RM19.4 billion is the amount in goods and services tax (GST) monies that the Customs is claiming from a trust fund in order to reimburse businesses, the department said today.

Customs director-general Subromaniam Tholasy said that it had requested a total of RM82.9 billion for refunds for the period of April 1, 2015 to May 31, 2018 but only RM63.5 billion was released to it.

The request was made to the monthly meeting of the trust fund which is chaired by the Treasury secretary-general.

“This amount (RM82.9 billion) is based on the GST-03 form (for refunds) which were filed into the Customs’ GST system by those who collected the tax.

“However, of this amount, only RM63.5 billion in GST refunds were issued through the trust fund for that period.

“Therefore, as of May 31, 2015, the trust fund still needs and is short of the balance to make GST refunds amounting to RM19.4 billion,” Subromaniam said in a statement today.

He said that the trust fund in this instance was the fund from which GST refunds were issued.

All GST collections were first channelled to a consolidated fund before the amounts to be refunded were moved to the trust fund.

Subromaniam’s statement follows Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s disclosure in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday that RM18 billion in GST refunds had gone “missing” under the previous government.

Former secretary-general Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah, who was replaced after Pakatan Harapan formed the government, has denied the missing funds, insisting that all GST proceeds had been transferred to a consolidated fund.

To date, Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin has lodged a police report calling for investigations in to the matter, while Irwan today also lodged a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission. – August 10, 2018.