Whay you Import into Malaysia ?
Malaysia is a trade friendly country and the government of Malaysia is committed towards every endeavor that will enrich the trade facilitation. These facilitation includes expediting the movement and also the quick release and clearance of good that plays a vital role in international import trade. In this article, we are going to provide key points that are required to know be a potential importer in Malaysia.
Rules of origin – Import in Malaysia
Before importing product in Malaysia, the potential importer should understand the relation between the country of origin and Malaysia. Some countries got free trade agreement while others do not. For the countries who do not have the free trade agreement with Malaysia then non-preferential rules of origin apply to them. Some Gulf countries have the bilateral agreement with Malaysia and depending on the structure of agreement the rules of origin law applies. For detail information about the framework of agreement on economic, commercial, investment and technical cooperation (FAECITC) about specific country please visit the link http://fta.miti.gov.my
Trade Barriers
After getting the rules of origin, potential importers should understand trade barriers. Usually, the nations those are trading with each other face trade barriers. These barriers are two types and non-tariff barrier. Depending on tariff barrier law for the specific country, basic customs duty imposed on goods which are passing through the international borders. The required amount of customs duty is calculated by the cost, insurance and freight value of the imported goods on basis of an ad valorem basis. The usual Malaysian tariff rate is 5.6% on imported product and this rate varies due to
the type of imports. Many products such as raw material for production, machinery, essential food and crop, food items, pharmaceutical products usually fall under the low tariff category. For more information on this topics please visit http://www.mytradelink.gov.my
Goods and Service Tax (GST)
Goods and Service Tax or GST applies to the products tariff category into the Malaysian market for local consumption. These GST imposed on both locally produced and imported goods. Usually 6% standard rate GST rate applied to the goods in the Malaysian market; however, some goods are exempt from GST. For more information please visit http://www.customs.gov.my.Additionally, there are certain schemes under which GST may be deferred, suspended or avoided. For example, the goods imported into Malaysia under warehouse scheme or under approved traders scheme etc. for more sight on this topic please visit http://gst.customs.gov.my/en
Excise Tax
In addition with GST, excise tax also applies to certain imported goods into Malaysia. These goods include non-essential and harmful to public health and the environment.
Countervailing and anti-dumping duty and safeguard duty
Malaysian government got the legal framework for the protectingthe local economy from potential harm caused by importing subsidized good or goods that are sold below the market price. So the potential importer must understand the framework governed by the countervailing and anti-dumping act1993 and also the countervailing and anti-dumping duties regulation 1994. Additionally, the country got
a safeguard duty policy foram emergency measure when the amount of certain imported product affects the domestic industry with similar goods in Malaysia.
Technical Regulation
There are few products are under technical regulation in Malaysia. These include chemicals and materials, information technology, petroleum and gas, road vehicles, medical devices, palm oil, vegetables and flowers, construction and engineering materials. Note that technical regulation can only be mandatory only if its deemed so by the law and these laws in Malaysia are based on international standards. Malaysian authority named SIRIMBerhad is Malaysia’s WTO – Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) inquiry is responsible for disseminating information and decision making on standards, technical, regulatory, and certifications. Additionally, another subsidiary organization of SIRIM Berhad known as SIRIM QAS International Sdn. Bhd is responsible for primary certification body accredited by standards Malaysia in national level. Under the certain regulation, some products such as toys, batteries and electronic equipment need to be certified by Malaysian standards before entering the Malaysian market. Standard Malaysia is responsible for the accreditation of certification bodies, laboratories and inspection bodies in Malaysia and they provide certification to different government and private labs who do testing on the different field.
Under standard Malaysia regulation, goods entering the Malaysian market should be labeled in both English and Malay. If the product comes from animal origin then it must be labeled with specific Halal labeling regulation. Additionally, the products those are genetically modified and also the pharmaceutical products have particular labeling requirements.
For importing plants and plant-based product and animal and animal-based product and food into Malaysia, the sanitary and phytosanitary requirement must be fulfilled. For meat, processed meat, poultry, eggs, egg-based products must be supplied by the manufacturer and that have to be inspected and approved by the department of veterinary services which operates under the ministry of agriculture in Malaysia. The importer must show the import permit for importing above products. Note that, the ministry of health is responsible for all food safety in Malaysia and their subsidiary organization known as Malaysian quarantine and inspection services controls the border and inspects for all food items.
Major ports in Malaysia
There are few ports in Malaysia and these are controlled by the federal government. The list of the ports is shown below.
- Port Klang. General Cargo Container Handlingwww.pks.gov.my
- Johor Port. General Cargo Container Handlingwww.johorport.com.my
- Tanjung. General Cargo Container Handlingwww.ptp.my
- Kuantan. Port General Cargo Container Handlingwww.kuantanport.com.my
- Penang Port. General Cargo Container Handlingwww.penangport.com.my
- Bintulu Port. Liquefied Natural Gas Handlingwww.bpsb.com.my
- Kemaman. General Cargo Container Handling
In addition to the seaport, Malaysia also has inland container depots or dry ports. These ports play an important role in terms of providing material to the manufacturer in the hinterland to a seaport. These inland ports are developed by both private and public sector and overseen by the Royal Malaysian Customs; same as the seaports where a document can be processed. These inland port offers services such as storage facility for cargo (both she and open), receiving – sorting and delivering cargo,
stuffing and unstuffing cargo between borders, warehouse facility for loading, packing and unpacking cargo and also on dock depot container maintenance and repair services.
