The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
To ensure fair trade practices, the Finance Ministry of Thailand plans to collect VAT for imported goods sent via postal services irrespective of their value, while maintaining the exemption from import duties.(Photo: bangkokpost.com)
Bangkok (VNA) – The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduledto commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Lavaron Sangsnit said thatimported goods currently sent via postal services are exempt from import dutiesand VAT if the importers declare the cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value ofeach item as less than 1,500 THB (40.49 USD) apiece.
However, low-priced goods from China are floodingthe market, creating an unfair advantage as domestic producers are subject totaxes.
To ensure fair trade practices, the Ministry of Finance plans to collect VAT for imported goods sent via postal servicesirrespective of their value, while maintaining the exemption from import duties.
A source from the Ministry of Finance who requested anonymitysaid the threshold for exempted goods must not include prohibited items.Each country sets its own threshold based on economic conditions. ForThailand, the threshold was previously 1,000 THB but was adjusted in 2018 to1,500 THB per item.
Every year, more than 30 million parcels were imported into Thailand, with more than half claiming to be items with a CIF value notexceeding 1,500 THB.
Online platforms selling goods from China import a largequantity of low-priced goods in container loads, each containing tens ofthousands of items. This poses a significant challenge and requires aconsiderable amount of time if each box needs to be opened to assess taxes asproposed by the Ministry of Finance. Given this, customs officials are consideringappropriate methods for tax collection on low-priced goods./.
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To ensure fair trade practices, the Finance Ministry of Thailand plans to collect VAT for imported goods sent via postal services irrespective of their value, while maintaining the exemption from import duties.(Photo: bangkokpost.com) 
