Purpose

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) implementation in Malaysia had raised various responses from many parties involved when the new tax was introduced in 2015 until its abolishment in 2018. GST complexity has been stated as part of the reasons for its resistance and abolishment. The purpose of this paper is to identify causes of GST complexities during its implementation in Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on causes of tax complexity from previous studies and conducted semi-structured interviews with tax experts. The respondents comprised of subject matter experts in GST and the findings are based on their numerous years of experiences handling clients with diverse backgrounds.

Findings

Findings from this study are categorised into legal complexity and declarative complexities. Almost all the causes of complexities from prior studies were encountered by Malaysian businesses. This study concluded that the most likely reasons for the abolishment of GST in Malaysia are: numerous rules and exception to the rules (e.g. 35 tax codes, gifts rules, 21-day rules), frequent changes of GST rulings and guidelines, GST computations that were too difficult for mixed supply and process of GST refund that were onerous and lengthy.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations of this paper include reliance on the respondents’ ability to accurately and honestly recall details of their experiences, circumstances, thoughts or behaviours that are being asked.

Practical implications

Despite the abolishment of the GST in Malaysia, it is pertinent to identify the causes of GST complexities that can be learnt by the relevant authorities. Measures can be formulated to mitigate the identified GST complexities to ensure high compliance among businesses with other existing taxes or new taxes (if any) to be introduced in the future. This includes addressing the competency of RMCD officers and businesses on the rules and regulations, minimal rules and exception to the rules, a simplified GST computations for mixed supply and a systematic refund process.

Originality/value

The research method used is a flexible and powerful tool to capture the voices and the ways respondents make meaning of their experience dealing with the GST matters. The findings reveal a deep understanding of the issues from the views of the experts in the field.

中文翻译：

---

马来西亚消费税的复杂性：税务专家的观点

目的

从 2015 年引入新税到 2018 年废除，马来西亚的商品和服务税 (GST) 实施引起了许多相关方的不同反应。商品及服务税的复杂性被认为是其抵制和废除的部分原因。本文的目的是找出在马来西亚实施 GST 复杂性的原因。

设计/方法/方法

本文借鉴了以往研究中税收复杂性的原因，并对税务专家进行了半结构化访谈。受访者由 GST 的主题专家组成，调查结果基于他们多年处理具有不同背景的客户的经验。

发现

本研究的结果分为法律复杂性和声明性复杂性。马来西亚企业几乎遇到了先前研究中所有复杂性的原因。这项研究得出的结论是，马来西亚废除 GST 最可能的原因是：众多规则和规则例外（例如 35 条税法、赠与规则、21 天规则）、GST 规则和指南的频繁变化、GST 计算对于繁琐冗长的混合供应和 GST 退税流程来说太困难了。

研究限制/影响

本文的局限性包括依赖受访者准确、诚实地回忆他们被询问的经历、情况、想法或行为的细节的能力。

实际影响

尽管马来西亚废除了商品及服务税，但有必要找出相关当局可以了解的商品及服务税复杂性的原因。可以制定措施来减轻已确定的 GST 复杂性，以确保企业高度遵守其他现有税收或未来将引入的新税收（如果有）。这包括解决 RMCD 官员和企业在规则和条例方面的能力、最低规则和规则例外、混合供应的简化 GST 计算和系统的退款流程。

原创性/价值

所使用的研究方法是一种灵活而强大的工具，可以捕捉声音以及受访者如何理解他们处理 GST 问题的经历。调查结果揭示了从该领域专家的观点对这些问题的深刻理解。