Tuesday 30 August 2016

Merdeka spirit, where art thou?


Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_arms_of_Malaysia

So, it has come to this.

Independence day is almost upon us (those of you working in the heart of the city can definitely concur – the road closures, random traffic holdups for the raptai, the aeroacoustics of whooshing jets) and yet, there seems to be a pervasive apathy towards the anniversary of our independence.

You may say that I am sorely mistaken – that I am filled with pessimism and there is an air of festivity.  

Eh, Merdeka sales damn good la! 59% off, okay? Damn cheap, you know.
What are you doing on Merdeka day? I’ll be nursing a mid-week hangover after attending the Merdeka party.
Have you not seen the Merdeka ads? It was so touching.

Monday 29 August 2016

Introducing your new CCH IntelliConnect Browser Search


Dear valued subscriber,

You have told us that you want our content delivered seamlessly, and integrated with your preferred search engines.

We value your feedback greatly and we are delighted to tell you about an innovative new addition to your CCH IntelliConnect platform.

CCH IntelliConnect Browser Search is a complimentary browser add-on that displays results from your CCH IntelliConnect subscriptions when you search relevant keywords using your usual search engines, Google®, Yahoo!® or Bing®.

Watch our video to find out more!


Research Transformed - Cut the time you spend on research

CCH IntelliConnect Browser Search is available for download now and is complimentary for you.

We have had very positive feedback about the add-on from our clients in the United States and are excited to now introduce this brilliant feature across the Asia Pacific.

DOWNLOAD NOW

If you have any questions or require support in downloading and installing CCH IntelliConnect Browser Search, please get in touch with your local team.

Singapore
Malaysia
Phone
800 6162 161
1800 181 151
Email
Training 
Website 

Best Regards,
The Wolters Kluwer Team

Friday 26 August 2016

Scenes from the launch of the GST Consumer Business module

It was a buzzing morning yesterday at Concorde Hotel as our guests turned up for the launch of the latest addition to our GST Knowledge Centre, the GST Consumer Business module, Our authors from Deloitte were on hand for an interesting knowledge sharing session, providing fresh insights into GST issues involving the consumer business sector.

Various issues were covered relating to the industry, from challenges arising from recent law changes, differentiating between goods and services, the direct selling industry,  internet business, and even virtual currency, a topic not really covered in the official RMCD Guides.


Wednesday 17 August 2016

Gold, Silver, Bronze and Taxes

On 13 August 2016, 21-year-old Joseph Isaac Schooling, a third-generation Singaporean, made history by winning Singapore's very first Olympic gold medal in the men’s 100m butterfly event.

For his historic victory, Joseph will be rewarded with a prize money of S$1m.

The Multi-Million Dollar Award Programme (MAP), administered by the Singapore National Olympic Council, provides a cash payout to athletes who win medals at the Olympic, Asian, Commonwealth and South East Asian Games.

The largest gold medal award is S$1m, payable to the athlete who claims an individual gold medal at the Olympic Games. Under the MAP, it is mandatory for all athletes to plough back 20% of their awards for the Olympic Games to their National Sports Association, for future training and development. All awards are taxable.


Thursday 11 August 2016

Taxing of digital businesses


In the recently concluded National Tax Conference (NTC) 2016, the subject of taxing of online or digital businesses was among the topics highlighted and given emphasis. In the keynote address at the NTC 2016, the Second Finance Minister said that the Government had formed a team to study the development of taxing on the digital economy.


With more businesses going digital, there is a need to look into the tax framework to address the taxing of online business as a new source of revenue and to create a level playing field between online and non-online business. It is understood that the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) is monitoring the development of digital business and studying these business activities to have them under the tax net.


Monday 8 August 2016

Guide on GST compliant accounting software finally gets a revision

Editor's Note: As of 29th of August 2016, this guide has been removed from the RMCD website, with a note indicating that a revised edition based on the previous guide will be issued in the near future. As such, the information in this blog post is no longer relevant, and has been retained for historical purposes only.
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When implementing GST, the accounting software you use can really be the determinant as to how smooth the process will be. And where Malaysia is concerned, right now, it has to be flexible enough to be able to adapt to ever changing circumstances.

Prior to GST being effective, the Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD) had issued Guide to Enhance Your Accounting Software to be GST Compliant.  Let's face it though, there were still a lot of gray areas that weren't addressed and as such, companies had to make some tough calls more often than not, praying they would not come afoul of RMCD's interpretation of the law.

On the 20th of July 2016, the RMCD finally issued a revised edition, almost two years after the original came out. This was quickly followed by another revision on the 1st of August 2016. Let's take a quick look at some of the changes.

Wednesday 3 August 2016

More hope for retrenched professionals, managers and executives (PMEs)

The Career Activation Programme, a community based peer-to-peer programme which was initiated by NTUC's PME division and social enterprise GioCareers will be enhanced to provide more comprehensive assistance for the laid-off PMEs aged 40 and above as they face the most difficulty in finding jobs. The Ministry of Manpower’s Labour Market Report revealed that PMEs constituted 65% of the overall redundancies in the first quarter of 2016.

Since the launch of the programme in July 2015, it has reached out to 98 mature PMEs over 10 sessions and managed to help 22 mature PMEs return to the workforce with a team of 30 career activists.

Monday 1 August 2016

Revenue Recognition - Preparing for IFRS 15

Less than one and a half years from today, on 1 January 2018, the new IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers will come into effect in both Malaysia and Singapore as MFRS 15 and FRS 115 respectively. It may seem quite far away, yet the stark reality is that all companies will need to begin implementation work now.  By starting early, companies will have a higher chance of avoiding costly errors and delays caused by haphazard last-minute implementation.

For most entities, IFRS 15 will impact the measurement, recognition and disclosure of revenue — one of the most important financial performance indicators used by investors and analysts. It is imperative that an entity can transition successfully and as smoothly as possible to the new standard. Early communication to stakeholders and advanced planning will be critical to avoid uncertainty.

One month extension for SST returns and payment of tax

The Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD) has announced a one month extension (until 31 July 2021) for the submission of SST-02 forms an...