The Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI) is urging the government to make Budget 2027 a business-cost relief budget by lowering regulatory uncertainty, improving payment efficiency and addressing mounting operating pressures on companies.
MICCI President Christina Tee said businesses are being squeezed by higher compliance, utility and operating costs, tighter cash flow and added complexity following the expansion of the Sales and Service Tax (SST).
“Businesses can plan for a known cost, even when it is difficult. What is far harder to manage is uncertainty,” Tee said.
Hence, Tee called for clearer timelines, greater transparency in government decisions and faster settlement of payments and refunds owed to businesses.
At the same time, Tee also wants government agencies to adopt clear service-level agreements, with defined processing timelines for applications, approvals and submissions, while rejected applications should come with proper reasons or justification.
On taxation, the chamber warned that the expanded SST could increase compliance complexity and create cascading costs across supply chains. It said the government should consider bringing back the Goods and Services Tax when economic and business conditions are suitable.
MICCI also proposed automatically offsetting tax refunds against current tax instalments, speeding up government payment cycles and encouraging prompt-payment practices across the public and private sectors to ease cash-flow pressures.
For diesel-dependent businesses, it called for further improvements to the Subsidised Diesel Control System, particularly vehicle-level quota management, to better reflect actual operational needs.
The chamber also urged a pragmatic approach to illicit alcohol and tobacco trade, estimated to cost the government around RM5.6 billion a year in lost revenue, warning against measures that could further widen the price gap between legal and illicit products.
Tee said the key test for Budget 2027 would be whether businesses see practical relief on the ground.
“Budget 2027 should therefore focus not only on the policies announced, but also on whether businesses can see timely, practical relief from the costs and uncertainty they face,” she said.
