Prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told reporters on Friday that his government aimed to broaden the tax base in the new fiscal year from October, bringing in an inheritance tax among other changes.
In his first speech to parliament, Prayuth noted only 20 million people out of Thailand’s population of about 68 million pay taxes.
“The tax collection in this new fiscal year will be broadened to new tax bases to boost revenue to the country and promote fairness. This will include an inheritance tax and land tax,” he said.
“The tax issue is aimed at promoting fairness, with a limited impact on low-income earners. Those tax (benefits) that favour the rich will be terminated,” he said.
In a two-hour policy speech that was short on detail, Prayuth gave no indication on how long he would need to push through reforms he plans for Thailand.
He has previously said that a general election could be held late next year, after a reform of the electoral system.
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru Group wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg
