These eight original questions cover the taxation mathematics section of SPM Mathematics. Use the fictional table below for questions 1 to 6, and work on paper before opening each answer.
| Chargeable income (RM) | Rate | Tax on this band (RM) | Tax up to the top of the band (RM) |
|---|---|---|---|
| First 10 000 | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| Next 20 000 | 4% | 800 | 800 |
| Next 20 000 | 9% | 1 800 | 2 600 |
| Above 50 000 | 15% |
Practice questions
Question 1. Find the tax on a chargeable income of RM25 000.
Answer
The first RM10 000 gives RM0. The next 25 000 − 10 000 = RM15 000 is taxed at 4%: 15 000 × 0.04 = RM600.
Question 2. Find the tax on a chargeable income of RM42 000. A student answers RM3 780. What did the student do?
Answer
RM800 is the tax on the first RM30 000. The remaining RM12 000 at 9% is RM1 080, so the tax is RM1 880.
The student calculated 42 000 × 9%, charging the whole income at one rate.
Question 3. Find the tax on a chargeable income of RM65 000.
Answer
The first RM50 000 gives RM2 600. The remaining RM15 000 at 15% is RM2 250.
Tax = 2 600 + 2 250 = RM4 850.
Question 4. Sara has a gross income of RM48 000.
She claims reliefs of RM8 000, RM2 500 and RM1 500. Find her tax before any rebate.
Answer
Total relief = 8 000 + 2 500 + 1 500 = RM12 000. Chargeable income = 48 000 − 12 000 = RM36 000.
Tax on the first RM30 000 is RM800, and the extra RM6 000 at 9% is RM540. Tax = RM1 340.
Question 5. Sara also receives a rebate of RM150. Find her tax payable.
Answer
The rebate is taken from the tax: 1 340 − 150 = RM1 190.
Taking the rebate from income instead would give a chargeable income of RM35 850 and a tax of RM1 326.50. That is the wrong order, and the answer is wrong.
Question 6. A person in the 9% band compares a relief of RM1 000 with a rebate of RM1 000. Which saves more tax, and by how much?
Answer
A relief lowers income, saving 1 000 × 9% = RM90. A rebate lowers the tax directly, saving RM1 000.
The rebate saves RM910 more.
Question 7. A house has an annual value of RM9 600. The yearly property tax is 7% of the annual value, paid in two equal instalments. Find each instalment.
Answer
Yearly tax = 9 600 × 0.07 = RM672. Each instalment = 672 ÷ 2 = RM336.
Question 8. A price including 6% sales tax is RM424. Find the price before tax.
A student subtracts 6% of RM424 and gets RM398.56. Explain the mistake.
Answer
The correct price before tax is 424 ÷ 1.06 = RM400, and the tax is RM24.
The student took 6% of the total, but the 6% applies to the smaller pre-tax price. Checking 398.56 × 1.06 = 422.47, which is not RM424.
If you got some wrong
Errors in questions 1 to 3 point to calculating a tax amount from supplied data. Questions 4 to 6 link to distinguishing taxable income and relief.
Questions 7 and 8 are covered in checking numerical property and consumption tax examples. The timed practice session builder can mix them with other topics.
If the same slip returns across questions, online one-to-one Mathematics tuition lets a teacher work on it with you.