Forest City – first man-made islands to get duty-free status

SINGAPORE: Forest City, a mega development on four man-made islands in Iskandar Malaysia, has been accorded duty-free area status.
The artificial islands on which the development sits were granted the status on March 6, 2016, making them the first man-made islands in Malaysia to be declared duty-free compared with the natural islands of Labuan, Langkawi and Tioman.
What is in store for locals and visitors at this new duty-free area, dubbed South-East Asia’s largest mixed-use green development?
A point to note is that the ultimate objective of any duty-free area is to encourage trade and tourism in Malaysia. Labuan, Langkawi and Tioman were declared duty-free islands on Sept 1, 1956; Jan 1, 1987; and, Sept 1, 2002 respectively.
The three duty-free islands are placed under different Customs Acts but it is not yet known which Act Forest City will be governed under.
A check on Customs Department’s website showed that all goods at duty-free islands normally are duty-exempt except petroleum and petroleum-manufactured products.
However, all types of motorised transport are dutiable at Tioman. For Langkawi, cement, marble, rubber and anchovies brought to the island from outside Malaysia will be charged duties.
According to Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd CEO Mo Bin, the first duty-free shopping mall will be ready by year-end at Fisherman’s Wharf on Island 1 of Forest City. The developer said the mall will carry a wide range of leading international brands and products.
Does the duty-free status cater only to the goods and products that are sold at the shopping mall of Forest City?
Local and foreign visitors to the three duty-free natural islands must stay for a minimum number of hours to enjoy the tax exemption. Are visitors to Forest City subjected to such a “time limit” for them to enjoy duty-free privilege as well?
For Labuan, visitors have to be on the island for not less than 24 hours, while for Langkawi and Tioman it is not less than 48 hours. A 30% duty will be imposed if you buy goods beyond the stipulated limits. But for beer or liquor, cigarettes or tobacco, tyres and tubes, the tax will follow a certain rate.
Sprawled over 1,386ha, Forest City is a joint development between Hong Kong-listed Country Garden Holdings and Johor’s Esplanade Danga 88 Sdn Bhd.
With an estimated investment of S$58.3 billion (RM174 billion), the mega development would be done in stages over the next 20 years. Part of the first phase of Forest City includes condominiums and high-rise coastal residences which would open for global sale soon. – Bernama