TIN number Malaysia: formats, where to find yours, and why e-Invoices fail
Written by the Lejar team
A TIN is the Tax Identification Number LHDN issues to every taxpayer, and since 1 August 2026 it is validated on every e-Invoice submission along with the Business Registration Number. A mismatch now stops the invoice rather than passing quietly, which is the most common reason a submission that worked in July started failing in August. It is not the only possible cause, so check the rejection reason rather than assuming. This guide covers the formats, where to find yours, and what a rejection actually means. Verified against the MyInvois SDK release notes, the e-Invoice Specific Guideline v4.7 (20 April 2026) Appendix 1, and the LHDN General FAQ updated 5 May 2026, current as of 16 August 2026.
What a TIN is, and how it differs from a BRN
A TIN, or Tax Identification Number, is issued by LHDN and identifies you as a taxpayer. A BRN, or Business Registration Number, is issued by SSM and identifies the company as a registered entity. They are different numbers from different agencies, and an e-Invoice carries both when the counterparty is a registered business. Not every counterparty has a BRN. An individual buyer gives a MyKad or MyTentera number instead, a foreign buyer or supplier may hold neither, and government and exempt institutions are handled through a general TIN. Do not hold up an invoice demanding a BRN from someone who has none. Most rejections come from treating the two numbers as interchangeable, or from using a BRN in its old format.
TIN formats by taxpayer type
A TIN is a prefix followed by digits, up to 14 characters in total including the prefix. Individuals now use the IG prefix. If you were issued an older SG or OG number, the same digits are used with IG in front, so SG123456789 is entered as IG123456789. Companies use C. Other entity types have their own prefixes, listed below.
| Category | Prefix | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | IG | Replaces the older SG and OG prefixes. Same digits, new prefix. |
| Company | C | The Sdn Bhd or Bhd entity itself. |
| Other entity types | CS, D, F, FA, PT, TA, TC, TN, TR, TP, J, LE | Partnerships, associations, trust bodies, cooperatives, and similar. Check your own number in MyTax rather than inferring the prefix. |
Where to find your TIN and your BRN
- Your TIN: log in to MyTax at mytax.hasil.gov.my. It is shown against your taxpayer profile.
- Your BRN: this is the registration number from SSM. New-format numbers are the 12-digit registration number, not the old style with a suffix letter.
- Your buyer's TIN, and their BRN if they are a registered business: you have to ask them, and the responsibility for keeping it current with LHDN sits with them, not you.
The general TINs used on e-Invoices
Some e-Invoices do not have a specific identified counterparty. LHDN publishes fixed general TINs for those cases, and using the wrong one is a common cause of rejection. These are from Appendix 1 of the Specific Guideline.
| General TIN | Used for |
|---|---|
| EI00000000010 | General Public. The buyer's TIN on a consolidated e-Invoice, and a Malaysian individual who gives only a MyKad or MyTentera number. |
| EI00000000020 | Foreign buyer or foreign shipping recipient, including exports where the foreign TIN is not available. |
| EI00000000030 | Foreign supplier, including imports where the foreign TIN is not available. Used on self-billed e-Invoices. |
| EI00000000040 | Government, state government and state authority, government authority, local authority, statutory authority and statutory body, and exempt institutions with no TIN. |
One clarification, because the table above describes how the LHDN system works rather than what Lejar does. Self-billed e-Invoices are an LHDN mechanism where the buyer issues the document. Lejar does not produce self-billed e-Invoices today, so EI00000000030 is listed here for completeness of the official list, not as a Lejar capability.
What changed on 1 August 2026
LHDN announced on 12 June 2026 that TIN and Business Registration Number validation would begin on 1 August 2026, applied through the Validate Taxpayer TIN API. Before that date a wrong or stale number could pass through. From that date the pair is checked, and a mismatch fails validation and stops the invoice being issued. This is a master-data change rather than an invoice-logic change, which is why it caught out businesses whose invoice templates were otherwise correct.
Two follow-on changes matter for planning. Enhanced field validation, covering date formats and character-length limits on several fields, went into the MyInvois production environment on 15 August 2026. A further batch takes effect in production on 23 October 2026, raising the maximum length of amount fields to 26 digits and capping the PASSPORT ID type at 12 characters. If you integrate directly rather than through software, those are the dates to watch.
Why a submission fails validation, and how to fix it
- Where the buyer is a registered business, its TIN and BRN do not belong to the same taxpayer. This is the most common failure. Ask the buyer to confirm both from their own MyTax profile.
- The BRN is in the old format. Old-style registration numbers fail against the new validation. Ask the buyer to update their record with LHDN.
- An individual TIN still carries the SG or OG prefix. Re-enter it with IG and the same digits.
- A general TIN is used where a specific one is required, or the wrong general TIN is used. Check the table above against the transaction type.
- The supplier TIN is missing. A consolidated e-Invoice cannot be built without it.
What Lejar checks, and what it does not
Being straight about this matters more than a marketing line. MyInvois e-invoicing is live in Lejar and free on every plan. When a submission is rejected, Lejar surfaces the outcome per document with the reason LHDN returned, naming the counterparty involved, so you can see which invoice failed and why rather than discovering it at year end. A supplier TIN is required before a consolidated e-Invoice can be built, and Settings has an e-Invoice readiness check for your own profile.
What Lejar does not do today is validate the format of a counterparty TIN before you submit. That check happens at LHDN. So the practical workflow is to collect TINs and BRNs correctly at the point you add a customer, rather than relying on the software to catch a typo on the way out.
Frequently asked questions
What is a TIN number in Malaysia?
A Tax Identification Number issued by LHDN that identifies you as a taxpayer. It is a prefix followed by digits, up to 14 characters in total, and it is required on e-Invoices.
What is the difference between a TIN and a BRN?
A TIN is issued by LHDN and identifies a taxpayer. A BRN is issued by SSM and identifies a registered business. An e-Invoice carries both, and they must belong to the same entity.
My TIN starts with SG or OG. Is it still valid?
Individuals now use the IG prefix. Keep the same digits and replace the prefix, so SG123456789 becomes IG123456789.
Why did my e-Invoice start getting rejected in August 2026?
TIN and Business Registration Number validation began on 1 August 2026 through the Validate Taxpayer TIN API. A mismatched or old-format number that previously passed will now fail validation.
What TIN do I use when the buyer is the general public?
EI00000000010, with the buyer name entered as General Public. It is also used for a Malaysian individual who provides only a MyKad or MyTentera number.
What TIN do I use for a government buyer?
EI00000000040, which covers government, state government and state authority, government authority, local authority, statutory authority and statutory body, and exempt institutions with no TIN.
Where do I find my TIN?
Log in to MyTax at mytax.hasil.gov.my and read it from your taxpayer profile.
Does Lejar check a TIN before submitting?
Lejar requires your own supplier TIN and runs an e-Invoice readiness check on your profile, but it does not validate a counterparty TIN format before submission. LHDN performs that check, and Lejar shows you the rejection reason per document.