The Malaysian Inland Revenue Board (IRB) released Operational Guidelines on 31 July 2016, outlining the application procedures for obtaining Tax Clearance Letters (TCL) for Companies, Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP), and Labuan Entities (Labuan Companies and Labuan LLP).

These guidelines aim to clarify the TCL request procedures and the necessary documents needed to acquire the TCL. Familiarity with these procedures and document requirements can speed up the TCL issuance process.

Company

To apply for a Tax Clearance Letter (TCL), a Company must submit Income Tax Return Forms (ITRFs) up to the latest year of assessment. If the e-Form C for the latest year of assessment is not yet available from the IRB, the Company can obtain the Form C (For Surat Penyelesaian Cukai (SPC) Purpose Only) from any IRB branch. This form must be filled out and submitted along with the SPC application to the relevant IRB branch managing the company's income tax file.

Furthermore, the Company's TCL application must include the following relevant documents:

1. Voluntary Winding Up By Members

   • Form 66 : Declaration Of Solvency

   • Form 11 : Notice Of Resolution

   • Form 71: Notice Of Appointment And Situation Of Office Of Liquidator (Members Voluntary Winding Up)

   • Form 75 : Liquidator’s Account Of Receipt And Payments And Statement Of The Position In The Winding Up

2. Voluntary Winding Up By Creditors

   • Form 65A : Statutory Declaration Of Inability Of Company To Continue Business, And That Meetings Of The Company And Its Creditors Have Been Summoned

   • Form 11 : Notice Of Resolution

   • Form 72 : Notice Of Appointment And Situation Of Office Of Liquidator (Creditors’ Voluntary Winding Up)

   • Form 75 : Liquidator’s Account Of Receipt And Payments And Statement Of The Position In The Winding Up

3. Winding Up By Court Order

   • Receiving Order or Winding Up Order

   • Form 61 : Statement Of Affairs

   • Form 70 : Notice Of Appointment And Situation Of Office Of Liquidator (Winding Up By Court)

   • Form 75 : Liquidator’s Account Of Receipt And Payments And Statement Of The Position In The Winding Up

4. Striking Off Name Of Company

   • Notice under Section 308 of the Companies Act 1965

5. Cessation Of Business (Foreign company)

   • Form 90 : Notice By Foreign Company Of Cessation Of Business

6. Striking Off Of Dormant Company

   • Form CP7

Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)

A limited liability partnership (LLP) applying for TCL is required to submit ITRFs until the latest year of assessment. The ITRFs have to be completed and submitted together with the TCL application form to the IRB branch which handles the relevant income tax file.

If Form PT for the latest year of assessment has not yet been made available, Form PT for the immediately preceding year of assessment can be used with certain modification.

Documents required to be submitted for application of TCL for LLP are as follows:-

1. Voluntary Winding Up By Members

   • Tax Clearance Letter application form 

2. Winding Up By Court Order

   • Tax Clearance Letter application form

   • Receiving Order or Winding Up Order

3. Striking Off Name Of LLP

   • Tax Clearance Letter application form

   • Notice of striking off of LLP name under Section 51 Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2012

The application for a Tax Clearance Letter (TCL) for Companies and LLPs needs to be submitted to the branch responsible for handling the income tax file of the respective entity. The TCL will be issued once all necessary and complete documents are submitted, and all income tax payments, including employees’ monthly tax deductions, are fully settled.

Based on our experience with the IRB, the issuance of the TCL for Companies and LLPs may take several months. However, regular follow-ups with the IRB officer can help expedite the process.

As a professional corporate services provider, Low TH & Co offers a cost-effective one-stop solution service to simplify these procedures for you. With our experienced tax agents and our tax director, who has prior experience at the Big Four, we are well-equipped to provide you with top-notch service.