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 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.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Lavaron Sangsnit said that imported goods currently sent via postal services are exempt from import duties and VAT if the importers declare the cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value of each item as less than 1,500 THB (40.49 USD) apiece.
However, low-priced goods from China are flooding the market, creating an unfair advantage as domestic producers are subject to taxes.
To ensure fair trade practices, the Ministry of Finance plans to collect VAT for imported goods sent via postal services irrespective of their value, while maintaining the exemption from import duties.
A source from the Ministry of Finance who requested anonymity said the threshold for exempted goods must not include prohibited items. Each country sets its own threshold based on economic conditions. For Thailand, the threshold was previously 1,000 THB but was adjusted in 2018 to 1,500 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 not exceeding 1,500 THB.
Online platforms selling goods from China import a large quantity of low-priced goods in container loads, each containing tens of thousands of items. This poses a significant challenge and requires a considerable amount of time if each box needs to be opened to assess taxes as proposed by the Ministry of Finance. Given this, customs officials are considering appropriate methods for tax collection on low-priced goods./.
