BUKIT MERTAJAM: A total of 4,364 companies face a compound of RM15,000 for refusal to register for the Goods and Services Tax (GST) with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department.
Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan said the companies having annual turnover of more than RM500,000 would be charged if they fail to pay the fine.
"We've given businesses ample time by extending the closing date of the registration from Dec 31 last year to Feb 28. Until the deadline, 370,558 companies had registered for the GST.
"We've been too lenient on businesses as they do not have to pay anything to register, and they can even do it online," he told reporters after giving a briefing on the GST here today.
Ahmad said the GST implementation was the biggest change in the history of the tax system in the country and would take time before it is finally understood by all.
He said until yesterday, the Customs Department received 3,281 complaints from the public and opened 13 investigation papers on serious cases.
More than 3,000 Customs personnel have been deployed throughout the country in the first two weeks of the GST implementation to monitor the situation, he added. -- BERNAMA