KUALA LUMPUR, August 28 — The government will continue implementing fiscal reforms and consolidation measures under Budget 2025 to strengthen Malaysia’s financial resilience, said Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.
He said the Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS) will be a key framework to enhance revenue collection, review expenditure efficiency, and create sufficient fiscal space to withstand external shocks.
Among the revenue measures outlined are the expansion of sales tax on non-essential premium imported goods and a broader scope of service tax to cover commercial and fee-based financial services.
Amir Hamzah added that reforms will also include targeted subsidies for diesel and RON95 fuel, rationalisation of statutory bodies, and labour market improvements such as raising the minimum wage to RM1,700 and implementing progressive wage policies.
He said the government’s fiscal discipline has already reduced the deficit from 5.5 per cent in 2022 to 4.1 per cent in 2024, while federal debt, though rising to RM1.304 trillion by mid-2025, remains manageable.
He stressed that expanding the Sales and Services Tax (SST) in a targeted and progressive manner is key to ensuring the tax burden is fairly distributed among those with the ability to pay.
