Malaysia TIN for Foreigners, Directors and New Companies 2026: Who Already Has One, Who Must Apply on e-Daftar, and Which General TIN to Use on an e-Invoice

Almost every Malaysian form a foreign-owned company fills in now asks for a Tax Identification Number (TIN): the bank's account-opening pack, the payroll system, the e-Invoice your customer wants, the stamp duty portal, the CRS self-certification. Malaysians usually already have one without doing anything. Foreign directors, Employment Pass holders and some companies do not — and discover it at the worst possible moment. This guide explains who is given a TIN automatically, who has to apply on e-Daftar, what documents LHDN asks for, and which "general TIN" goes on an e-Invoice when the other party has none.

Quick answer (as at September 2026): A TIN (Nombor Pengenalan Cukai) is the income tax number issued by LHDN (IRBM). Malaysian citizens and permanent residents aged 18 and above are registered automatically from National Registration Department data, and a new Sdn Bhd incorporated online through SSM's MyCoID gets its company TIN (prefix C) automatically. Everyone else — foreign individuals, MyKAS holders, companies not auto-registered, foreign companies registered under section 562 — must apply online through e-Daftar on MyTax, which has been the only channel since 1 January 2024. LHDN states the number is issued within 3 working days of a complete application.

What a Malaysian TIN is — and why the format changed

The Government announced a universal TIN in the Budget 2022 speech to widen the tax base, and implementation began in 2022. In practice the TIN is the income tax reference number: individuals registered with LHDN are treated as already holding a TIN. What changed is the format. Individual numbers used to start with SG (no business income) or OG (business income); both were merged into a single IG prefix. Non-individual numbers gained a trailing 0 — so the company file C2088005001 became C20880050010. LHDN's published TIN description to the OECD dates the new format from 2 January 2023.

The trailing zero matters more than it looks. An old-format company TIN typed into an e-Invoice or a payroll system is one of the most common causes of validation failures in MyInvois.

Who already has a TIN without applying

Malaysian citizens and permanent residents aged 18 and above. LHDN registers them automatically using data from the National Registration Department (JPN). A Malaysian co-director or local employee therefore normally has a TIN even if they have never filed a return; they just need to look it up. For the Common Reporting Standard, LHDN also accepts the 12-digit MyKad (NRIC) number as the "functional equivalent" when a TIN is not supplied — but that is a CRS rule, not permission to put an NRIC in the TIN field of an e-Invoice.

New companies incorporated online through MyCoID. LHDN's company tax-file page states that the company TIN (C) is registered automatically for newly incorporated local and foreign companies that register online with SSM through MyCoID. For most foreign-owned Sdn Bhds formed in the last few years, the company number therefore exists from day one; the task is to retrieve it and set up access, not to apply.

Who must apply on e-Daftar — and what LHDN asks for

Since 1 January 2024, TIN applications for individuals and companies go online through e-Daftar at mytax.hasil.gov.my; counter and paper registration is no longer the route. LHDN's list of who must register an income tax file covers: individuals with taxable income; employees subject to Monthly Tax Deduction (MTD/PCB); companies, partnerships and LLPs not yet registered; and any business or company with employees, which must register an employer file. If you would rather not deal with the portal, our LHDN personal TIN registration service prepares and submits the application for foreign directors and staff.

Step by step: registering a foreign director or Employment Pass holder

1. Confirm there is no existing file. People who worked in Malaysia years ago, or who were once registered by a previous employer, often already have an old SG/OG number that is now their IG TIN. Applying again creates a duplicate that LHDN later has to merge.
2. Choose the identification type. On e-Daftar a foreigner selects Passport Number and enters the passport country. Use the passport that matches the Employment Pass endorsement.
3. Upload the documents from the table above. For an EP holder, a copy of the pass endorsement helps LHDN classify the file correctly.
4. Keep the application number and check status after three working days. The TIN is then used for the employer's CP22 notification and the employee's PCB.
5. Set up MyTax access separately. Having a TIN and having a MyTax login are two different things. First-time login is its own step, and it is what the person will need to file their own return (Form BE for residents, Form M for non-residents).

Company TIN: what happens after the number exists

Holding a company TIN starts several LHDN clocks. LHDN's company page states that a company must submit e-CP204 (its first tax estimate) within 3 months of commencing business and file its return (Form C) within 7 months of its financial year end. Every company — including a dormant one that has not started business — must also furnish the employer return Form E each year. If the company was not auto-registered, or the TIN on record is in the old format and is being rejected, our company TIN registration with LHDN service handles the e-Daftar filing and the follow-up with the branch.

The payroll side — PCB rates, EPF and SOCSO — is covered in our guide to EPF and SOCSO employer registration for a new company, which uses the same "register before the first salary" logic.

A worked example: the first 90 days of a foreign-owned Sdn Bhd

Take a company incorporated through MyCoID on 1 March with one Malaysian resident director and one Chinese national director, planning to hire an Employment Pass manager in June.

• Week 1: retrieve the automatically issued company TIN (C…0) and confirm it is in the new format. The Malaysian director looks up their own IG number on MyTax.
• Before any director fee: the foreign director applies on e-Daftar with a passport copy; the number arrives within about three working days.
• When the company starts trading (say 1 April): the e-CP204 clock starts — the first estimate is due by 1 July.
• Before the June payroll: open the employer file (E number) on e-Daftar, register the EP manager's TIN, and lodge CP22 within 30 days of the start date.
• 31 March the following year: Form E is due whether or not anyone was employed.

None of these steps is difficult. The cost comes from doing them out of order — a PCB deduction with no employee TIN, or an e-Invoice with an old company number, is what triggers the back-and-forth with LHDN.

e-Invoicing: the TIN on every invoice and the four general TINs

MyInvois requires the TIN of both supplier and buyer. When the buyer genuinely has no Malaysian TIN, LHDN's e-Invoice Specific Guideline (version 4.7, April 2026, Appendix 1) provides four general TINs. Using the wrong one — or putting an NRIC or passport number in the TIN field — is the usual reason an otherwise correct e-Invoice is rejected. The full rollout timetable and thresholds are in our e-Invoice guide for foreign companies.

How to check a TIN you already have

LHDN lists four ways: the e-Daftar menu on MyTax (mytax.hasil.gov.my), HASiL Live Chat, the HASiL Care Line (03-8911 1000; +603-8911 1100 from overseas), or the nearest HASiL branch. Individuals can also find the number on the front page of any previous income tax return. For a counterparty, the MyInvois portal and API offer a TIN validation lookup against their registration number.

Five mistakes we see every month

• Old-format TIN. A company number without the trailing 0, or an individual number still starting SG/OG, fails validation in newer systems.
• Second application for someone who already has a file. Common with returning expatriates. Check first; merging duplicates takes far longer than the original registration.
• Hiring before the employer file exists. The first payroll cannot deduct PCB correctly, and CP22 has nowhere to go.
• NRIC or passport in the TIN field. Use the correct general TIN and record the ID separately.
• Forgetting CP21 when an expatriate leaves. The final salary and bonus must be held back until LHDN clearance — which surprises departing staff who were not told in advance.

Do it yourself or hand it over?

A Malaysian director registering themselves, or a company that was auto-registered and simply needs its number, rarely needs help. It becomes worth delegating when several foreign directors or EP holders need numbers before a payroll date, when a foreign branch registered under section 562 needs a company file, when LHDN queries the documents, or when an old or duplicate file has to be sorted out before e-Invoicing goes live. For expatriates' personal tax after registration — residence status, Form BE vs Form M, and the 182-day test — see our guide to personal income tax for foreigners in Malaysia.

ONEKEY BIZ handles personal TIN registration for foreign directors and employees and corporate TIN registration alongside company secretarial and payroll set-up, so the TIN, the employer file and the first PCB line up on the same timetable. Talk to us or WhatsApp +60 12-321 1349.

This article is general information only, not legal, tax or immigration advice. Policies, thresholds and official fees are set by the relevant Malaysian authorities and may change. Talk to our consultants about your specific situation.