SHAH ALAM, Aug 20 — The Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has refunded RM9.35 billion in excess taxes to approximately 3,013,911 taxpayers as of June 30 this year.
In a written Parliamentary reply, Finance Minister cum Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that of this amount, RM2.73 billion was full refunds made to 1,076,503 individuals.
For individuals, refunds are typically processed within 30 working days via e-filing, or 90 working days for manual submissions, provided the information and supporting documents are complete.
“However, tax refunds for companies, which usually involve larger sums, are prioritised with precedence given to cases that have been waiting the longest.
“This is to ensure all eligible taxpayers receive at least part of their refund within the year, with the balance disbursed either in the same year or the following year, depending on the government’s financial position,” he said.
Anwar was responding to Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng’s query on the current amount of excess business tax collected and yet to be refunded by the IRB to companies that make excess profit each year.
Lim also wanted to know why the IRB requires five years to refund the excess tax instead of within a year.
Anwar noted that to enhance tax refund management, the IRB has adopted strategies like the “first in, first out” approach, balancing payouts based on the age of arrears, and ensuring full refunds for individual taxpayers.
He added that the IRB remains committed to disbursing refunds every year to all eligible taxpayers.
