KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 5 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government will fully settle excess tax refunds for the 2023 and 2024 assessment years this year.

Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said excess tax refunds totalled RM22.5 billion in 2024, the highest in five years.

In his 2026 New Year Address at the Prime Minister’s Department Monthly Assembly today, he said the decision to expedite the refunds was in response to public feedback, particularly from small businesses.

“We listened to the concerns of the people, especially small companies,” he said.

Anwar also said the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) successfully resolved some 3.7 million excess tax refund cases in 2025. — Bernama