Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has announced that the RM1,000 tax relief provided for sports equipment and activities for year of assessment (YA) 2024 will now be expanded to also cover the fees of eligible training or classes for oneself, spouse, or child.
For context, the RM1,000 tax relief for sports equipment and activities is a separate incentive that was newly introduced under Budget 2024, which consequently saw sports equipment being removed as one of the claimable items under the general RM2,500 lifestyle tax relief. The new relief originally covered the following expenditures that are incurred for the taxpayers themselves:
- Purchase of sports equipment (excluding two-wheeled motorbikes)
- Rental or entry fees to sports facilities
- Registration fees for participating in sports competitions
- Gym membership fees
- Sports training fees imposed by associations and clubs registered with the Sports Commissioner or Companies Commission of Malaysia, carrying out sports activities as listed under the Sports Development Act 1997
With this latest update, the sports training fees of your spouse and children, too, can now be claimed as part of the RM1,000 tax relief. It will encompass 103 types of sports that have been gazetted under the Sports Development Act 1997, including aquatics, badminton, equestrian, motorsports, taekwondo, and even e-sports.
“This is a step to promote a healthy lifestyle and a reward for good parenting. Before this, the feedback we received from parents was that they spend money to buy sporting equipment, but they don’t use it much. Now, parents can get tax relief for sports training for their children, and this can also spur the sports industry where former athletes can turn to coaching as a career,” said Yeoh when announcing this update.
Aside from that, Yeoh also offered additional clarifications with regard to the tax relief. Among other things, she said that one-off sessions or a series of training sessions held in a structured manner such as classes, clinics, courses or workshops will be eligible for the relief. Additionally, official payment receipts must be provided as proof for your tax claims, including receipts that are generated online. Meanwhile, bank-in slips and bank account statements are not accepted.
Furthermore, Yeoh reminded Malaysians to always check the background and compliance of their sports training providers before signing up for any classes. This is because they can only claim the tax relief for sports if the training providers are associations, sports clubs, or companies that are registered with the Sports Commissioner or are incorporated under the Companies Act 2016.
“The public need to check whether the coaches or the training they undertake are registered properly. They cannot claim tax relief if they train or are coached by unregistered coaches or entities,” Yeoh stressed.
For more information, the Ministry of Youth and Sports has released an FAQ that highlights the details that were announced today. You can refer to it here.
(Source: New Straits Times)
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