E&E industry seeks SST waiver for products
PETALING JAYA: An incentive to further boost locally made products and services will be the waiver of the Sales and Service Tax (SST) for electrical and electronics (E&E) products.
Ahead of the tabling of Budget 2021 on Nov 6, the Electrical and Electronics Association of Malaysia (Teeam) has urged the government to consider this request.
“This would also encourage more importers to localise their manufacturing plants and increase foreign direct investment at the same time, said Teeam.
“This would in turn contribute to the reduction of trade deficit and increase in job opportunities,” it said in a statement.
Teeam also called on the government to waive penalties imposed on forecast versus actual profit for income tax filed with the Inland Revenue Board.
“This will further lessen the financial burden of small and medium enterprises (SME) during this challenging period,” it said.
Teeam also called for an increase of allocation to the special relief facility and to accelerate disbursement for business sustainability and survival.
It also urged the government to consider increasing the quantum of existing hiring incentives to help more retrenched workers to secure jobs as well as reduce unemployment among fresh graduates and school leavers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The recent spike in the number of Covid-19 cases is back to haunt and hamper businesses.
“An extension of the conditional movement control order implemented in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Sabah for two weeks is expected to take a toll on industries and businesses.
“We sincerely hope that the government will provide the above incentives for SMEs in the E&E industry to survive these tough times and continue providing employment to all Malaysians,” said the association.