Educate the young on paying tax to prevent future tax collection attrition — expert

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 9): The government needs to focus on educating the younger generation about the importance of paying tax in order to prevent future tax collection attrition, a tax expert said today.

"We have to teach them while they are in school that paying taxes is a contribution [to the country] not an expense," said TraTax Partner Thenesh Kanaa, who explained that this change in mindset would result in better future tax collection.

He was speaking in a panel discussion on how to prevent attrition in tax collection at the International Strategy Institute's Malaysia Tax Forum.

Independent political analyst Khoo Khay Peng agreed with Thenesh while adding that the government has to lead by example and have a strong will to combat corruption.

"Prudent utilisation of tax revenue is also necessary," said Khoo, stressing the need to show taxpayers that the government is not misusing their contributions.

Deloitte Malaysia Country Leader Sim Kwang Gek said addressing the shadow economy — which has been reported to be about 20% of gross domestic product — is also important in terms of tax collection, as money from such activities is not taxed by the state.

She also suggested that the current penalty regime for voluntary disclosure be lowered further.

"I believe that if penalty rates [for voluntary disclosure] go down, a lot more people will come forward to rectify their returns," she said.

Malayan Banking Bhd's group tax & Performance Reporting head Surin Segar said the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) should look at setting up a data warehouse and use data analytics.

"They (the IRB) should use data analytics to see people's consumption habits," he said, adding that this will help the IRB better monitor tax payments.