Cross-border business between Singapore and Malaysia is accelerating, bringing with it a new layer of complexity for tax practitioners advising clients across both jurisdictions.
For the first time, the Singapore Chartered Tax Professionals is partnering up with the Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia (CTIM) on a specially curated session in Johor Bahru, exclusively for Accredited tax practitioners and CTIM members only!
This joint networking event brings together tax practitioners from both sides of the Causeway for meaningful connections and practical insights. Don’t miss out on two panel discussions on relevant topics like cross-border tax considerations, gain perspectives on dual employment, remote working and permanent establishment risks, withholding tax treatment and opportunities arising from the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone.
Beyond technical discussion, seize this rare opportunity to connect with your Malaysian counterparts, exchange real-world experiences and build meaningful professional relationships in an increasingly interconnected tax landscape.
Dedicated transport from Singapore to Johor Bahru and back will be arranged. This is an in-person event, so seats are limited! Seize this unique chance to expand your network across the Causeway and stay ahead in an increasingly interconnected tax landscape.
7.00 – 7.30am: Registration at SCTP's Office (United Square)
7.30 – 10.00am: Transport will be arranged from SCTP’s Office (United Square) to Grand Paragon Hotel Johor Bahru
10.00 – 10.30am: Welcome refreshments
10.30 – 11.30am: Panel Discussion 1
Topic:
- Dual employment arrangements, work from home and remote working arrangements, including permanent establishment risks
Panellists:
- Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) Mr An Chee Sin, Executive Director, Pinnacle Tax Services
- Mr Wong Wen Tak, Chief Executive Officer, Grant Thornton Malaysia (Johor)
Moderator:
- CTIM’s Chairman (Southern branch) Ms Angela Lim, Partner, ALN Chartered Accountants
11.30am – 12.30pm: Panel Discussion 2
Topic:
- WHT treatment, in particular royalties and technical fees & JS-SEZ
Panellists:
- Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) Ms Chan Xue Pei, Partner, Tax, Forvis Mazars in Singapore
- Ms Ng Fie Lih, Partner - Corporate Tax, Johor, KPMG Malaysia
Moderator:
- Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) Mr Jonathan Paguntalan, Head of Tax, Crowe Singapore
12.30 – 1.30pm: Networking lunch
1.30 – 4.00pm: Free and easy R&R time in Johor Bahru
4.00 – 6.30pm: Transport will be arranged from Johor Bahru to SCTP’s Office (United Square)
SCTP reserves the right to vary any aspect of the event/ webinar should the situation warrant or due to unforeseen circumstances. This includes but not limited to the following: cancel the programme, change the venue, speakers, programme dates, fees and CPE hours. SCTP will take reasonable effort to notify participants of the changes.
Mr An Chee SinExecutive Director
Pinnacle Tax Services
Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) & Accredited Tax Practitioner (GST)
Chee Sin is an Executive Director with Pinnacle. He is currently an Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) with the Singapore Chartered Tax Professionals. Chee Sin has more than 25 years of extensive experience in the areas of international and local corporation taxation. Prior to Pinnacle, Chee Sin was a director of Corporate Tax with KPMG.
Chee Sin has coordinated various advisory projects, including advising on cross-border fund structures, corporate restructuring, treasury and merger and acquisition transactions. He had advised in the setting up of fund investment structures including projects involving real properties in China and Japan. He has also advised a number of multinational corporations in setting up their subsidiaries in Singapore.
Specifically, Chee Sin’s experience on the corporate tax advisory spans across various countries and includes assisting a China listed company to set up subsidiaries in Indonesia. For merger and acquisition activities, he assisted a French fund manager to acquire another fund manager and advised a Chinese financial group to acquire another financial group. In addition, Chee Sin has also assisted a reputable exchange in acquiring another exchange.
Chee Sin was heavily involved in the tax matters for the fund management industry. He also has keen interest in assisting high net worth individuals in setting a tax efficient structure for family office or private trust. He is involved in a number of corporate restructuring exercise for enterprises in regionally. He is aware of the pitfalls and is able to advise his clients on the tax effective structure for their business. He is on the board of an Australian company with operations in South Africa.
Ms Chan Xue PeiPartner, Tax
Forvis Mazars in Singapore
Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax)
With over 20 years of experience in international tax planning, compliance and advisory, Xue Pei brings deep expertise in the financial services, banking, insurance and asset management sectors. She has held senior roles in the Big Four and a global investment bank, leading complex, cross-border tax engagements across Southeast Asia.
She advises clients on a wide range of tax matters, including tax planning and compliance, tax advisory for financial services institutions, family offices, fund structuring, private equity, asset management and real estate. Highly regarded for her expertise in tax governance and ESG-aligned tax initiatives, she works on areas such as carbon tax, Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Pillar 2 and other tax incentive frameworks.
At Forvis Mazars, she specialises in the financial services and asset management tax practice, helping clients succeed through strategic tax advisory and robust governance solutions. Recognised as a thought leader, she contributes actively to industry development through training, seminars and knowledge sharing.
Xue Pei holds a Bachelor of Accountancy with Honours from Nanyang Technological University and is an Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) with the Singapore Chartered Tax Professionals (SCTP), a Chartered Accountant of Singapore and a certified trainer with the Tax Academy of Singapore.
Mr Jonathan PaguntalanHead of Tax
Crowe Singapore
Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax)
Jonathan has over 23 years of tax experience in corporate tax compliance and income tax advisory work gained from both consulting and commercial sectors. He has extensive experience in Singapore corporate tax planning and compliance across a wide spectrum of clients from different industry sectors.
He is also experienced in tax advisory and consulting work which includes holding company structure reviews, tax incentive applications, cross border transactions, business transfers, due diligence reviews, mergers & acquisitions, transaction advisory, tax dispute resolution and tax risk and governance, among others, for multinational companies based in Singapore.
Throughout his career, Jonathan has led large tax compliance teams and overseen regional tax matters spanning several countries. He has also served as a lecturer for the IRAS Tax Academy, Income Tax Programme Level 2.
Jonathan is an Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax) with Singapore Chartered Tax Professionals and is a member of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Accountancy degree, conferred by the University of the Philippines. Jonathan has also completed the Chief Executive Officer Programme by the Singapore Management University.
Ms Angela LimPartner
ALN Chartered Accountants
Angela has over 16 years of professional experience in taxation. She is currently the Chairman for the Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia, Southern branch. Angela was previously with KPMG, mainly handling tax audit cases for corporate clients including local public listed companies and foreign multi-national corporations. Angela subsequently joined a MNC and manages the Company’s direct tax, indirect tax and transfer pricing affairs for APAC. Angela is actively involved in various tax engagements concerning corporate and individual tax planning strategies/schemes, handling tax audits by the Malaysia and Singapore Inland Revenue and Royal Malaysian Customs, transfer pricing, inbound investments and cross border transactions.
Mr Wong Wen TakChief Executive Officer
Grant Thornton Malaysia (Johor)
Wen Tak started his career with PwC London, in audit and assurance and subsequently, he worked as a Senior Internal Auditor for G4S PLC, primarily responsible for the Asia, Africa and Middle East region, reporting directly to the Head of Internal Audit in London. In 2009, he joined his family practice – M.S. Wong & Co, which he managed and oversaw a period of significant growth and capability building until the firm merged with Grant Thornton Johor operations in 2018.
His expertise spans several specialized industries, including manufacturing, construction, property development, agriculture, and software businesses. He has also undertaken due diligence reviews for mergers and acquisition exercises and acted as reporting accountant for initial public offerings and reverse takeover exercises.
In his personal capacity, he is serving as an independent, non-executive director and Head of the Audit Committee in Gromutual Berhad, a company listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia. He is also the current Chair of the Johor Regional Committee of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (“MIA”). He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Economics and Management) from Oxford University, Fellow Member of ICAEW and is an Approved Company Auditor.
Ms Ng Fie Lih Partner - Corporate Tax, Johor
KPMG Malaysia
Fie Lih has extensive experience advising local and international clients on tax compliance. Her portfolio of clients covers a broad range of industries including manufacturing for industrial and consumer markets, electronics, building, construction and real estate.
Working with multi-national corporations and local public listed companies, she also has considerable experience in corporate income tax, stamp duty, withholding tax, real property gains tax, tax audits and tax due diligence.