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The Year of Assessment (YA) 2024 relates to income earned in 2024, which needs to be declared in 2025.
An important update to note would be that starting from YA 2024, all taxpayers must only submit their Income Tax Return Forms (ITRF) electronically via the MyTax portal.
Here is a comprehensive guide of Malaysia’s personal income tax system:
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If you meet any of the following conditions, you are required to file your taxes:
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Below is the latest tax rate structure for Malaysian residents in YA 2024:
| Chargeable Income (RM) | Calculations (RM) | Rate % | Tax (RM) |
| 0 – 5,000 | On the first 5,000 | 0 | 0 |
| 5,001 – 20,000 | On the first 5,000 Next 15,000 |
1 | 0 150 |
| 20,001 – 35,000 | On the first 20,000 Next 15,000 |
3 | 150 450 |
| 35,001 – 50,000 | On the first 35,000 Next 15,000 |
6 | 600 900 |
| 50,001 – 70,000 | On the first 50,000 Next 20,000 |
11 | 1,500 2,200 |
| 70,001 – 100,000 | On the first 70,000 Next 30,000 |
19 | 3,700 5,700 |
| 100,001 – 400,000 | On the first 100,000 Next 300,000 |
25 | 9,400 75,000 |
| 400,001 – 600,000 | On the first 400,000 Next 200,000 |
26 | 84,400 52,000 |
| 600,001 – 2,000,000 | On the first 600,000 Next 1,400,000 |
28 | 136,400 392,000 |
| Exceeding 2,000,000 | On the first 2,000,000 Every next ringgit |
30 | 528,400 ……….. |
Malaysia’s tax system operates on a progressive tax rate i.e. the more you earn, the higher the percentage of tax you are required to pay. However, you can reduce your chargeable income by claiming various tax reliefs, deductions, and incentives, which in turn would reduce your final tax amount.
For example:
If your chargeable income is RM48,000, you will fall under the 6% tax bracket, meaning your total income tax payable is RM1,500 (RM600 + RM900). However, if you manage to claim RM13,500 in tax reliefs and deductions, your chargeable income drops to RM34,500. This means that your tax rate is reduced to 3%, and your final tax payable decreases to RM585 – saving you almost RM900 in taxes!
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If a foreigner has worked in Malaysia for at least 182 days within a calendar year, they are classified as tax residents and are taxed at the same progressive rates as Malaysian citizens, with access to tax reliefs and deductions.
If a foreigner stays in Malaysia for less than 182 days but is employed for at least 60 days, they are considered non-residents and are taxed at a flat rate based on their income type, without eligibility for tax reliefs or deductions.
| Types of income | Rate (%) |
|
30 |
|
15 |
|
Royalty
|
10 |
Foreigners will not be taxed in Malaysia if they are:
First, determining which tax return form you need to use. The form required depends on the type of income you earn:
Note: There are additional forms and classifications depending on specific circumstances, which will be covered in more detail under the “Accessing e-Filing and Your ITRF” section below.
For now, it is important to note that income tax filing deadlines in Malaysia vary based on the type of form being submitted.
BE Form (salaried individuals without business income):
Here's a step by step process to file your tax:
If you’re a first timer, then there are 2 key things you need before you can begin:
Register as a taxpayer through e-Daftar, which is available on LHDN’s MyTax portal. Once your registration is processed, you will be issued a TIN, which is required for all tax-related matters.
Once you have your TIN, you need to obtain your PIN for e-Filing. You can get this online via the MyTax portal OR by visiting any LHDN branch in person.
For a step-by-step guide on how to register as a first-time taxpayer, check out our comprehensive guide:
If you’re an existing taxpayer, you can skip the registration steps and go straight to the MyTax website to access e-Filing and submit your Income Tax Return Form (ITRF).
If you don’t see the quick link, or if your source of income has changed – for example, if you’ve switched from employment to running your own business – you will need to click on “e-Form” instead to manually select the correct ITRF for your tax submission.
As you make your selection, be sure to choose the right type based on the category of income that you fall under:
| Income tax | Category |
| e-B/e-BT | For residents earning income from business/knowledge or expert workers |
| e-BE | For residents earning income without a business |
| e-M/e-MT | For non-resident individuals/knowledge workers |
You can also find the full list of other types of forms (including for partnerships, associations, and deceased persons’ estate) on the LHDN website.
On top of choosing the right form, make sure to also select the right year of assessment: YA 2024! Remember, you’re declaring your income earned for the previous year.
Now that you’ve selected the correct form, let’s go through the process of filling in your income tax return – specifically for residents earning income without a business.
To make it easier, we’ll break it down section by section, guiding you through each part of the form.
This section focuses on your basic personal information. Some details, such as your identification number and date of birth, will already be pre-filled based on LHDN’s records. However, it is always good practice to review these details carefully to ensure there are no errors before proceeding.
Another key part of this section is selecting your type of tax assessment, which determines whether you are filing as an individual or with your spouse. If you are married, you have the option to choose between joint or separate assessment, depending on which is more advantageous for your tax situation. Selecting the correct option is important, as it can affect the total amount of tax you are required to pay as well as your eligibility for spousal tax reliefs.
This section continues from the previous one, focusing on your contact information and banking details. It is important to ensure that your mobile number is correct, as you will need to receive a TAC (Transaction Authorisation Code) from LHDN when you sign and submit your e-form later.
Double-check that your bank account number is accurate to ensure that any tax refunds you are entitled to are processed smoothly. If you prefer, you also have the option to receive your tax refund via DuitNow. Simply select your preferred method under “Method of payment for tax refund” and enter the necessary details.
If you have changed employers in the past year, make sure to update the Employer’s Number accordingly. Furthermore, if your job comes with the benefit of having your income tax covered by your employer (such as when a tax allowance is included as part of your gross salary package), remember to tick “yes” under “Tax borne by employer”.
For those who have sold any properties in the previous year, the section on disposal of assets under the Real Property Gains Tax Act 1976 will apply. If this is relevant to you, be sure to provide the necessary details.
You will also come across the section for Incentive Claims under paragraph 127(3)(b) and subsection 127(3A), which relates to specific tax exemptions granted under gazette orders or exemptions issued by the Minister of Finance. If this does not apply to you, simply leave this section blank.
In this section, you will need to declare your total income earned throughout the year under statutory income. This includes earnings from employment, rental income, and other sources, all of which must be entered into their respective boxes.
Your EA form will be especially useful here, as it provides a breakdown of your annual income from employment as reported by your employer.
However, in some cases, the income reported in your EA form may not be the final figure for your statutory income. You are also required to declare any non-salary related benefits that qualify as “income from employment”, meaning they must be added to your total income. These include:
At the same time, you should also exclude any income that qualifies for tax exemptions. For instance, while perquisites (such as parking, medical benefits, and transport allowances) and benefits-in-kind (such as company cars, accommodation, or personal drivers) are generally taxable, the government provides some exemptions for these. Additionally, severance packages may also be exempt from tax under specific conditions.
Once you have entered your relevant income sources, the system will automatically calculate your aggregate income, which represents your total earnings for the year.
The next step is to apply any tax deductions that you are eligible for, as these will help reduce your taxable amount. If you have made donations to registered charitable organisations or gifts to eligible entities, you can claim a tax deduction from your aggregate income, which will then give you your total taxable income.
You will also need to enter the total amount of monthly tax deductions (MTD) that have been deducted from your salary throughout the year. This information can be found on your EA form. The MTD, also known as Potongan Cukai Bulanan (PCB), is a mandatory system where employers deduct a portion of an employee’s salary for income tax payments on a monthly basis.
Additionally, you may come across other fields in this section, such as non-employment income from previous years that was not declared, self-instalments, or investments approved under the angel investor tax incentive. There is also a section to declare foreign-sourced income, which remains tax-exempt if it has already been taxed in the country of origin. These sections should only be filled in if they apply to you; otherwise, you can proceed to the next step.
This is the section where all those receipts from your previous year’s expenses come in handy! Keeping track of your eligible spending is crucial, as claiming the right tax reliefs and deductions can significantly reduce your chargeable income – which in turn lowers both your tax rate and the total tax payable.
As mentioned earlier, tax reliefs allow you to offset specific expenses against your taxable income, so it’s important to claim everything that you are entitled to. By maximising your reliefs, you can ensure that you pay the least amount of tax possible while also benefiting from government incentives that support education, healthcare, retirement savings, and more.
Here is the full list of tax reliefs that you can claim for YA 2024
Once you have claimed all the tax reliefs you are eligible for, you will arrive at your chargeable income – the final figure that determines which tax bracket you fall under and how much tax you need to pay for YA 2024. If you’ve carefully maximised your tax reliefs, you should see a significant reduction in the amount of tax payable.
In addition to tax reliefs, you should also check whether you qualify for any tax rebates, as these are directly deducted from your final tax amount. For instance, if your chargeable income does not exceed RM35,000, you are entitled to a RM400 tax rebate for yourself. Similarly, zakat and fitrah contributions can also be claimed as rebates, up to the actual amount you have contributed, but not exceeding your total tax payable.
For an example if your total income for YA 2024 is RM50,000, and you have successfully claimed RM15,000 in tax reliefs. This reduces your chargeable income to RM35,000, meaning you now fall within the 6% tax bracket, and your total tax payable amounts to RM600.
Because your chargeable income is exactly RM35,000, you will not qualify for the RM400 tax rebate granted to individuals earning below RM35,000. However, if you paid RM400 in zakat last year, you can claim it as a tax rebate, effectively reducing your final tax payable to RM200.
You’re now almost done with your tax filing for the year!
Here, you’ll see the final tax amount displayed, which reflects the total amount you owe or the refund you’re entitled to receive.
If the amount appears negative, there’s no need to worry – this simply means that you have overpaid your taxes through MTD and are eligible for a tax refund from the government.
At this stage, if you spot any errors, you can still go back to previous sections of your ITRF and make the necessary corrections. The system will automatically recalculate the final tax amount once any amendments are made. When you’re confident that everything is accurate and complete, click “Next” to proceed.
On the declaration page, request a TAC via the mobile number you have registered with LHDN and enter it in the required field. Then, click the “Sign and Submit” button. A pop-up window will appear, prompting you to enter your identification number and password—make sure your browser allows pop-ups for this step. Once entered, press “Sign” to complete the submission process.
Before you close the website, be sure to save and print both the acknowledgement and your e-BE form for your records. These, along with your receipts, should be kept for at least 7 years, in case LHDN requires further verification or an audit in the future.
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If you’ve made a mistake in your ITRF after submitting it, you can still correct errors by submitting an appeal for amendments by 30 April 2025.
To make corrections to your submitted tax return, follow these steps:
For certain types of errors, you may also be able to make online amendments via e-Filing, but this option is only available in 2 specific cases:
If you realise that you need to amend your ITRF after 30 April 2025, you can still submit an Amended Return Form (ARF) within 6 months from the original submission deadline. However, this is only allowed for taxpayers who have submitted their ITRF on time. The ARF must be sent to the LHDN branch handling your tax file, and it is only required in specific cases of misreporting, including:
If your correction does not fall under these categories, you do not need to submit an ARF. Instead, you should send a detailed letter outlining the errors and enclose any supporting documents to justify your request for amendments. LHDN will review the submission on a case-by-case basis before making the necessary adjustments.
Now that your tax return has been submitted and your final tax amount calculated, you’ll find yourself in one of 2 possible situations:
If you have been paying MTD or PCB throughout the year, your tax reliefs and rebates may have reduced your total tax liability to an amount lower than what you have already paid. In this case, you are entitled to a tax refund for the excess amount.
Your refund will be automatically credited to the bank account you provided in your tax return. Typically, LHDN processes refunds within 30 days after your tax submission, provided that all information is accurate and complete.
If your tax calculation shows that you still owe taxes, you will need to settle the outstanding amount before the payment deadline to avoid penalties. Fortunately, there are multiple convenient ways to make your tax payment, ensuring that you can fulfil your tax obligations on time:
According to LHDN, credit card payments can only be made at PPTH Kuala Lumpur, following the termination of manual tax payment acceptance (including cash, cheques, and bank drafts) for all direct tax payments at PPTH Kuching and PPTH Kota Kinabalu, effective 1 February 2024.
It is worth noting that most banks do not offer cashback or rewards points for government-related transactions made using credit cards. However, some banks may allow these expenses to count towards your monthly or annual spending requirements, which could help you qualify for higher cashback tiers or annual fee waivers. As such, it is advisable to evaluate whether paying your taxes with a credit card aligns with your financial strategy.
Additionally, the government has made it mandatory to use bill numbers as the reference for tax payments, replacing the previous method of using TIN. This change officially took effect on 1 January 2023. However, to facilitate a smoother transition, taxpayers are still allowed to use TIN as a payment reference for the time being, until further notice.
The bill number is a 16-digit identifier introduced by LHDN to enhance the tracking of tax payments. It applies to all types of tax payments, except for Monthly Tax Deduction (MTD/PCB) and stamp duty payments.
You can easily find your bill number in your MyTax dashboard. Once you submit your ITRF via e-Filing, a bill number is automatically generated if there is a balance of tax to be paid. Simply click on “View Bill Number” in the top right corner of your MyTax dashboard to retrieve it.
For taxpayers who file their taxes manually, LHDN will eventually phase out the use of TIN as a tax payment reference, meaning you will also be required to generate a bill number via MyTax. Unlike e-Filing users, your bill number will not be automatically generated, so you will need to follow these steps:
(Note: Although e-TT is primarily used by overseas taxpayers, some taxpayers in Malaysia may also opt for this method. However, most local residents prefer to use FPX payments for convenience.)
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If you fail to pay your income tax by the stipulated deadline – 30 April for individuals without business income and 30 June for those with business income – a 10% penalty will be imposed on the outstanding tax amount.
Should you disagree with the penalty, you have the right to appeal. To do so, you must submit a written appeal to the Collection Unit of the Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia (LHDN) within 30 days of receiving the Notice of Increased Assessment. It’s important to note that you are required to settle the imposed penalty first, even if you intend to appeal. If your appeal is successful, LHDN will subsequently refund the relevant amount.
In addition to penalties for late payment, other tax-related offences and their corresponding penalties include:
These penalties are enforced to ensure compliance with tax regulations and to deter tax evasion. It’s crucial to adhere to tax filing and payment deadlines to avoid such penalties.
After filing your taxes, LHDN may issue you a Notice of Assessment detailing your taxable income and the amount of tax due. It’s crucial to review this notice thoroughly. If you identify any discrepancies or errors, you have the right to appeal the assessment. This appeal must be lodged within 30 days from the date of the notice.
If you miss the initial 30-day window for filing an appeal, you can apply for an extension of time by submitting Form N. Valid reasons for late submission, such as prolonged hospitalisation or being out of the country, must be provided. If the extension is granted, you’ll receive a Form CP15A, after which you must submit Form Q within 30 days from the date of issuance of Form CP15A.
Both Form Q and Form N can be downloaded from the LHDN website. It’s essential to adhere to these procedures to ensure your appeal is considered valid.
For detailed guidelines on filling out Form Q, refer to LHDN’s official guide. Adhering to these steps ensures that your appeal is processed efficiently and in accordance with LHDN’s regulations.
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In Malaysia, individuals are generally required to file annual income tax returns. However, under specific circumstances, you may be eligible to permanently close your tax file. According to LHDN, these circumstances include:
It’s important to note that if you continue to receive income, such as from freelance work, that does not exceed the taxable threshold (e.g., RM34,000 per annum), or if you are below 55 years old with no taxable income, you are still required to file your taxes annually. This is because tax filing serves as a formal declaration of your income, ensuring compliance with tax regulations.
To close your tax file permanently, you should:
For more detailed information, you can refer to LHDN’s guidelines on Termination of Service / Employment.