The Revenue Department has revealed that it is in the process of making adjustments to the personal income tax structure which, if approved by the Ministry of Finance, will come into use in 2017.
Commenting on the personal income tax restructuring policy, Revenue Department Director-General Prasong Poontaneat said officials are currently reviewing and amending related laws, believing the process will be completed within the first quarter of this year. Afterwards, approval will be sought from the Finance Ministry in order for the changes to officially take effect within the 2017 tax year.
Under the new structure, the amount of deductible tax for each person will increase while the maximum collection rate of 35 percent at present will be reduced to 30 percent. The minimum taxable income will also be raised, allowing people earning less than 30,000 baht per month to be exempted from tax.
In regard to the recent tax break given to holiday shoppers, Mr Prasong affirmed that it has been met with positive feedback from the public. He elaborated that even though the measure incurred a revenue loss of about 5 billion baht on the government, it has significantly boosted the collection of value-added tax as spending in some areas increased by as much as 20-30 percent.