02/02/2026

BIZ & FINANCE MONDAY | FEB 2, 2026

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ON TELEGRAM m RAM

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Stamp duty voluntary disclosure an opportunity not to be missed STAMP duty is no longer in hibernation. Since 2025, the Inland Revenue

under the Stamp Act. Outside the SVDP period, the stamp duty audit framework issued in January 2025 still allows for voluntary disclosure, subject to a reduced penalty of RM50 or 10% of the stamp duty undercharged, whichever is higher. Practical considerations for taxpayers Given the limited timeframe, taxpayers should begin preparations early by reviewing documents from the past three years, identifying unstamped instruments and assessing stamp duty exposure. For businesses, this may require coordination across legal, finance and operational teams. Sufficient time should also be allowed for IRB to issue assessments so that payment can be completed within the SVDP period. Leaving disclosures to the final months increases the risk of delays and loss of the penalty waiver. Unanswered questions Taxpayers should be encouraged to participate in voluntary disclosures.

intercompany agreements, etc. In many cases, the documents were executed but never stamped due to oversight, misunderstanding of stamp duty rules or the assumption that stamping could be dealt with later. With increased digitisation and data matching by IRB, such assumptions are misguided. The SVDP offers a rare opportunity to regularise historical non-compliance at a reduced cost. Documents executed between Jan 1 2023 and Dec 31 2025 and stamped during the SVDP period will also not be audited, providing added certainty for participating tax payers. Exceptions That said, the programme is not a blanket amnesty. Under the SVDP, the penalty waiver does not apply in cases involving fraud or deliberate concealment. In addition, instruments that are not disclosed during the SVDP period will continue to be subject to normal enforcement, audits and penalties

undercharged, whichever is higher. What Is being offered?

However, clarity and certainty are needed. Serious questions remain for IRB. As the five-year time limit only takes effect from Jan 1 2026, it appears that until Dec 31 2025 there is no time limit. This suggests IRB may reopen past assess ments without restriction, including cases dating back to 2009 where assessments were previously raised but later found to be erroneous. If this is the case, what happens to instruments signed before the SVDP period? Are taxpayers exposed to stamp duty and penalties for docu ments executed prior to Jan 1 2023? Another critical question remains: where is the legislative provision in the Stamp Act for raising assessments on unstamped instruments prior to Jan 1 2026? This article is contributed by Thannees Tax Consulting Services Sdn Bhd managing director SM Thanneermalai (www.thannees.com). KUALA LUMPUR: Crude palm oil (CPO) futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives are expected to trade with a bullish bias this week amid signs of weaker output, a dealer said. Proprietary trader David Ng of Iceberg X Sdn Bhd said that tightening supply conditions, alongside improving demand prospects, are likely to provide support for prices. “We expect prices to trade between RM4,200 a tonne and RM4,350 a tonne (this week),” he told Bernama. Meanwhile, Fastmarkets Palm Oil Analytics senior analyst Sathia Varqa said market parti cipants will be closely watching January supply and demand estimates ahead offficial of data from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board. “Other key data include the Malaysian Palm Oil Association’s Jan 1-31 production estimate and cargo surveyors’ export data for the same period,” he said. On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the February 2026 contract rose RM32 to RM4,160 per tonne, March 2026 gained RM45 to RM4,209 and April 2026 advanced RM54 to RM4,229. The May 2026 contract strengthened RM56 to RM4,228 per tonne, June 2026 climbed RM52 to RM4,213 and the July 2026 contract increased RM45 to RM4,194. Weekly trading volume increased to 455,274 lots from 333,697 lots in the week before, while open interest decreased to 220,712 contracts from 228,950 contracts previously. Meanwhile, the price of physical crude palm oil for January South rose RM60 to RM4,200 a tonne. CPO futures forecast to be bullish this week

Board (IRB) has significantly intensified stamp duty audits, turning enforce ment into an avalanche. Against this backdrop IRB should be com mended for introducing the Special Voluntary Dis closure Programme (SVDP) in 2026, which offers a full waiver of penalties under Section 47A of the Stamp Act 1949 and encourages voluntary compliance. Ordinarily, late stamping attracts penalties under Section 47A, which increase with the length of delay. The stamping deadline is 30 days from signing if executed in Malaysia, or 30 days from receipt in Malaysia if executed overseas. Where stamping is done within three months after the deadline, the penalty is RM50 or 10% of the duty undercharged, whichever is higher. If done after three months, the penalty increases to RM100 or 20% of the duty

Under SVDP, which runs for six months from Jan 1, taxpayers are allowed to voluntarily disclose and stamp all instruments that were

executed between Jan 1 2023 and Dec 31 2025, with no late stamping penalties imposed, provided the relevant stamp duty is paid within the programme period. Importantly, the penalty waiver is automatic. No separate appeal or remission application is required. Once the instrument is stamped and the duty paid within the SVDP period, the Over the years, many businesses and individuals may have accumulated unstamped documents. Common examples include tenancy agreements, service contracts, share transfer forms, internal restructuring documents, penalty will be waived. Why this matters now

G Plus Tech sponsors immersive AI-driven VR learning lab at UPM

KUALA LUMPUR: G Plus Tech Sdn Bhd has sponsored the country’s first artificial intelligence-based virtual reality immersive learning labo ratory, called Bionic Immersive Lab at Universiti Putra Malaysia’s (UPM) Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, marking a significant step in the commercialisation of immersive technology for higher education and professional training. Bionic Immersive Lab, launched at the UPM campus, is a prototype facility that blends virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence to simulate real-life veterinary and medical scenarios, reducing training risks, costs and logistical constraints associated with traditional field-based learning. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Dean Prof Dr Goh Yong Meng said the lab addresses long-standing operational challenges in veterinary education, particularly safety, disease prevention and access to real-world cases. “This is just the beginning. It helps optimise learning so we don’t have to bring all students into the field,” he said, adding that veterinary students are required to master clinical knowledge across at least eight animal categories, ranging from livestock and horses to wildlife, aquatic and exotic species. UPM operates multiple specialised animal hospitals, including large animal, equine, avian, exotic and companion-animal facilities, which accept cases from the public as well as from agencies such as the police, military and public health depart ments. However, transporting students to sites or handling high-risk animals Ű BY DEEPALAKSHMI MANICKAM sunbiz@thesundaily.com

o Malaysia’s first such facility enables simulation of real-life veterinary and medical scenarios, reducing training risks, costs and logistical constraints

the new wave of education.” Nurliza said the company has developed more than 100 medical simulations, allowing students and junior doctors to practise procedures multiple times in a virtual environ ment before treating real patients. “Patient safety is now the priority, and the same applies to animals,” she said. “In VR, students can practise 10, 20 or 30 times until they’re con fident.” Beyond healthcare, she said the technology has strong potential in technical and vocational education and training, engineering, aviation, police, military and security, where physical equipment and live simu lations are expensive. “You cannot buy an aeroplane just to teach students. You build it in VR (virtual reality),” she said, adding that the system can be customised based on faculty syllabi and industry requirements. The UPM lab, she said, is the first immersive learning prototype in Malaysia and is expected to serve as a proof of concept for policymakers and institutions. “If people only hear about im mersive labs, they won’t understand. They need to put on the headset and experience it,” she said, expressing hope for government support to scale similar labs nationwide. Nurliza said G Plus Tech, which also operates in Australia, aims to bring advanced educational tech nology back to Malaysia and position the country as a regional hub for immersive learning solutions. “This is just the start.”

From left: Goh, Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Syed Jalaludin Syed Salim and Nurliza at the launch of Malaysia’s first immersive virtual reality learning lab at UPM.

facility not only as an internal teaching tool but also as a platform for outreach and professional up skilling. “We see this as a bridge, for students, practising professionals, other faculties and even the public,” he said, citing interest from industry players and potential cross-appli cation into medical and public health training. G Plus Tech CEO Dr Nurliza Md Azzam said the facility marks the start of the company’s Bionic Immersive Lab concept, aimed at transforming education through gamification and self-directed learning. “This is not only for veterinarians. We started with veterinary medicine because of our long-standing part nership with UPM, but the vision is for all institutions,” she said. “This is

remains costly and time-consuming. “With immersive technology, students can practise procedures repeatedly without safety risks,” Goh said, noting that large animals such as cows and horses pose injury risks even to trained handlers. “Simulation allows them to make mistakes without real consequences.” The lab also enables flexible learning during clinical rotations, allowing students not assigned to hospital duties to continue practising remotely. “This diversifies learning without replacing traditional training,” Goh said. UPM’s veterinary programme has 614 students enrolled across a five year course, with about 120 students per intake annually. Goh said the university views the