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Chinese expatriates pay RM75b in income tax, equivalent to 4.8% GDP
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28, 2024: Did you know that Chinese expatriates are the biggest income tax payers in Malaysia?
They contribute a whopping RM75 billion every year to the Inland Revenue Board (or LHDN in Bahasa Malaysia), equivalent to 4.8% Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
So, racial and religious bigots, eat your heart out.
The Chinese (including locals) are thus financially the biggest contributor to nation-building.
So, to the bigots, continue to frustrate and push and drive away the Chinese and see what happens to Malaysia in the long-run.
No News Is Bad News reproduces below news reports reposted by The Coverage on the issues:
Chinese Expatriates Constitute As The Biggest Incomtax Payer In Malaysia – Expats Contributing An Astounding RM75 Billion Annually – Equivalent To 4.8% GDP
28 November, 2024
Kuala Lumpur is ranked eighth out of 49 major cities by the Expat Ranking 2023 and there is a total of 120,183 expats in the whole country, contributing an astounding RM75 bil annually, which is equivalent to 4.8% of our total Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The Inland Revenue Board also collects RM100 mil in income tax from these expatriates. About 64% of them are from five countries.
They are from China (27,460), India (23,131), the Philippines (9,303), Japan (8,739), and Indonesia (8,333).
In Malaysia, the sector that employs the largest number of workers is tourism. In 2019, it was 3.6 million, or 23.6% of the 15.1 million of the total workforce. The gross value added of tourism industries was RM240.2 bil or 15.9% of the GDP.
“85 per cent of Chinese food and beverage businesses operate through Malaysia-China partnerships, integrating into the local business ecosystem while showcasing multiculturalism” and providing 100,000 jobs.
HUMAN beings have been quarrelling since time immemorial, initially limited to those they meet face to face, and later through other forms of communication such as in writing, news reports through print and electronic media, and videos uploaded over the internet, mainly social media.
Most squabbles were over trivial matters, starting from among family members, relatives, friends, neighbours, coworkers, customers and suppliers to strangers that cross paths or anyone using the internet to communicate or comment freely, with many anonymously.
Over time, most arguments will abate and be forgotten, but some could be resurrected or escalated with others joining in. They become dangerous when raw emotions ripple across large communities leading to tensions and conflicts, causing disharmony.
Quarrels usually start when one person feels strongly that he or she is in the right and therefore the other person must be in the wrong. After a heated argument and back to their senses, they would realise it was just a petty matter and move on with their lives.
But not for selfish politicians. They cash in on every opportunity to condemn others to gain popularity and power among their supporters, and none can be more divisive and effective than racial and religious issues. If not, they would create imaginary threats and enemies.
The latest is on signboards that are not in compliance with Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s by-laws.
Once enacted and gazetted, any law, rule or regulation must be enforced. But if enforcement officers have been closing their eyes to transgressions, enforcement should not be carried out suddenly.
If enforcement were to be carried out overnight on all businesses that have violated any law, rule or regulation, our country’s economy would grind to an immediate halt.
For example, there are currently 6,690 unlicensed factories in Selangor alone, despite years of efforts to license them.
Wisely, the Selangor government is aiming to license at least 80% of these factories within the next three years.
If it had chosen to shut them down, then billions of ringgit would have gone down the drain and along with it, thousands of jobs and the livelihood of even more affected.
Similarly, if enforcement of signboards in the city had been lacking, say over the past two years, then businesses should be given a two-year grace period to comply and not tear them down at short notice. Such highhandedness had left a bitter taste in the mouth for many.
Oblivious to many Malaysians, the signboard issue is closely watched by many foreigners in and out of our country. It also reflects how welcoming Malaysians are to foreigners, and will affect not only tourists visiting Malaysia for holidays but also to invest, do business, or study.
For example, Kuala Lumpur is ranked eighth out of 49 major cities by the Expat Ranking 2023 and there is a total of 120,183 expats in the whole country, contributing an astounding RM75 bil annually, which is equivalent to 4.8% of our total Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The Inland Revenue Board also collects RM100 mil in income tax from these expatriates. About 64% of them are from five countries. They are from China (27,460), India (23,131), the Philippines (9,303), Japan (8,739), and Indonesia (8,333).
Over the past decades, Malaysia attracted a lot of foreign investments and tourists because we were naturally friendly to everyone.
But if we were to allow hostility against certain communities to be spilled across our borders by loudmouthed politicians, the consequence could be dire.
This is especially true for tourism, and hand in hand, foreign investments. If identity politics are not reined in, we will not be able to increase tourist arrivals as targeted. In the decade from 2010 to 2019, tourist arrivals have plateaued, averaging 25.8 million a year.
Similar results are likely from 2024 to Visit Malaysia Year 2026 if we continue to show hostility through reckless words, actions, and behaviours. We could emulate the openness and success of the United Arab Emirates, which attracted 44 million foreign tourists in 2023.
We should also be mindful that more than half of all foreign visitors to Malaysia have Chinese roots and they are mainly from Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
The Chinese diaspora has one thing in common – they identify themselves by nationality and are loyal to the country they choose to call home, and for generations have contributed more than their fair share to their nation’s economy.
In Malaysia, the sector that employs the largest number of workers is tourism. In 2019, it was 3.6 million, or 23.6% of the 15.1 million of the total workforce. The gross value added of tourism industries was RM240.2 bil or 15.9% of the GDP.
Any sitting minister for tourism, arts and culture will have to do his utmost to increase or at least maintain tourism revenue for the good of our country and rakyat. As such, the UMNO veteran’s club secretary calling for the minister to resign was uncalled for.
People will continue to argue based on right or wrong until doomsday. While it is good to be right, it is better to be effective. If we choose to be kinder, we will progress and keep pace with rapid developments in Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
On the other hand, if we are too preoccupied with identity politics, which is divisive, we will regress and join the likes of Myanmar, which has been engaged in civil strife and wars since its independence in 1948.
But thankfully, Malaysians are by nature peace-loving and friendly to all, be they locals or foreigners. But we should not allow selfish politicians to identify and divide us by always championing their communities and condemning others.
Globally, those overly nationalistic have caused great harm to their countries by being overzealous and causing destruction. On the other hand, true patriots place the nation’s interest above all else and contribute to the economy or society. – Nov 27, 2024
YS Chan is master trainer for Mesra Malaysia and Travel and Tours Enhancement Course and an Asean Tourism Master Trainer. He is also a tourism and transport business consultant.
Source : Focus
Clashes over the use of Chinese on Kuala Lumpur shop signage are the latest racial flashpoint in Malaysia, with a Cabinet minister warning of economic harm if Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government continues to ban prominent Chinese characters on retail signboards.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Tiong King Sing lashed out on Nov 24 at a decision by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to enforce a 1982 by-law dictating that any advertisement must have Malay displayed with larger characters than other languages.
“This overboard behaviour not only causes tourists to question the openness and inclusivity of Malaysia, but some international visitors have asked me point-blank whether Malaysia is racist or religiously extreme,” he said, lamenting in a statement that such issues of race and religion can stunt economic growth.
Tourism is projected to bring in revenue of over RM100 billion (S$30.2 billion) in 2024 and rising by nearly 50 per cent in 2026, which has been earmarked as Visit Malaysia Year.
Datuk Seri Tiong also pointed out that Malaysia is chairing Asean in 2025, giving it a “golden opportunity to display its diversity and inclusivity on the global stage”.
But he cautioned that continuous race and religious controversies will erode international confidence and cooperation.
This comes at a time when Malaysia has been burnishing its credentials as a safe haven for investments amid growing fears of global trade tensions, especially after former US president Donald Trump won a second term, which will begin in 2025.
Malaysia attracted RM160 billion in approved foreign investment in the first half of 2024, up 18 per cent compared with the same period in 2023.
Other ruling politicians like Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun have criticised the move by DBKL – which is under the purview of the Federal Territories Minister Zaliha Mustafa, who hails from PM Anwar’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat – noting that the signboards are already bilingual, or multilingual.
But deprioritising the Malay language has raised the hackles of nationalists, who see such efforts as part of an anti-Malay Muslim agenda.
Malaysia has had several incidents that raised racial tensions such as 2023’s sale of socks bearing the word “Allah” by a convenience store chain and several incidents of China flags being waved in public, purportedly in conjunction with 2024 marking the 50th anniversary of bilateral ties.
The largely Malay-based opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition has poured scorn on Mr Tiong’s assertions, pointing out that businesses in neighbouring Indonesia and Thailand do not need to employ Chinese signboards.
PN’s Masjid Tanah MP Mas Ermieyati Samsudin told Parliament on Nov 25 that the minister should be dropped from Cabinet for disparaging the national language and “inciting 3R sentiment”, given how several state rulers have previously decreed for road signs to drop Chinese characters and for shop signboards to bear Jawi, an Arabic-based script.
The term 3R refers to “race, religion and royalty”, three sensitive areas the Anwar administration has vowed to police with a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of incitement.
Datuk Ermieyati also challenged Mr Tiong to prove that the Tourism Ministry’s projection of over 27 million visitor arrivals in total for 2024 is on track. She also questioned why the ministry’s target of 5 million China tourists for the full year remains a long way off from being met, despite claims that two-thirds of tourism promotion spend is targeted at the Asian superpower.
As of October, Tourism Malaysia statistics showed Chinese visitor arrivals at 2.8 million.
Even a supporter of the Anwar government, Umno Youth chief Akmal Saleh, lambasted Mr Tiong on Nov 24, saying on Facebook: “The ones who are being racist are those who have lived in Malaysia for so long but still pretend not to understand the laws and sensitivities of the people in this country, minister.”
The current war of words appears to have been triggered after former premier Mahathir Mohamad remarked on Nov 18 that he visited one of Kuala Lumpur’s new shopping malls and “suddenly, I felt I was in China”.
“All the signboards are in Chinese with English translations. Nothing in Malay. Not at all. So is this Malaysia. Or have we become a part of China,” he said.
DBKL, for its part, has denied that a Nov 21 inspection across the capital was related to Tun Dr Mahathir’s remarks, saying nor did it specifically target Chinese signboards.
However, KL City Hall had posted on Facebook on Oct 12 that earlier investigations found five premises on popular Jalan Imbi had marginalised Malay in their signage, with accompanying photos showing that all five used Chinese characters prominently.
“Still don’t understand language? DBKL is forced to take action! Yes, it appears these shops prefer to display other languages” it said, adding that these premises had 14 days to comply with the advertising by-law.
The Malaysia Chinese Restaurant Association complained on Nov 24 in a statement that “cost pressure brought by the signage enforcement actions cannot be ignored. From the design and production to the installation of new signage, every step imposes financial burdens on businesses, particularly amid rising ingredient and labour costs”.
Its president Gao Haoyun called on DBKL to consider how “85 per cent of Chinese food and beverage businesses operate through Malaysia-China partnerships, integrating into the local business ecosystem while showcasing multiculturalism” and providing 100,000 jobs.
A check by The Straits Times on Nov 26 found that a number of premises on Jalan Imbi located in the city’s Bukit Bintang shopping district had added larger Malay fonts to their signboards. Among those that have not made changes, several have prominent Chinese characters as part of their business logos.
The 1982 city by-law has some grey areas, such as excluding the names of companies from needing to be translated into the national language.
Several comments online have also questioned DBKL’s motivations, as it had not acted up to now, despite these shops being located in popular areas frequented by locals and tourists.
Source : Straits Times
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