PUBLISHED ONAugust 17, 2026 4:45 AMBYSean LerA Singaporean woman was on Aug 5 fined $11,400 by the State Courts for the fraudulent evasion of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on jewellery purchased in Malaysia without declaration.
Nabilah Binte Jaafar Al-Kathiri, 32, pleaded guilty to the charge and paid the fine.
The Court heard that when the offences were committed, Nabilah was residing in Malaysia and ran an online business selling gold and titanium jewellery to customers in Singapore.
She is said to have advertised her goods on platforms such as Facebook and Telegram, and sourced the jewellery from various shops in Malaysia before bringing them into Singapore for delivery to her customers.
Nabilah was ordered by the Court to forfeit 19 pieces of jewellery and other case exhibits seized during her arrest, including bags and boxes used in the commission of the offence.
According to Singapore Customs, the jewellery was valued at about $10,152 and the GST evaded amounted to about $946.
Nabilah arrived in Singapore as passenger in a Malaysia-registered vehicle at Woodlands Checkpoint on April 5.
At that time, she had 23 pieces of jewellery with her.
When asked by Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers if she had anything to declare, Nabilah claimed she had nothing to declare.
This, despite her knowing that GST was payable on the jewellery she was bringing into Singapore.
ICA search and examination officers subsequently uncovered 23 pieces of jewellery belonging to Nabilah, packed in 22 parcels inside a polymer bag in the boot of the vehicle.
She was then arrested by Singapore Customs and the items were seized.
Investigations subsequently revealed that 19 of the 23 jewellery items were intended for commercial sale for profit, with the remaining intended as personal gifts.
Singapore Customs reminded travellers in its statement that evasion of duties and/or GST at checkpoints is a serious offence.
It reiterated that such revenue collected helps maintain a level playing field for law-abiding local businesses in Singapore.
Those found guilty of evading duty or GST could be fined up to 20 times the amount of duty and GST evaded.
They could also face imprisonment of up to 12 months.
[[nid:736735]]
