Malaysian YouTuber Kate aka Ke En (可恩) recently got back from travelling abroad. She presumably had a lovely time during her travels. Unfortunately, her arrival in Malaysia wasn’t as smooth as hoped.
Kate had apparently bought a luxury bag on the way back home. However, Malaysia’s inbound custom wanted to tax her purchase. What’s odd was that they insisted she pay in cash!
The internet personality shared her story on Instagram. Apparently, she and her boyfriend had returned from Turkey earlier this month. Kate had bought a luxury bag from the Istanbul Airport and took it on the plane as a carry on. However, the problem started when they entered Malaysia’s customs.
Kate shared that they were going to tax her RM800 for a bag. “Two bags (means) RM1600,” she said. “I want to cry now.” Kate’s boyfriend told customs they would pay for the tax by card, as neither of them were carrying cash. “But you have to give us a formal ticket and receipt,” he stressed. However, they apparently refused to issue a ticket, saying they have never done so before.
After going back and forth about the issue, the staff finally asked the couple how much they had on them in cash. Both Kate and her boyfriend managed to dig out RM250 in total, which customs then supposedly accepted as ‘tax’. “Two bags taxed for RM250. I don’t know if this is (considered) bribery,” Kate wrote. “We insisted on (paying) the original price (with a) credit card and (getting) a receipt. They insisted on cash.”
A well-known blogger, Kenn (野田弘部落格 Kenn’Blog) picked up the issue after media site GirlStyle reported on it. Kenn criticised the duo for bragging about avoiding paying the full tax amount. However, Kate replied to the post, clarifying that she was in no way trying to “show off (her) success in evading tax”. “We insisted on using the debit card for the whole (time) and did not refuse to pay (because we really had no cash),” she stated. “But they were the ones who (rejected) they payment. They were also the ones who offered us (the lowered tax price).”
Kenn then reached out to the customs centre to inquire further about the matter. He directed two questions to them. First, how much is the tax for a luxurious item and second, does custom only accept cash for any tax. The blogger announced yesterday (11th May) that he received a reply. “Currently, customs officers have begun to investigate the custom clearance at the airport from a few days ago, due to being levied without receipts,” he stated.
It certainly is an odd issue and hopefully, authorities will be able to get to the bottom of things. For now, Kate might have to sit tight and wait for an outcome, hopefully in her favour.
