Do not sell or lease retail business licence for quick profits, warns ministry sec-gen

TheEdge Sat, May 14, 2022 04:08pm - 1 year View Original


KANGAR (May 14): The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (KPDNHEP) will not hesitate to take action such as revoking the retail business licences of individuals who sell or lease their business licences, especially in border towns.

The irresponsible actions of some locals who sell or "rent" their business licences to foreigners are not only harmful to the country but also deprive others of a living just for the sake of easy profits.

KPDNHEP secretary-general (sec-gen) Azman Mohd Yusof said his team takes a serious view of the matter after it was raised by local traders in the border towns in Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis following an influx of foreign traders after the recent reopening of the Malaysia-Thailand border.

"For local traders who sell or rent their business licences to foreigners, their operating licences can be revoked by local authorities," he said when contacted by Bernama recently.

Azman said the government only allows foreigners holding Category 1 and Category 2 employment passes to open businesses in the country.

He said Category 1 employment passes refer to those earning a salary of RM10,000 and above, whereas Category 2 is for those with a salary of RM5,000 and above.

"The guidelines for foreign participation in the trade and distribution sector in Malaysia have also listed down that foreigners are not allowed to open grocery stores, stalls and other small businesses that fall under the negative list," he said.

"If there are foreigners opening unauthorised businesses, the government has the right to revoke their business licences and KPDHEP has the power to act in such a way if it finds that the owner of the premises is a foreigner," he said.

Azman said to curb the matter, KPDNHEP is cooperating with the Ministry of Housing and Local Government as the latter is the ministry that regulates local authorities in issuing business licences.

"With this cooperation, it is hoped that no foreign traders are allowed to open small retail businesses in their areas," he said.

He said KPDNHEP also collaborates with the Immigration Department to assist the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) in screening business applications by foreigners.

"The screening is done to ensure that foreigners are only in permitted business fields in the country," he also said.

Azman added that KPDHEP always welcomes public complaints about foreigners in retail businesses in their areas, and such complaints at the state level can be channelled to the respective KPDNHEP state offices.

The content is a snapshot from Publisher. Refer to the original content for accurate info. Contact us for any changes.






Comments

muthu arjun
Like · Reply
Car wash , gunting rambut most common.
Kedai makan too in some secluded areas.
Pj or city

Login to comment.