SEVERAL new regulations will be effective starting Jan 1, 2020, involving various sectors nationwide. Among the regulations is the controversial smoking ban, which has caused a stir among restaurant operators and customers throughout the education period which began this year. Below are five new regulations that will be implemented in the country by the new year.
Smoking Ban
Smoking and vaping will be prohibited in all eateries nationwide starting next year. Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye said offenders will be slapped with a fine of RM250.
The fine will be reduced to RM150 if it is settled in less than a month but may increase up to RM10,000 if left unpaid.
Enforcement action includes random inspections to arrest offenders of the law. Lee said the ministry has about 5,000 environmental health officers across the country to conduct random spot checks and issue summons to those who violate the law.
The smoking ban, which came into force on Jan 1 this year, only allows smokers to smoke in areas of not less than three metres from eateries, including in the open.
Digital Services Tax
Digital Services Tax with a rate of 6% will be charged to foreign digital service providers with sales of more than RM500,000 a year.
Putrajaya proposed the tax during the tabling of Budget 2019 in November last year, saying it would be imposed on foreign digital services which included software, music, video and digital advertising.
Among the popular online service providers that are likely to fall under the measure are Spotify, Netflix Inc, Amazon.com Inc and digital game distribution companies such as Steam.
In April, the foreign service providers were told to register with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department from Oct 1 to Dec 31 this year.
Google Malaysia reportedly will charge 6% on its G Suite services, a suite of services offered to businesses and individuals. It comes with a custom email, cloud storage, file sharing and video conferencing.
CRS/Rear Passenger Seat Belts
The Ministry of Transport has made the installation of child car seats or child restraint system (CRS) mandatory in private vehicles to ensure optimal road safety, especially for children.
Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jaffar recently said large families may be exempted from the installation of the seats as the number of children and the size of vehicle have to be taken into consideration.
Along with the child safety seats, seat belts for rear passengers will also be made mandatory beginning Jan1.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the law was first introduced in 2009 by the previous government but no further effort was made to enforce the law then.
Fuel Subsidy
The targeted Fuel Subsidy Programme was a pledge made by the Pakatan Harapan government and will be implemented in Peninsular Malaysia.
It comprises two categories where the first one involves recipients of the Cost of Living Aid (BSH) who will get the subsidy in the form of cash transfer, while the non-BSH recipients will receive the subsidy through Kad95.
Recipients of BSH will receive a petrol subsidy of RM30 a month for car owners or RM12 for motorcycle owner. Cash will be debited into the recipients’ bank accounts every four months.
The first payment will be made in April 2020 for the period of January to April 2020, while Kad95 will be implemented in stages during the first quarter of 2020.
Minimum Wage
The government will raise the minimum monthly wage to RM1,200 in 57 town and major cities, while the minimum wage remains at RM1,100 monthly for the rest of the country.
The Human Resources Ministry said the minimum wage will take effect for all employers and the order would be gazetted soon following the decision.
It said the implementation is defined under Section 2 of the Employment Act 1955, Sabah Labour Ordinance and Sarawak Labour Ordinance.
Human Resources Minister M Kulasegaran recently said the decision to increase the minimum wage was a Cabinet decision which was made in consultation with the National Wages Consultative Council (NWCC).
He said the increase is within the NWCC Act 2011 which states that the minimum wage should be reviewed at least once every two years. The Malaysian Reserve