PETALING JAYA: About 94.7% of Malaysia’s online business owners who are aware of mandatory e-invoicing are seeking exemption, with 87.3% citing the process as too tedious and the remaining 12.7% finding it too confusing.
A recent survey conducted by think tank Datametrics Research and Information Centre (DARE), which polled 516 micro online entrepreneurs earning less than RM150,000 a year over a two-week period through online and on-ground channels, also found that only 40.1% of respondents were aware of e-invoicing.
The situation points to a significant gap in outreach and readiness as the government plans to enforce mandatory e-invoicing for all businesses, including low-revenue online sellers, starting Jan 1, 2026.
DARE managing director Pankaj Kumar said the government’s push for e-invoicing is part of a broader effort to digitalise the economy but imposing this uniformly across all business types, without exception, risks overwhelming the smallest players.
“This poll was a two-week pulse check to capture the sentiment of micro online entrepreneurs, particularly in light of the growing number of news reports and public attention on e-invoicing. And the sentiment is clear – many are confused, concerned and feeling unprepared,“ he said in a statement.
The findings, according to Pankaj, indicate a pressing need for the government to undertake a comprehensive investigation into the impact of these policies on the micro-digital economy.
“Simultaneously, small online sellers must be educated and supported to understand and comply with requirements. Without this, we risk making compliance unnecessarily difficult for the very group we should be supporting,“ he said.
The survey found that overall awareness and understanding of e-invoicing requirements are low. More than half of the respondents (59.9%) had never heard of e-invoicing, and 78.1% expressed concern over how the new mandate would affect their day-to-day operations.
As for likely actions in response to the requirement, the poll found that 22.7% of respondents would attempt to comply, while a larger portion, 31.6%, said they would stop selling online altogether.
Another 21.1% planned to adopt a “wait and see” approach, and 24.6% said they would not comply at all, signalling significant potential for non-compliance and disruption to the micro-digital economy.
Pankaj said these results point to a pressing need for policymakers to revisit the current approach, especially for micro online sellers operating at the margins of the digital economy.
“These are not large-scale enterprises with teams of accountants or digital infrastructure. Many of these online sellers are individuals trying to earn supplementary income through informal digital channels. For them, implementing an unfamiliar, often technical system like e-invoicing is not just a procedural adjustment; it is a significant operational disruption.
“We risk pushing this group out of the digital economy entirely if we force them to comply without adequate support or exemptions. It contradicts the very spirit of empowering micro-entrepreneurs and broadening economic participation through digital platforms.
“The government must rethink its one-size-fits-all approach and instead consider a phased, tiered or exempted model that protects and supports Malaysia’s smallest online sellers,” he said.
Pankaj said DARE is ready to engage with the government through consultation sessions and policy discussions to ensure that the implementation of e-invoicing supports national digitalisation goals without disproportionately burdening micro online entrepreneurs.
