Tax Collectors Recruited To Refill Coffers: Interview

[webfact]

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Tax collectors recruited to refill coffers

Wichit Chaitrong

The Nation

Tanusak

Unclear where 2,300 extra staff will dig up revenue

BANGKOK: -- The Revenue Department wants to recruit 2,300 tax collectors and invest Bt2 billion in the IT system as part of the Finance Ministry's search for more income to compensate for the corporate tax cut and other populist schemes.

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

The ministry is also pushing the Government Lottery Office (GLO), Thailand To-bacco Monopoly (TTM) and Playing-cards Factory to market their products in the growing Asean market.

It would be great if a small investment in the department's human resources and IT could bring high returns, he said. The estimated budget for the new staff is about Bt400 million a year.

However, the department should not try to go after small businesses such as food stalls or street vendors, like noodle soup vendors, he said.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

Revenue chief Satit Rungkasiri has said he would focus on the emerging e-commerce trade, which is currently operating under the department's radar.

If the department had a better-computerised system to monitor online transactions, it could boost tax collections, he said.

The Finance Ministry is under pressure to increase tax revenue or reduce the budget burden since the corporate income tax cut to 23 per cent this year from 30 per cent and then to 20 per next year will result in foregone taxes of over Bt100 billion during the course of three years from 2012-14.

The almost zero-per-cent tax on diesel has also resulted in revenue losses of Bt100 billion per year. The tax breaks for the first-car scheme will slash over Bt30 billion from revenue in the next few years.

The recent sin tax hike for cigarettes and liquor is expected to bring in only a little more than Bt13 billion in extra revenue a year.

The ministry has ruled out a raise in the value-added tax rate although many economists have suggested increasing VAT from 7 per cent at present, a relatively low rate, to 8-10 per cent.

Another source for more revenue is the profits of state enterprises, which have to transfer part of their annual earnings to the state's coffers.

Tanusak said that he had asked the executives of GLO, TTM and Playingcards Factory to market their products in Asean countries as the region would become a single economic community by 2015.

Imported cigarettes have gained a market share of up to 20 per cent, which is worrisome.

"Premium imported cigarettes used to thrive in the local market. Now cheap products from other Asean countries have started to enter our market," he said.

The GLO should also be able to sell more lottery tickets in neighbouring countries. Thai lottery tickets have gained popularity in the border cities of Laos and Myanmar.

By early next year, these three state enterprises should have detailed plans for how to sell more products in Asean, he added.

-- The Nation 2012-08-27

[Ricardo]

The government has no liquidity/cashflow problems, despite increasing spending on flood-recovery & delivering on 'pre-election' promises, but if there were to be difficulties, then increasing exports of playing-cards will help fix them ?

Meanwhile the recent increase in tax on cigarettes won't have the common-elsewhere effect, of boosting the 'transit trade' in smuggled-goods, coming to a street-corner near you shortly ?

[dcutman]

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

So this guys knows he needs 2300 more people to collect 157 billion.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

But really have no idea where to find the new revenue, but knows the exact amount he can collect.

Interesting

[Moruya]

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

So this guys knows he needs 2300 more people to collect 157 billion.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

But really have no idea where to find the new revenue, but knows the exact amount he can collect.

Interesting

The usual levels of analysis have been applied.

[Woodcaulk]

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

So this guys knows he needs 2300 more people to collect 157 billion.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

But really have no idea where to find the new revenue, but knows the exact amount he can collect.

Interesting

Will he be issuing these 2300 "collectors" jack-boots and clubs right off?

[moe666]

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

So this guys knows he needs 2300 more people to collect 157 billion.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

But really have no idea where to find the new revenue, but knows the exact amount he can collect.

Interesting

Will he be issuing these 2300 "collectors" jack-boots and clubs right off?

Red Shirts

[Pib]

Maybe tax collectors should replace traffic police on Bangkok roads....here's your tax ticket....please pay it at your local tax office to get your drivers license back. Unfortunately, this idea would just result in even more unlicensed drivers on the roads.

[chotthee]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

[Reasonableman]

Crisis management = first create a financial crisis, then run around desperately like a headless chook trying to find a solution, when clearly the solution is to spend more money.

[OzMick]

Shouldn't that be untax the rich, cloth-ears. And the recent and proposed taxes will hit hardest on the poorest, as regressive flat taxes always do.

[JurgenG]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

100% agree with you.

Tax the poor and freebies for the rich, that's the way to go !

Hey Yingluck, show us your birth certificate !

Woops, wrong thread ...

[Reasonableman]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

100% agree with you.

Tax the poor and freebies for the rich, that's the way to go !

Hey Yingluck, show us your birth certificate !

Woops, wrong thread ...

Yeah, back to the "agricultural" resort with ya! Oops wrong thread

[WhizBang]

Here's an idea... Instead of implementing a corporate tax cut, declare that idea was a mistake and announce no corporate tax cuts, but an increase to 35% over the next 3 years.

Now, not only will you not have the revenue loss due to giving your buddies a tax break, but you would also have an increase in tax revenue due to the tax increase. AND, you would not need to hire an additional 2300 tax collectors.

Just a thought

[Pseudolus]

Oh dear me. This means another 30 forms to fill in each month and another day at the RD.

"We're not making much money. I know, lets increase bureaucracy by hiring a few thousand more people, build a few buildings to house them in and the IT system for them as well. Then we can make every (especially those EVIL farangs) jump through lots more hoops and pay us more money and hope that we bring in more money that we have spent".

Nice solution.

Or, they could go through the Police, Army, state owned businesses, and politicians and all the HiSo families, find out exactly how much they have received from bribery, graft and extortion in the last year and tax that.

[JurgenG]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

100% agree with you.

Tax the poor and freebies for the rich, that's the way to go !

Hey Yingluck, show us your birth certificate !

Woops, wrong thread ...

Yeah, back to the "agricultural" resort with ya! Oops wrong thread

[madmitch]

Marketing playing cards?:

They cost 250 baht a pack in Thailand and about 25 baht in Cambodia or Myanmar.

Don't think that one is going to run.

Why not just follow all the nearby countries and legalise gambling? Casinos are huge money earners.

[KireB]

Maybe an idea to raise the entrance fees to national parks for foreigners. Call it Amazing Thailand Tax (ATT). The price is just too low at the moment, the world class Samet Islands are only 400 baht.

[scorecard]

"If the proposal is approved, the Revenue Department assures that it could collect Bt157 billion more tax revenue in the first year and then increase this to Bt200 billion per year after three years of implementation," Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lek-uthai said in an interview last week.

So this guys knows he needs 2300 more people to collect 157 billion.

"The proposal has not yet made it clear enough where it could find more tax revenue, so I will ask the department to come up with a more concrete plan," he said.

But really have no idea where to find the new revenue, but knows the exact amount he can collect.

Interesting

The usual levels of analysis have been applied.

Well maybe their remit is to seek out the black economy folks who aren't paying tax.

Here's an examle - a family friend in Bkk runs a very large footpath 'restaurant' she has 20 staff, she's got a big following and all tables pretty much full from 06.00 to about 21.00. She takes home at least 4,000bBaht a day clear profit.

Her sister has a similar set-up and takes home about 3,000 clear profit a day. They work hard, they make good money. Good luck to them.

Both ladies regularly take their families on shopping trips to Singapore and Hong Kong.

Obviously neither of them pay tax, and they brag about it.

And there are plenty of street vendors on Silom Road and many other locations who make big money. My Thai son has a friend who operates several stalls on Silom and on Sukhumvit. The guy has already bought a big condo (says it's 90% paid for) and has a Honda Accord and a pick up truck. He works hard, but doesn't pay tax.

Does anybody believe the 2,300 new tax collectors will ever approach these people? Political suicide!

So who will they target?

(And there are of course thousands of food / other street vendors who just survive and are genuinely well below the tax threshhold.)

[OzMick]

Marketing playing cards?:

They cost 250 baht a pack in Thailand and about 25 baht in Cambodia or Myanmar.

Don't think that one is going to run.

Why not just follow all the nearby countries and legalise gambling? Casinos are huge money earners.

Most of the price of playing cards in Thailand is TAX, and playing cards are a restricted import with an allowance of 20 cards (not packs) per person.

[timewilltell]

My vote is to scrap Income Tax completely. Introduce a layered VAT system with the necessary tax inspectors to rigorously impose it. All food - zero rated. Then various levels of taxation on luxury items - the more luxurious the better. That way no one can avoid paying tax as everyone has to spend. The poorest get their necessities free of tax and the richest people who spend the most pay the most tax.

Simple and effective!

[belg]

you have to spend to fill some people's pockets off course

why not 10% VAT

how much would that bring it ?

it would surely make your bill easier everywhere ... 10% service charge + 10% VAT

[dcutman]

My vote is to scrap Income Tax completely. Introduce a layered VAT system with the necessary tax inspectors to rigorously impose it. All food - zero rated. Then various levels of taxation on luxury items - the more luxurious the better. That way no one can avoid paying tax as everyone has to spend. The poorest get their necessities free of tax and the richest people who spend the most pay the most tax.

Simple and effective!

Are you an American Republican?

How do you figure the rich pay more in VAT?The rich are such a small percentage of the population. The vast majority of Thai barley have 2 bahts to rub together at the end of the month. So other than food the poor still have to pay the same tax on the same items that the rich have to buy. Of course not as extravagant or designer brand.

[dcutman]

Marketing playing cards?:

They cost 250 baht a pack in Thailand and about 25 baht in Cambodia or Myanmar.

Don't think that one is going to run.

Why not just follow all the nearby countries and legalise gambling? Casinos are huge money earners.

Most of the price of playing cards in Thailand is TAX, and playing cards are a restricted import with an allowance of 20 cards (not packs) per person.

Playing cards might not bring in that much, but it is the cigarettes i think is TTM's big bread winner I believe it is the same state owned company. and that is suggested being marketed in other countries.

But I think many other countries are making and marketing cigs cheaper than Thailand, so thats not gonna work anyway.

[Kilgore Trout]

However, the department should not try to go after small businesses such as food stalls or street vendors, like noodle soup vendors, he said.

Somehow, I think that is the first thing they will do...I mean who else are they going to go after?, TIT

[vijer]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

I think you have it backwards. They cut the corporate tax rate (read they gave money to the wealthy) and they increased the tax on liquor and cigarettes (read the took money from the poor) and then the discussion continues to talk about increasing the VAT tax (sales tax) which effects the poor and low income people the most. So either your comprehension skills are very low or you are a typical lying republican.

[h90]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

100% agree with you.

Tax the poor and freebies for the rich, that's the way to go !

Hey Yingluck, show us your birth certificate !

Woops, wrong thread ...

You know that with the birth of Yingluck there are also some heavy rumors.....

[Soutpeel]

Very easy to increase revenue for the goverment, and dont have to employ any further tax inspectors, increase the visa fees for farangs

[asiawatcher]

Do any of these people sitting in positions of power of Government Departments have an IQ larger than their shoe size?

[Mosha]

Yingluck is a robin-hood govt.

Tax the rich and freebies for the poor.

As John McEnroe would have said ......

[Arkady]

The government has no liquidity/cashflow problems, despite increasing spending on flood-recovery & delivering on 'pre-election' promises, but if there were to be difficulties, then increasing exports of playing-cards will help fix them ?

Meanwhile the recent increase in tax on cigarettes won't have the common-elsewhere effect, of boosting the 'transit trade' in smuggled-goods, coming to a street-corner near you shortly ?

Don't forget about the potential for exporting Thai lottery tickets and Krong Thep cigarettes.