Sales Tax Act 1972 Part X — Criminal offences

Failure to comply with notice, etc.

s 43

Without prejudice to any other liability incurred under this Act, any person who— (a) fails or refuses to comply with the requirements of section 12, 12A, 13, 17, 17A, 18, 19, 22, or 28; (b) carries on business at any place or premises not specified in the licence issued under section 13; (c) fails or refuses to produce any book or document for the examination or retention by the proper officer in accordance with the requirements of this Act; (d) fails or refuses to give correct information or refuses to give any information which he is required to give relating to sales tax; (e) pays a lesser amount of sales tax than is required by this Act; (ea) contravenes subsection 63A(2); (f) in any way obstructs any proper officer in the discharge of his functions under this Act; or (g) contrary to subsection 17(2), issues an invoice showing an amount which purports to be sales tax, shall be guilty of an offence against this Act, and such person shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to a fine not exceeding five thousand ringgit or to both.

Evasion of sales tax

s 43A

(1) Any person who wilfully with intent to evade or to assist any other person to evade sales tax— (a) omits from a return made under this Act or any regulations made under this Act any information in relation to any matter affecting the amount of his or the other person’s chargeability to sales tax; (b) makes any false statement or entry in any return, claim or application made under this Act or any regulations made under this Act; (c) gives any false answer, whether verbally or in writing, to any question or request for information asked or made in pursuance of this Act or any regulations made under this Act; (d) prepares, maintains or authorizes the preparation or maintenance of any false book of accounts, false invoices or other false records, or falsifies or authorizes the falsification of any book of accounts, invoices or records; or (e) makes use or authorizes the use of any fraud, art or contrivance, shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and such person shall be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both. (2) Where in any proceedings under this section it is proved that a false statement or false entry (whether by omission or otherwise) has been made in a return, claim or application furnished under this Act or any regulations made under this Act by or on behalf of any person, or in any books of accounts, invoices or other records maintained by or on behalf of any person, that person shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, to have made that false statement or entry with intent to evade sales tax. (3) A reference in this section to a person who makes use of any fraud, art or contrivance, or authorizes the use of any fraud, art or contrivance to evade sales tax includes a reference to a person who, without the authority of the Director General— (a) destroys, damages, erases or otherwise manipulates the data stored in, or used in connection with, a computer; (b) introduces into or records or stores in a computer, by any means, data for the purpose of— (i) destroying, damaging, erasing or altering other data stored in that computer; or (ii) interfering with, interrupting or obstructing the lawful use of that computer, or the data stored in that computer; or (c) otherwise uses a computer, the purpose or effect of which is to evade sales tax. (4) For the purposes of subsection (3), “data” includes any computer program or part of a computer program being a program approved by the Director General for use under section 17A or 18, or any regulations made under this Act.

Abetting an offence

s 44

Where any person— (a) aids, abets, assists, incites or induces any other person to make or makes on behalf of another person an incorrect return, account, statement or declaration resulting in a short payment of sales tax by the person liable for its payment; or (b) aids, abets, assists, incites or induces any other person to commit an offence under section 43, such first-mentioned person shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and shall be liable to a fine not exceeding five thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to both.

Offences by corporate bodies

s 45

(1) Where an offence against this Act or any regulation made thereunder has been committed by a company, a firm, a society, an association or other body of persons, any person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer or a partner of the company, firm, society, association or other body of persons or was purporting to act in such capacity shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised, having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances. (2) Where any person would be liable under this Act to any punishment, penalty or forfeiture for any act, omission, neglect or default he shall be liable to the same punishment, penalty or forfeiture for every such act, omission, neglect or default of any clerk, servant or agent, or of the clerk or servant of such agent provided that such act, omission, neglect or default was committed by such clerk, or servant in the course of his employment or by such agent when acting on behalf of such person or by the clerk or servant of such agent when acting in the course of his employment in such circumstances that had such act, omission, neglect or default been committed by the agent his principal would have been liable under this section.

s 46

(Deleted by Act A1110).