Ministry: Govt collected RM600,000 in tourism tax in first month of implementation

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government has collected over RM600,000 from tourism tax in September, the first month of its implementation.

In a parliamentary written reply to Anthony Loke (DAP - Seremban) last week, the Finance Ministry said the total collection was RM610,280 from 4,671 registered lodgings nationwide from Sept 1 to Sept 30, 2017.

Penang brought in the biggest chunk at RM241,460 from 292 registered lodgings, followed by Kuala Lumpur with RM185,750 from 718 registered lodgings and Johor with RM52,550 from 554 lodgings.

Malaysians and permanent residents are exempted from paying the tax, while foreign tourists will be charged a flat rate of RM10 per room per night for all hotel classifications.

The tax does not apply to homestays and kampung stays registered with the Ministry, premises maintained by religious institutions for non-commercial purposes, premises operated by federal and state governments for non-commercial purposes, and premises with four or lesser than four rooms.

The Tourism and Culture Ministry had said that Malaysia is projected to collect about RM210mil in tourism tax revenue annually.

-thestar online.