Income tax is compulsory by law in Malaysia, and the amount you owe is based on your total taxable income for the year. If you’re filing for the first time, the process is more straightforward than most people expect. Registration, account setup, and filing can all be done online through the Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia’s (LHDN) MyTax portal.
Your starting point is your EA form (also called Form EA), which is a statement of your annual remuneration. Your employer is required to provide this to you by the end of February each year. This form summarises your total income, EPF and SOCSO contributions, and PCB deductions for the year.
To file, you’ll need to register yourself as a taxpayer with the LHDN, and then set up your MyTax account to access the e-Filing platform.
1) Check Your TIN and Register as a Taxpayer With the LHDN
Before you start the e-Daftar process, it’s worth checking whether you already have a Tax Identification Number (TIN). Since 2023, the LHDN has automatically assigned a TIN to all Malaysian citizens and permanent residents aged 18 and above, using data from the National Registration Department (JPN).
You can check your TIN status by logging into the MyTax portal and entering your IC number. If you already have a TIN, you can skip straight to activating your digital certificate (Step 2).
If you don’t have a TIN yet, head to the MyTax website and click on e-Daftar. Fill in the required details, and the website will notify you that you don’t yet have an income tax number. From there, you’ll be prompted to complete the full e-Daftar registration form.
You’re allowed to save and continue the form later if you can’t complete it all at once. When you return to the e-Daftar page, key in your details again and click “Update Details” to resume. You’ll also need to upload a digital copy of your MyKad as a supporting document, so prepare that beforehand.
Once you submit, your application may be immediately approved (you’ll get your income tax number on the spot), or you’ll receive an acknowledgement receipt with your application number. If that happens, your income tax number will be emailed to you within seven working days.
2) Register For Your e-Filing Account
a) Getting your digital certificate
Head back to MyTax and key in your IC number. You’ll be informed that your “Digital Certificate does not exist”. This is normal; you haven’t set up your MyTax account yet, which is what gives you access to the e-Filing portal.
You’ll be prompted to apply for a digital certificate using one of two methods.
Using e-CP55D (web portal) Select e-CP55D, confirm your registered email address and personal details, amend if necessary, then submit. An activation link will be sent to your email, which you must click to activate your digital certificate. The activation link expires after two days, so don’t leave it too long.
Using e-KYC (MyTax app) If you’d prefer to skip the e-CP55D form, you can use e-KYC through the MyTax mobile app instead. This involves scanning your MyKad and completing a selfie verification, and it lets you activate your digital certificate without visiting an LHDN branch.
b) Getting your one-time PIN and access to MyTax and e-Filing
Once your digital certificate is activated (whether via the email link or e-KYC), head back to MyTax and key in your IC number again. This time, you should be able to log in, with your PIN number automatically displayed. Create your password and security phrase, then click “Submit”.
Once submitted, log in again, and you’ll be able to access your MyTax dashboard and the e-Filing service.
3) File Your Taxes
For YA 2025, e-Filing opened on 1 March 2026. The deadline for salaried employees filing Form BE is 30 April 2026, with a grace period until 15 May 2026 for e-Filing submissions.
Before you start filling in your return, make sure you have your EA form, receipts for any tax relief claims (medical expenses, lifestyle purchases, education fees, insurance premiums), and your EPF contribution statement. The e-Filing system will walk you through each section, and it automatically calculates your tax based on what you enter.
Malaysia offers a range of tax reliefs that can reduce your chargeable income. Every individual automatically receives RM9,000 in personal relief, and there are additional reliefs for lifestyle purchases, EPF contributions, and insurance premiums.
Say you’re a fresh graduate earning RM3,600 per month (RM43,200 per year). Subtract your reliefs: RM9,000 personal relief, RM4,000 for EPF contributions, and RM2,500 for a laptop you bought for work. That brings your chargeable income down to RM27,700. The tax on that amount works out to about RM381. But because your chargeable income is under RM35,000, you also qualify for a RM400 tax rebate, which wipes out your tax bill entirely. If your employer has been deducting PCB from your salary all year, you’d get all of it back as a refund, typically within 30 working days of filing.
For a detailed walkthrough of the actual e-Filing form, check out our personal income tax guide for 2026 (YA 2025). Not sure whether you’re required to file in the first place? Our guide on checking your filing requirements covers the thresholds and rules for salaried employees, freelancers, and business owners.
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