcement on Tourism Tax is definitely not welcome news. The latest news today (Wednesday) is a relief to all and thank you to the federal government for being sensitive to the people’s plight,” Abdul Karim said recently.
On Wednesday, Minister of Tourism and Culture Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz announced that Malaysians would be exempted from the Tourism Tax.
According to Bernama, Mohamed Nazri said the Tourism Tax would only be imposed on foreign tourists staying at all types of accommodation at the rate of RM10 per room per night.
Mohamed Nazri was replying to a question from Loke Siew Fook (DAP-Seremban) in the Dewan Rakyat recently on the latest status of the plan to implement the Tourism Tax.
Abdul Karim who is Asajaya assemblyman said the tax proposal kept changing and hoped this time around it was confirmed.
He hoped the tax collection would be distributed fairly for the purpose of promoting the tourism industry.
Sarawak Central Region Hotel Association chairman Johnny Wong said: “The association after discussion (with members) felt that it is quite okay because it (Tourism Tax) only applies to foreign tourists; local tourists/ guests staying us are exempted.”
Nonetheless, Wong felt backpackers from overseas who visit places of interest on a tight budget might be affected by the latest ruling.
The Tourism Tax passed in Parliament earlier this year was to have been collected from this month, but was postponed to Aug 1.
The initial proposal was to set the charges from as low as RM2.50 a night to a maximum of RM20 a night, depending on hotel rating.