The 53rd Annual General Meeting of EMPTA was held successfully today.

 

During the meeting, EMPTA Chairman Kau Peng Yap said it is currently both challenging and transformative for the automotive parts industry, which has continued to evolve, driven by regulatory changes, technological advancements, and shifting market demands.

 

He said the EMPTA committee would continue to engage with the related government bodies and stakeholders to address the issues confronting members and for the betterment of the industry.

During the meeting, 10 resolutions were passed:

 

1) Calling upon the government to leverage on the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry’s (MITI) network with trade associations and chambers of commerce for dissemination of information related to new law and policy as well as engagement for new law and policy.

 

2) Calling upon the government to implement the following measures with regard to foreign investment in the automotive parts business.

a. capping foreign shareholding at below 50% for investment in automotive parts trading companies and repair workshops, and requiring the number of local directors (Malaysian citizen) to be more than foreign directors (non-citizen) in the companies of these two sectors;

b. requiring automotive parts trading companies and repair workshops with foreign shareholding (directly or indirectly) to have minimum two million ringgit paid-up capital, because automotive parts and repair workshops are related to road safety, hence accountability is required;

c. requiring at least 50% of the staff of automotive parts trading companies or repair workshops with foreign shareholding (directly or indirectly) to be Malaysian citizen.

 

3) Calling upon the government to ensure fair and professional repair rights in the automotive industry by

a. mandate all showrooms selling new vehicles to clearly display a list of parts that are not covered by warranty at the counter or a visible place of showroom;

b. prohibiting manufacturers and dealers to nullify warranty of vehicles if owners replace vehicle parts at independent workshops, provided that the mechanics of the independent workshops who repair the vehicles possess Malaysian Skills Certificate Level 3 (SKM Tahap 3) qualification, and the replacement parts are genuine parts;

c. mandating vehicle manufacturers to make the genuine parts for replacement available beyond its appointed vehicle dealers’ channels and available for independent repair workshops;

d. mandating manufacturers to provide the necessary technical information and access to independent repairers for the diagnosis and repair of vehicles.

 

4) Calling upon the government to beef up enforcement on counterfeit products and automotive products that require certification, so as to avoid market distortion and protect businesses that have invested in the hefty certification process. The effort should also cover the products that are marketed on e-commerce platforms, which shall be held liable for any counterfeit products or products with fake certification sold via the platforms.

 

5) Calling upon the government to provide a period of transition for the Component Type Approval (CTA) process under the Customs (Prohibition of Imports) (Amendment) Order by accepting not only MS and UNR (E-mark) but also similar certifications from Japan (JIS), China (GB) and South Korea (KC).

 

6) Calling upon the government to facilitate digital transformation of the automotive parts industry by

a. making the display of vehicle identification number (VIN) on windscreen mandatory for all new vehicles registered with JPJ;

b. providing matching grant for deployment of software and digital services related to the automotive aftermarket industry;

c. providing matching grant for smart logistics and warehouse

automation solutions for the automotive aftermarket industry;

d. granting access of the automotive database of vehicle identification number (VIN number) and vehicle model matching, with Malaysia Automotive, Robotics & IoT Institute (MARii) as the data interface, to facilitate operation of online platforms for automotive parts matching via car licence plate like in the United Kingdom.

 

7) Calling upon the government to make Malaysia a Southeast Asian automotive aftermarket parts export hub by

a. removing spare parts from the free trade zone’s exemption list, so that spare parts enjoy tax exemption at free trade zone like most other products;

b. extend criterion of 3 months to 6 months for the tax refund in re-export;

c. encouraging more automotive parts players entering licensed manufacturing warehouse (LMW) activity, including re-manufacturing;

 

8) Calling upon the government to ensure spillover of electric vehicle (EV) parts to Malaysia by

a. ensuring that that the aftermarket is not overlooked in the development of EV industry and promotion of EV adoption;

b. organizing study and learning trips or business matching to the advanced EV markets to pursue technology and know-how;

c. providing matching grant for research and development as well as capacity building to local companies;

d. providing investment tax allowance to local companies for new production line or facility related to EV.

 

9) Calling upon the government to allow companies with warehouse operation to hire foreign workers to address the manpower shortage in warehouse operation.

 

10) Calling upon the government to regard the education system established by the local community with a more positive attitude and move forward in line with the development trend by according recognition to the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC), which would benefit the country and discontinue the brain drain.