UEM Sunrise expects little impact from expanded SST, says most projects exempt

• Officer-in-charge and chief financial officer Hafizuddin Sulaiman: “We had anticipated the potential impact and have already accounted for SST implications in our ongoing construction contracts. Approximately 90% of our current launches are residential in nature and will not attract the expanded tax.”

KUALA LUMPUR (June 24): UEM Sunrise Bhd (KL:UEMS) expects little impact from the expanded Sales and Service Tax (SST) as most of its new projects are residential and mostly exempt from the 6% tax on construction services, said its officer-in-charge and chief financial officer Hafizuddin Sulaiman.

Starting July 1, the government will expand the SST to include a 6% tax on construction services for infrastructure, commercial and industrial projects worth over RM1.5 million a year. However, residential buildings, housing-related utilities and fixed-price contracts are exempt, with a 12-month grace period.

“We had anticipated the potential impact and have already accounted for SST implications in our ongoing construction contracts. Approximately 90% of our current launches are residential in nature and will not attract the expanded tax,” Hafizuddin said in an emailed response to The Edge's queries.

“We continue to monitor regulatory developments and will adjust our strategies accordingly to remain competitive and compliant,” Hafizuddin said when asked about the SST's impact and whether it expects a drop in buyer demand or delays in upcoming launches.

Hafizuddin was appointed as the group’s officer-in-charge in February this year, following the resignation of CEO Sufian Abdullah. He is responsible for overseeing the company’s operations and ensuring business continuity until a new CEO is appointed.

According to UEM Sunrise’s annual report, its property development portfolio—spanning residential, retail, commercial and industrial segments—is located primarily in the Central region (Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan) and the Southern region (Desaru and Iskandar Puteri in Johor).

The group’s current residential projects include The MINH and Allevia in Mont'Kiara, and The Connaught One in Cheras.

Hafizuddin said UEM Sunrise is maintaining its sales target of RM1.05 billion for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2025 (FY2025), underpinned by strong demand from The MINH and The Connaught One as well as improving take-up rates in Iskandar Puteri, Johor, driven by the Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link and the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone.

“We plan to launch projects with a total gross development value (GDV) of RM2.0 billion, focusing on mid-market landed homes and our flagship Subiaco development in Perth,” Hafizuddin said.

“Our strategy remains grounded in optimising landbank, accelerating rollouts aligned with demand and maintaining pricing and product discipline while remaining responsive to market shifts,” he added.

Shares of UEM Sunrise closed up one sen or 1.46% at 69.5 sen on Tuesday, giving the property developer a market capitalisation of RM3.52 billion.

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