How to check if a merchant in Malaysia is eligible to collect GST from you

A merchant in Malaysia can only collect the goods and services tax (GST) from its customers after it has registered with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department as GST taxpayer and obtained a unique GST ID.

The merchant need to print out its company name, company full address, and GST ID on its tax invoice with serial number to its customers. The tax invoice could be a full tax invoice with customer's name and address, or a simplified tax invoice without the customer's name and address (i.e. cash sales).

If the merchant did not registered with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department as GST taxpayer, or does not issue tax invoice (either full or simplified) in valid format to its customers, it is not eligible to collect GST from the customers.

We can check for the registration detail of a GST ID in the website https://gst.customs.gov.my/TAP/_/ to ensure that the GST ID is valid and the registered merchant name belongs to the right supplier which we purchased the goods/services from.

You need to click on the "Lookup GST Status" link after you reached the screen as below:

Beside checking using GST ID, we can also check for the GST registration detail by using the merchant's business registration number or company name.

You need to click on one of the 3 radio buttons to select checking by which criteria.

Then, key in the search item and hit Enter. The result will be shown below.

I found that there are a lot of rooms of improvement for this online GST registration checking system, including:

• This website is not mobile friendly. It lacks a mobile user interface when accessed by handphone or tablet.
• We cannot access to the lookup screen directly, and must go through the main page and click the "Lookup GST Status" link. The system should have a direct link to reduce one step of using it.
• Suggest to have a mobile app beside this website. The mobile app should have OCR function for us to scan for the GST ID / company name / company registration number from the tax invoice using the phone's camera, so that we don't need to manually key-in the information to perform the search.

Check for Malaysia goods/services price reasonability with MyKira GST app

Just before Malaysia implement Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 1 April 2015, the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-Operatives and Consumerism Malaysia (a.k.a. Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi Dan Kepenggunaan, KPDNKK) has released an Android app called MyKira GST which enable us to check for the price reasonability of over 10,000 products and services in Malaysia.

The price is checked from the online database of KPDNKK and based on the location (parliament area) of selling.

To do the checking, you need to provide the name of the product/service, which has autocomplete search while key-in.

Then, specify the weight/size/packaging information, which is also having autocomplete search during key-in.

After that, key-in the price you see, and optionally its price before GST (old price) if you remember.

Then provide the information of the shop (premise) and area (parliament). There is a map showing your current location, which can help you in identifying the area you are in.

After that, tap on the submit button to do the checking. It will show you whether the price is within reasonable range, or too expensive (out of range) accordingly.

If the price is found to be out of range, you can tap on the e-Aduan button and immediately file a complaint to KPDNKK.

You can click here to download and install the MyKira GST app from Google Play Store to your Android phone or tablet.

DIY write your own will in Malaysia for free with template download

Have you written your will? If not, are you deterred by the charges of will writing and maintenance services?

Well, the good news is, under the Malaysian Wills Act 1959, you are empowered to write your own will which is recognised as legal document, even without the need of a lawyer or professional will service provider.

So, if you believe that your will is quite unlikely to be challenged, and is very simple and straightforward, you can try DIY your own will. Otherwise, you should think about getting the professional to help you in will writing to avoid any unexpected trouble after you die.

Why you should write a will, be it DIY or drafted by professional will writer? With a valid will, when you pass away someday, you are said to die testate and your will and testament will be executed accordingly. You will be able to inform about:

• Who should execute your will? (the executor)
• Who shall inherit your wealth (a.k.a. estate) and what portion they will get? (the beneficiaries)
• Who you entrust to distribute your asset? (the trustee) Before the actual distribution to beneficiaries, your asset might need to temporary parked under this name to facilitate the distribution process.
• If both your spouse and yourself die together, who will take care of your minor children? (the guardian)
• Do you want to donate certain portion to charity, NGO, etc.? (the special bequests)
• How you want your funeral to be? (burial, cremation, ...) Done under ceremony of what religion? (the additional request)
• Any last words you want to speak to your family members?

After you die testate, your executor will need to perform the following duties:

• Locate your Will
• Make funeral arrangement
• Apply for a Grant of Probate (GP)
• Call in assets
• Pay remaining debts
• Prepare Statement of Accounts
• Distribute assets according to your Will
• Carry out your wishes mentioned in your Will

 

If you die intestate without a valid will, your family members will need to:

• Appoint an administrator to administer your asset according to the Malaysian Probate and Administration Act 1959.
• Obtain a Letter of Administration (LA).
• Identify, locate, assess and value your estate.
• If your estate exceeds RM50,000, need to find 2 sureties or guarantors to sign an administration bond.
• Your estate will be distributed according to the Malaysian Distribution Act 1958.

The possible problems due to die intestate could be (and not limited to):

• Taking longer time to process.
• The LA is generally more expensive than the GP.
• Might need legal services, accountants, tax consultants and other professionals arises, which could end up more costly.
• One asset being distributed out to too many beneficiaries, which might cause problem for them to sell the asset later, as all signatures are needed when disposing the asset.
• The guardian of your minor children is not appointed when they become orphan.
• Your funeral might not be carried out in your preferred manner.

What do you need to write a will?

• Yourself as the testator, who is above 18 years old, be of sound minded. If your will is written when you are sick, you might want to get your doctor to sign and certify that you are of sound minded the moment when you write your will.
• At least 2 witnesses, who are above 18 years old. The witnesses cannot be any one from your beneficiaries.
• Have your will hand-written or computer printed on paper, and the testator and all witnesses to sign on it.

When you die, all your loans and debts need to be settled first, before the remaining to be distributed to your beneficiaries.

If your loans and debts are unable to be settled by your assets, then your estate is insolvent, and there is nothing left to distribute to your beneficiaries. Your beneficiaries will get nothing from you, but they also need not taking care of your remaining debt.

If you are able to clear off all your financial obligations and have a solvent estate, then your beneficiaries will inherit your estate accordingly.

Now you are pretty clear about the requirement and knowledge of writing your own will. You can download this template courtesy of Struan Inc. Sdn Bhd, fill in the necessary, and get it fully signed by all of your witnesses and yourself.

Note that under the Malaysian Inheritance (Family Provision) Act 1971, your surviving spouse and/or children might be able to challenge your will if they are not agreeable with it, regardless they are stated as beneficiaries or not. If you wish to make your will unchallengeable, you should better engage the service of professional will writer to assist in your will writing.

Note: The above only applies to non-Muslim in Malaysia. There are separate laws and treatment for Muslim will writing.