Govt: The Number Of Goods Charged Under The SST Will Be Much Lesser Than GST

The lesser the better?

You guys probably know by now that the Sales and Service Tax (SST) will officially come into effect on 1 September, and we know what you're thinking: "Sei lor, things will definitely be more expensive and I won't have enough money to waste on unnecessary things!"

Well, not to worry, fellow Malaysians; the government has promised that our daily lives won't be affected that much by the re-introduction of the SST.

Customs director-general Datuk Seri Subromaniam Tholasy told The Star Online that only 6,400 items will be charged with SST, the number being much lesser than the GST.

Under the GST, a total of 11,197 items were taxed.

Based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket, Subromaniam told the news portal that only 38 per cent of the goods being sold in the market will be taxed under the SST while under GST, 60 per cent of the goods were affected.

We're not really good in maths (hence why we're in this line of work), but 38 per cent is a pretty low number, right?

Subromaniam added that the Customs department is looking at around 70,000 to 80,000 companies registering for the SST, compared to 470,000 under the GST.

On another note, the list of SST exemptions will only be finalised next week, Subromaniam added.

We hope they don't tax chocolates, because we need our daily dose of chocalatey goodness.