KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 — The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) has urged the government to consider exempting the local tourism industry from the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Association president Hamzah Rahmat said the move would boost the country’s tourism sector which, he said, was currently suffering a slowdown.
According to him, the industry had seen a drop of between 30 to 40 per cent in business in recent months.
The association had brought up matters pertaining to the GST with the relevant authorities but had yet to receive positive feedback, he told a news conference here today.
Hamzah said that besides GST, another matter that should be looked into by the government was online visa application for tourists.
According to him, industry players felt that it was high time that Malaysia introduced online application for visa.
He pointed out that such a method was easier, faster and more cost-efficient compared to the conventional procedures.
On the MATTA Fair scheduled for Sept 4 to 6, Hamzah said it would feature 143 local and international tourism players and 1,234 booths.
He said there had been overwhelming response from international exhibitors for the show to be held at the Putra World Trade Centre here.
“The Korea Tourism Organisation has informed us that they plan to bring in K-pop artistes to perform at the fair,” he said.
A new highlight at the event will be a dedicated pavilion to promote ‘umrah’ (minor Haj) packages.
A similar fair organised in March attracted some 90,000 visitors and generated RM155.4 million in sales. — Bernama
