15/07/2008 (Xinhua) - Malaysia began to impose a windfall profit levy, effective on Tuesday, on a total of 3,661 oil palm plantations in the country, but exempt smallholders.

The levy imposed will be at three percent of the profit made for every one metric ton of oil palm fruit (FFB) in plantations in Peninsular Malaysia and at 1.5 percent rate for plantations in East Malaysia's Sabah and Sarawak states, said Rahman Abd Hamid, director general of Malaysia's Customs Department.

The profit will be based on the market price which will be the monthly average national price of crude palm oil as set by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board, minus 2,000 ringgit (625 U.S. dollars), he told local reporters.

The Customs Department will be sending out notices in three days to all the related plantations, he added.

Last Friday, the Malaysian government announced that all smallholders owning 4O hectares and below of plantation land will be exempted from paying the tax effective on Tuesday.