When do I pay my company income tax: instalments or after filing?
Most companies pay through monthly CP204 instalments (due on the 15th of each month) and settle any balance by the Form C deadline, seven months after year end. Companies exempt from estimates pay everything by the Form C due date.
Payment timing follows the CP204 system.
Normal case:
- Pay the estimated tax in equal monthly instalments, from the second month of the basis period. LHDN's examples show instalments due on the 15th.
- File Form C within seven months of year end.
- Pay any balance (final tax minus instalments paid) by the same date.
- If instalments exceeded the final tax, the excess can be refunded or credited.
Exempt new companies: if exempt from estimates in the first two years, the full tax is due by the last day of the seventh month after year end (PwC).
Late payment: an instalment not paid by its due date attracts a 10% charge on the unpaid amount (s.107C(9)). Tax unpaid after the final due date attracts the s.103 penalty (see the late payment answer).
Paying: payments are made through MyTax or bank channels. LHDN also has a process to apply to pay a tax balance by instalments if you are in difficulty.
Cash-flow tip: compare management accounts to the estimate at months 6 and 9 and revise where needed.
Legal basis
- Income Tax Act 1967, s.103
- Income Tax Act 1967, s.107C
Sources
Applies to YA 2026 · Last reviewed 29 October 2026
General information for business owners, not legal, tax or professional advice. Rules change, so check the sources or ask a licensed professional before you act.
Related questions
- When is the Form C deadline for a Malaysian company?Form C must be submitted electronically within seven months after the company's financial year end. A company with a 31 December year end therefore files by 31 July of the following year. Any tax balance is also due by the same date.
- How and when can I revise my CP204 tax estimate (CP204A)?A company can revise its CP204 estimate in the 6th, 9th and 11th month of its basis period, in any or all of the three. The latest revision is the one used to test the 30% under-estimation penalty. The new instalment starts from the 5th or 6th, 8th or 9th, or 11th instalment respectively.
- What are Form E and CP8D, and when are they due?Form E is the employer's yearly return and CP8D lists each employee's pay. LHDN says both are due by 31 March of the following year. For YA 2025, one guide listed 30 April 2026 as the e-Filing date, so check the calendar for any grace period.
- What is PCB or MTD and what must I deduct from employees' salaries?PCB (also called MTD) is the monthly tax an employer deducts from an employee's pay and pays to LHDN. LHDN requires the amount to come from its MTD schedule or computerised method and to be remitted by the 15th of the following month.
- Which business expenses can a Malaysian company deduct for tax?An expense is deductible if it is incurred in producing business income, and it is revenue rather than capital in nature. Typical examples are salaries, rent, utilities, interest on business loans, and professional fees. Capital items get capital allowances instead.