Thailand: you can leave but you must pay ฿1,000 more. Departures tax hailed as the kiss of death

[Jiggo]

5 hours ago, Lee65 said:

From Chinamen for Chinamen.  It's a big club and you ain't in it.  

I know me too handsome 

[Blumpie]

HAAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!!!!!!!!

[CLUBBER]

What a bunch of primitive greedy little people these government clowns are????

[Lemsta69]

1 hour ago, vinci said:

yes i almost forgot about that too, if you're an oldy you should remember that, they did charge us already before we have to pay at the vending machine and then they included into your ticket, how are they going to justify charging another 1000

Again, the 700 baht international Passenger Service Charge is a fee levied by the Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited, not the Revenue Department.

 

The Revenue Department don't have to justify anything to anyone, well except their political backers I guess.

 

https://thailand.go.th/issue-focus-detail/002_021

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

This has been in the news for a couple of days now and it has been clearly stated in a number of articles that this tax would only have been applicable to Thai citizens and permanent residents.

 

Tourists, and those on non-immigrant extensions of stay, including non-immigrant O, OA and B visas, would not be affected at all by this departure tax.

 

It has also been clarified that the Revenue Department does not intend to impose this tax in any event.

 

Yet so many have gone on and on about how this would affect tourism and those on temporary extensions of stay.

 

For those of us who have been around for some time, we can remember when it was necessary to obtain a tax clearance certificate from the Revenue Department in order to leave the Kingdom if we had a work permit. I think this entailed paying a tax to the Revenue Department, but I don't recall the details. This requirement was waived about thirty years ago, but is technically still on the books. Nothing new, really.

[portlandtree]

I just read the comments here nothing will change their minds but it won’t pass anyways. So why not just offer the arrivals an incentive card of $1,000

[GameMaster]

You're top, Charoen !

 

[The Old Bull]

19 hours ago, Gknrd said:

"and prevent Thai people from spending excessively overseas"

 

It's called capital flight. 10-1 you will see laws put in place to stop the rich from transferring money out of Thailand. 

It won't be long now before things get really bad!  

But, you expats from the West don't have to worry. China will step up with a loan and help with the day to day direction of the government.

The rich have always run Thailand , unless there is a radical change of government nothing will happen to inconvenience them. Thaksin's biggest sin was to show poor people that their vote counted ,that's why they run him off .They claim it's for corruption but that has always been and still is, goes with the job.

[K2938]

22 hours ago, JayClay said:

Who in their right mind would be in favour of legislation that makes it harder to leave the country and spend time in foreign country in exchange for no tangible benefits...?

Maybe time to also introduce exit visas like in the former Soviet Union????

[JensenZ]

22 hours ago, bkk_mike said:

I remember, after paying the tax for myself, being volunteered as a good samaritan for a couple of other people on the same flight who didn't have their departure tax.

They swore blind they would pay me back once they got back to the UK. - I wasn't altogether surprised when they didn't though...

 

But yes - better if it's in the ticket prices, so it's not a shock to people as they leave the country - and other passengers aren't guilt-tripped into helping them out.

You'd feel guilty not helping out strangers who couldn't afford the tax? Really? It's their problem. People who cannot afford an extra 1000 baht shouldn't be travelling to far off countries. I can think of much more deserving chartities to donate 1000 baht to.

[Gilligan In Drag]

If they are stupid/insane enough to actually go through with this, well then if enough people refuse to pay they'll drop it. Just say no sorry, I haven't got 1000 baht. Or no I won't pay it, I have it right here, but no, what if i didn't have it then, eh, youre insane! What would you do, give me twenty years in prison and create and international incident about it?  Make a scene about missing your flight, chances are they'll just let you through to get rid of you. A lot of poorer travellers, say from India and Pakistan won't have the money, it will be a complete mess, they'll just get waved through more than likely. They are just artificially creating a hassle and if you want to get out of it you pay. not much different than if they started twisting your arm to the point of pain and you can either pay or endure the pain for another hour.

[RichardColeman]

Maybe they should put up the import tax on tanks, planes, subs, guns, bullets, jeeps, air force jets, military trucks, chinese made medals and ribbons............................ 

[zzzzz]

Thailand’s Revenue Department has no intention of imposing a departure tax on Thai nationals and permanent foreign residents travelling out of Thailand, as has been widely misunderstood.

Revenue Department Deputy Director-General Winit Wisetsuwannaphum said in a statement, issued yesterday (Sunday), that they are merely gathering public opinion about the proposed departure tax of 1,000 baht for air travel and 500 baht for land and sea travel, as part of a legal process, in line with constitutional requirements, to assess the impacts of the proposal.

 

https://www.thaipbsworld.com/no-plan-to-impose-departure-tax-on-outbound-thais-revenue-department/

[jacko45k]

12 minutes ago, zzzzz said:

Thailand’s Revenue Department has no intention of imposing a departure tax on Thai nationals and permanent foreign residents travelling out of Thailand, as has been widely misunderstood.

Why not... they have obviously so far been inept at performing their mandate of taxation to the limit, if people have enough money left to go on foreign forays shopping at Harrods

[sambum]

Nothing more to be said, really - except hopefully, like another "fund raiser" it will be constantly "temporarily suspended" 

[sambum]

8 minutes ago, sambum said:

Nothing more to be said, really - except hopefully, like another "fund raiser" it will be constantly "temporarily suspended" 

P.S. From today's post headlines:-

 

THE REVENUE Department denied it is going to start collecting 1,000 baht air departure tax from Thais and foreign residents with the current online public hearings on this issue only being held to comply with a key law, Matichon newspaper said.

 

You couldn't make some of these "turnarounds up"!  It is no wonder that a lot of people are very sceptical about the way that Thailand conducts its affairs

[berrec]

Me thinks!

 

[oxo1947]

On 5/8/2023 at 5:53 AM, loong said:

Do they realise that this 500 Baht tax at land borders will also reduce the numbers of people from neighbouring countries coming in on a short trip and spending money in Thailand?

I dont know if the locals will pay it loong, I know they dont pay the existing 500 Baht. My wife walks across the Lao Bridge a few time in a year to buy wine for me. & In Nong Khai the Lao girls who wander across to the "entertainment areas"  dont, It seems to be the same on the Cambo boarder. Of course I have to pay something like 1,500Baht just to get in Lao & now a 1,000 to leave Thailand.........guess I wont be visiting there much (at all) .

[Lemsta69]

2 hours ago, oxo1947 said:

I know they dont pay the existing 500 Baht

There is no "existing 500 baht"

[richard_smith237]

2 minutes ago, Lemsta69 said:

2 hours ago, oxo1947 said:

I know they dont pay the existing 500 Baht

There is no "existing 500 baht"

There is an ‘existing’ *700 baht Airport Tax on all international tickets - this tax is written into the cost of the ticket. 

 

 

I’m not sure about any tax to cross a land border.

 

 

 

(*I think it still 700 baht)

[champers]

3 minutes ago, Lemsta69 said:

There is no "existing 500 baht"

It is in the fare, previously paid in cash at airports.

[Lemsta69]

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

There is an ‘existing’ *700 baht Airport Tax on all international tickets - this tax is written into the cost of the ticket. 

 

 

I’m not sure about any tax to cross a land border.

 

 

 

(*I think it still 700 baht)

It's not a tax it's a Passenger Service Charge and is paid to one of the various airport corporations, not the Revenue Department. It's only 700 baht at some of the airports.

 

https://thailand.go.th/issue-focus-detail/002_021

[Lemsta69]

3 minutes ago, champers said:

It is in the fare, previously paid in cash at airports.

Except it's not 500 baht and it's not imposed by the Revenue Department ????

 

https://thailand.go.th/issue-focus-detail/002_021

[richard_smith237]

21 minutes ago, Lemsta69 said:

It's not a tax it's a Passenger Service Charge and is paid to one of the various airport corporations, not the Revenue Department. It's only 700 baht at some of the airports.

 

https://thailand.go.th/issue-focus-detail/002_021

Thanks for the explanation... 

 

... That said, even the article you quoted calls it an Airport Tax but also states that it has a legal name ‘Passenger Service Charge’...   And also, the article states "the person who bought the air ticket can claim the tax refund” if flights are cancelled etc... so it seems the ‘common terminology’ is ‘Airport Tax...

 

That Said... Thailand is looking at loads of ways to profit from tourists (in and out) and in this case with the utterly preposterous idea of taxing departures in attempt to prevent Thai’s from ‘leaving’.. .that idea is just plan wrong... 

 

However, many countries also charge departure tax... so, if Thailand does so, then whats the difference ?

In this case ‘charge anyone’ and then put some of that use towards the Medical Burden of Tourists and so tourist can receive emergency medical treatment at public hospitals...   Better optics for Thailand thats for sure.

[Lee65]

On 5/8/2023 at 9:59 PM, Lemsta69 said:

Again, the 700 baht international Passenger Service Charge is a fee levied by the Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited, not the Revenue Department.

But, but ... Airports of Thailand, a state-owned airport operator, is 70% controlled by the finance ministry.

 

AOT lost a lot of money the last couple of years due to the global plandemic hysteria.

 

 

Edited May 11, 2023 by Lee65

[jacko45k]

15 hours ago, oxo1947 said:

& now a 1,000 to leave Thailand..

I thought it was just fear mongering and unlikely to happen,

[zzzzz]

14 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

There is an ‘existing’ *700 baht Airport Tax on all international tickets - this tax is written into the cost of the ticket. 

 

 

I’m not sure about any tax to cross a land border.

 

 

 

(*I think it still 700 baht)

Currently ; ZERO departure tax on land borders>
700 baht departure tax for EVERYONE included in air tickets

 

MUCH ado about nothing:
 

Quote

THE REVENUE Department denied it is going to start collecting 1,000 baht air departure tax from Thais and foreign residents with the current online public hearings on this issue only being held to comply with a key law, Matichon newspaper said.

Latest is 1,000 baht for THAI's and Permanent residents ONLY>Flying 
500 baht on land borders>


This would severely affect OUTBOUND thai tourism!! and wont ever pass >

Edited May 12, 2023 by zzzzz