No more extensions on SST discount, ends on June 30th

KUALA LUMPUR: Yes, that is true. Prospective car buyers have only four months left to take advantage of the ongoing SST exemption on new vehicles.

The government first implemented the SST exemption in June 2020 for economic recovery and uptake of new car sales. Under the SST exemption, customers get a 100 percent sales tax discount on locally-assembled automobiles with a 50 percent sales tax discount on fully imported passenger cars.

Now with two years of SST exemption on board, the Malaysian automobile industry has experienced consistent high demand resulting in strong sales performance. It will not be wrong to say that without SST exemption in place, the automobile market would have greatly suffered.

Speaking figuratively, a total of 529,514 vehicles were sold in 2020, which is quite impressive seeing the kind of stress pandemic created on the market. As for 2021, it proved to be a bad year for the sector with just 508,911 cars sold. For comparison, in 2019 a total of 604,281 vehicles were sold.

The Ministry of Finance sure could have made billions of Ringgits, if SST was not slashed since mid-2020. But with only four months left in hand, it is time now for the buyers to pay the full price.

Things will be however different for electric car buyers. The zero-emission cars will be offered at near tax-free prices along with an exemption of road tax until 2025.

Speaking of electric vehicles, this year alone will see a surge of new EVs offered by both premium and mass-market companies.

So, we urge prospective buyers, especially those planning for ICE cars to make a purchase before the SST exemption ends. That's four months from now, hurry up.

Also Read: 2021 Sales Report: Best selling cars in Malaysia