Penalty for incorrect return
Open ↗Any person who—
(a) makes an incorrect return by omitting from the return any information;
(b) understates any output tax or overstates any input tax in a return; or
(c) gives any incorrect information in relation to any matter affecting his own liability to tax or the liability to tax of any other person,
commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable—
(a) to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both; and
(b) to a penalty equal to the amount of tax which has been undercharged or would have been so undercharged if the return or information had been accepted as correct.
Penalty for evasion of tax, fraud
Open ↗(1) Any person who with intent to evade or to assist any other person to evade tax—
(a) omits from a return any information in relation to any matter affecting the amount of his or the other person’s chargeability to tax;
(b) makes any false statement or entry in any return;
(c) gives any false answer whether in writing or otherwise to any question asked or request for information made in accordance with the provisions of this Act;
(d) prepares or maintains or authorizes the preparation or maintenance of any false books of account, false invoices or other false records, or falsifies or authorizes the falsification of any books of accounts, invoices or records; or
(e) makes, uses or authorizes the use of any fraud, artifice or contrivance,
commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable—
(a) for the first offence, to a fine of not less than ten times and not more than twenty times the amount of tax or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both; and
(b) for a second or subsequent offence, to a fine of not less than twenty times and not more than forty times the amount of tax or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years or to both:
Provided that where the amount of tax cannot be ascertained, the person shall be liable to a fine of not less than fifty thousand ringgit and not more than five hundred thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years or to both.
(2) Any person who assists in, or advises with respect to, the preparation of any return where the return results in an understatement of the liability for tax of another person shall, unless he satisfies the court that the assistance or advice was given with reasonable care, commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine of not less than two thousand ringgit and not more than twenty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both.
(3) Any reference in this section in relation to a person who makes, uses or authorizes the use of any fraud, artifice or contrivance includes a reference to a person who, without the authority of the officer of goods and services tax—
(a) destroys, damages, erases, alters or manipulates data stored in, or used in connection with, a computer; or
(b) introduces into, or records or stores in, a computer by any means data for the purpose of—
(i) destroying, damaging, erasing, altering or manipulating data stored in, or used in connection with, a computer; or
(ii) interfering with, interrupting or obstructing the lawful use of the computer, or the data stored in, or used in connection with, a computer; or
(c) otherwise uses a computer,
the purpose or effect of which is to evade tax.
(4) For the purposes of subsection (3), “data” includes any computer programme or part of a computer programme.
(5) Any reference in this section relating to evading tax includes a reference to obtaining any of the following:
(a) credit for input tax against output tax under section 38;
(b) relief for bad debt under section 58; and
(c) claim under the Tourist Refund Scheme under section 61,
where the person concerned is not entitled to the credit, relief or claim.
(6) In any prosecution under this section or section 95, any evasion of tax shall be deemed to be with the knowledge of the accused unless the contrary be proved by the accused.
Penalty for improperly obtaining refund, etc.
Open ↗Any person who causes or attempts to cause the refund under subsection 10(4), 17(6), 18(4), 38(3), 57(1), 61(1), 190(1) or 190(2) or entitlement to relief under subsection 58(1) to any person by the Director General of any amount in excess of the amount properly so refundable or relieved to him commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable—
(a) to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both; and
(b) to a penalty of two times the amount refunded or entitled as a relief in excess of the amount properly so refundable or so entitled as a relief.
Penalty for offences in relation to goods, invoices and receipts
Open ↗(1) Any person who acquires possession of or deals with any goods, or accepts the supply of any services, having reasonable cause to believe that tax on the supply of goods or services or on the importation of the goods has been or will be evaded, commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable—
(a) to a fine not exceeding thirty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both; and
(b) to a penalty of two times the amount of the tax.
(2) In any prosecution under subsection (1), any evasion of tax shall be deemed to be with the knowledge of the accused unless the contrary be proved by the accused.
(3) Any person other than a registered person who issues an invoice or a receipt showing an amount as being tax or as being attributable to tax commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable—
(a) to a fine not exceeding thirty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both; and
(b) to a penalty of two times the amount of tax so shown.
Penalty for obstructing, etc., officer of goods and services tax
Open ↗Any person who—
(a) in any way assaults, hinders or obstructs the officer of goods and services tax in the performance of his duties under this Act; or
(b) fails to give reasonable facilities or assistance to any officer of goods and services tax in the performance of his duties under this Act,
commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years or to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand ringgit or to both.
Penalty for refusing to answer question or giving false information
Open ↗(1) Any person who, being required under this Act to give any information which may reasonably be required by the officer of goods and services tax which it is in his power to give, refuses to give the information or furnishes as true the information which he knows or has reason to believe to be false commits an offence.
(2) When any of the information is proved to be untrue or incorrect in whole or in part it shall be no defence to allege that the information or any part of the information was furnished inadvertently or without criminal or fraudulent intent, or was misinterpreted or not fully interpreted by an interpreter provided by the informant.
Penalty for offences by authorized and unauthorized persons
Open ↗Any person who—
(a) being a person appointed for the due administration of this Act or any assistant employed in connection with the assessment and collection of tax—
(i) withholds for his own use or otherwise any portion of the amount of tax or penalties collected;
(ii) otherwise than in good faith, demands from any person an amount in excess of the authorized assessment or tax or penalties;
(iii) submits any false return, statement or report, whether in writing or otherwise, of the amount of tax or penalty collected or received by him; or
(iv) defrauds any person, embezzles any money or otherwise uses his position so as to deal wrongfully either with the Director General or any other individual; or
(b) not being authorized under this Act to do so collects or attempts to collect any tax under this Act,
commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both.
Attempts and abetments
Open ↗Any person who attempts to commit any offence punishable under this Act, or abets the commission of the offence, shall be punishable with the punishment provided for the offence.
General penalty
Open ↗Any person who commits an offence under this Act for which no penalty is expressly provided shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding thirty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both.
Offences by bodies of persons, etc.
Open ↗(1) Where a company, a limited liability partnership, a firm, a society, an association or other body of persons commits an offence under this Act, any person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a director, compliance officer, partner, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the company, limited liability partnership, firm, society, association or other body of persons or was purporting to act in the capacity or was in any manner or to any extent responsible for the management of any of the affairs of the company, limited liability partnership, firm, society, association or other body of persons or was assisting in the management, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence unless, having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all circumstances, he proves—
(a) that the offence was committed without his knowledge, consent or connivance; and
(b) that he took all reasonable precautions and had exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence.
(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 employee or agent, or of the employee of the agent, provided that the act, omission, neglect or default was committed by—
(a) the employee in the course of his employment;
(b) the agent when acting on behalf of the person; or
(c) the employee of the agent when acting in the course of his employment in such circumstances that had the act, omission, neglect or default been committed by the agent, his principal would have been liable under this section.
Tax, etc., to be payable notwithstanding any proceedings, etc.
Open ↗The institution of proceedings or the imposition of a penalty, fine or term of imprisonment under this Act or the compounding of an offence under section 121 shall not relieve any person from the liability to pay for tax, penalty or surcharge under this Act.
Source: Laws of Malaysia, Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia (lom.agc.gov.my). Not a copy of the Gazette printed by the Government Printer (Interpretation Acts 1948 and 1967, s 61).
