Two-month Sarawak civil service bonus not fully tax-exempt, says Amir Hamzah

KUCHING (Dec 16): The two-month bonus for Sarawak civil servants will not be fully tax-exempt beyond the existing RM1,000 limit, according to Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.

He explained that tax exemptions must be applied equitably across all states in the country.

“If there are certain practices that we apply on an overall basis, the same practice will be applied to Sarawak. It doesn’t get any more, it doesn’t get any less for the current practice,” he said, responding to a question during a forum session at the 2026 Sarawak Budget Conference (SBC) at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching on Tuesday.

“I apologise for that. I also need to address fiscal discipline and balance,” he added.

Adopting the theme “Empowering People, Advancing Prosperity, Building a Resilient Future”, the two-day conference, held from Tuesday to Wednesday, is expected to host around 500 participants.

The event is jointly organised by the Sarawak Centre of Performance Excellence (Scope), the Leadership Institute of Sarawak Civil Service (LI), and Salihin Academy.

The conference aims to deepen understanding of Sarawak’s Budget 2026 priorities while contextualising them within the broader national direction of Malaysia’s Madani Budget 2026.

Also present were Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Amar Fadillah Yusof, Salihin founder and group managing partner Datuk Dr Salihin Abang, and other distinguished guests.