Inheritance tax rate slashed from 10 to 5 per cent: Sommai

[webfact]

INHERITANCE TAX
Inheritance tax rate slashed from 10 to 5 per cent: Sommai
The Nation

The inheritance tax will now be 5 per cent, not the 10-per-cent level proposed in the inheritance tax bill.

BANGKOK: -- Finance Minister Sommai Phasee said yesterday that the planned tax cut would follow the majority vote of the National Legislative Assembly's special committee.

"Most committee members voted for a 5-per-cent tax. At this rate, according to the Revenue Department's director-general, about Bt3 billion of revenue from this tax will be collected annually," he said.

The previous revenue target was Bt10 billion.

The NLA also raised the tax threshold on inheritances from Bt50 million in the original bill to Bt100 million, he said. Estates worth less than the threshold will be exempt from tax.

Sommai also said that, according to the joint committee on anti-corruption, three investment projects worth about Bt10 billion would be included in the Integrity Pact - Upper Case - to ensure transparency of the procurement process.

The three projects are the Bt7.4-billion machinery procurement of the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly, Bt1.3-billion X-ray machine procurement of the Customs Department and Bt1-billion investment of the Public Relations Department.

Five more projects are also planned for inclusion in the Integrity Pact.

Under the pact, all state and private units related to a procurement are required to sign the pact to ensure no bribery and information disclosure in all processes.

The two pilot projects are the pro-|curement of a NGV bus fleet by the |Bangkok Mass Transit Authority and the construction of the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand's Blue Line electric rail route.

"There have been no reports of procurement irregularities for both pilot projects and there has been progress, reflecting the government's serious intention to get rid of corruption in state agencies," said Sommai, who chairs the anti-graft committee

Based on the Integrity Pact, two to five observers holding no interest in a procurement deal will follow it and report on |its progress and transparency to the committee.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Inheritance-tax-rate-slashed-from-10-to-5-per-cent-30256833.html


-- The Nation 2015-03-27

[bobmac10]

Guess which social group will benefit most from this?

[madmitch]

Just shows that whatever Government is in power, the real power lies with the so-called elite.

[Tatsujin]

I wonder how many of those "at the top" are expecting some large inheritance's some time very soon ... ?

[Rod Wallop]

Just hand it over before you croak

[Chris Lawrence]

Sounds as though these guys are really working? Working on their pockets even after they are gone.

[smedly]

completely disagree with this, should have been left alone or even adjusted the other way, the good PM should step in here and earn a few browny points - this is just wrong in so many ways

[Emster23]

Paying the piper. Meanwhile, discussion about increasing VAT (which hits low income people hardest) goes on....

[Srikcir]

"The two pilot projects are the procurement of a NGV bus fleet by the [bMA] ..... There have been no reports of procurement irregularities for both pilot projects"

REALLY?

BMTA required a total of 21 interested bidders who earlier bought bidding documents but only two submitted the documents with proposals for the first lot of 489 NGV buses. BMTA acting director Mrs Pranee Sukrasorn said although the bus bid drew only two firms, the bidding process would continue. No information has been released as to who the two bidders are - that does not promote TRANSPARENCY. Furthermore, citing the urgency of the bus procurement project, Mrs Pranee said in case of only one bidder being qualified to enter the final bid, it will be accepted [as] a winner but the BMTA will negotiate the lowest price with it. So the bidding process is discarded!

Selection of one bidder out of a pool of two bidders borders on sole source procurement. This forced procurement should not take place until there is an adequate number of bidders to assure FAIR MARKET PRICES.The idea that the government will "negotiate" a price with the only bidder is a procurement irregularity!

And since when did urgency trump procurement procedures? If inadequate number of bidders respond, CANCEL the purchase! Anything less implies conflict of interest and possible collusion by the government.

[Srikcir]

Combined with high exemptions the inheritance tax is hardly worth the effort. And without a gift tax to prevent wealthy from transferring assets prematurely to their heirs, the inheritance tax can be avoided completely with a little basic planning. In any case the law should be effective Jan. 1, 2016 to allow estate planning that means its revenues won't be available until beginning of the next fiscal year or October 2016.

The only good news is that once it becomes law, it should be easier to lower the exemptions and raise the rate to increase revenues. No other administration has been able to pass this tax so it remains as to whether the wealthy have weighed with their influence on this bill to further reduce its effectiveness.

[rubl]

Sounds as though these guys are really working? Working on their pockets even after they are gone.

The last time an Inheritance Tax Law was pondered was under the Surayut Government. They dropped it when is was made clear to them that such important issues should be left to elected governments. Now again an appointed government is working on an ITB and again people complain.

Obviously having an Inheritance Tax Law is very, very undemocratic, something only a junta appointed government would consider

[rubl]

Paying the piper. Meanwhile, discussion about increasing VAT (which hits low income people hardest) goes on....

only following the example of really democratic countries and governments it would seem.

[DP25]

Disappointing, but even this watered down version would have NEVER been passed under any sort of Thaksin government. Nor would the proposed property and land taxes. The only sort of tax reform we ever got from them was lowering the corporate tax rate from 30% to 20%

The rates hopefully will be raised later, but getting them to exist at all is a huge step forward for Thailand.

[rubl]

"The two pilot projects are the procurement of a NGV bus fleet by the [bMA] ..... There have been no reports of procurement irregularities for both pilot projects"

REALLY?

BMTA required a total of 21 interested bidders who earlier bought bidding documents but only two submitted the documents with proposals for the first lot of 489 NGV buses. BMTA acting director Mrs Pranee Sukrasorn said although the bus bid drew only two firms, the bidding process would continue. No information has been released as to who the two bidders are - that does not promote TRANSPARENCY. Furthermore, citing the urgency of the bus procurement project, Mrs Pranee said in case of only one bidder being qualified to enter the final bid, it will be accepted [as] a winner but the BMTA will negotiate the lowest price with it. So the bidding process is discarded!

Selection of one bidder out of a pool of two bidders borders on sole source procurement. This forced procurement should not take place until there is an adequate number of bidders to assure FAIR MARKET PRICES.The idea that the government will "negotiate" a price with the only bidder is a procurement irregularity!

And since when did urgency trump procurement procedures? If inadequate number of bidders respond, CANCEL the purchase! Anything less implies conflict of interest and possible collusion by the government.

Absolutely!

This project has been set up by the late Samak initially in 2008 and can hardly be urgent. As all know we've got lots more cars on the roads to help people travel, Bangkok's population was decreased by the military. Protesters of various colours went home.

What's the hurry?

[Commerce]

Vomit smiley.

Oh! Chan lerm

[Thai at Heart]

More policy on the hoof.

[Johpa]

I wonder how many of those "at the top" are expecting some large inheritance's some time very soon ... ?

Already exempt.

[jerojero]

Given this affects the elite by far the most, I'm surprised it's still in the pipeline for new law.

[issanaus]

Given this affects the elite by far the most, I'm surprised it's still in the pipeline for new law.

There was an interesting article in the BKK post on the 27th about the financial holdings of politicians -

[BestBitterPhuket]

Terrible policy! Goes to show that the government only cares about the rich elite. I guess many of the rich men in Thailand are old now, so it's about time to slash the inheritance tax.

[Pib]

With the inheritance tax now being neutered and since huge inheritance amounts are usually based on land holdings, the on again, off again land/building property tax proposal which was "almost" killed off by the PM last week but apparently the Finance Minister is keeping it on life support by dropping the taxing of buildings/residences portion but continued taxing of land, the great majority of NLA member are big land holders. I expect the NLA will also neuter or finally kill off this proposal by just letting it rot away in committees review.

[rubl]

With the inheritance tax now being neutered and since huge inheritance amounts are usually based on land holdings, the on again, off again land/building property tax proposal which was "almost" killed off by the PM last week but apparently the Finance Minister is keeping it on life support by dropping the taxing of buildings/residences portion but continued taxing of land, the great majority of NLA member are big land holders. I expect the NLA will also neuter or finally kill off this proposal by just letting it rot away in committees review.

"the great majority of NLA member are big land holders." Are they?

[fatjack]

completely disagree with this, should have been left alone or even adjusted the other way, the good PM should step in here and earn a few browny points - this is just wrong in so many ways

The 10% tax on the General's B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) land "inherited" from Daddy would have been B60,000,000 (that's sixty million baht) but now it is down to B30,000,000 (that's thirty million baht) - one more 5% cut in this tax should do the trick - the tax due by the good General on his B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) windfall - B0 (that's zero baht).

Anyone under any doubt as to the sort of country these coup happy elites want Thailand to be?

[Neurath]

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"The two pilot projects are the procurement of a NGV bus fleet by the [bMA] ..... There have been no reports of procurement irregularities for both pilot projects"

REALLY?

BMTA required a total of 21 interested bidders who earlier bought bidding documents but only two submitted the documents with proposals for the first lot of 489 NGV buses. BMTA acting director Mrs Pranee Sukrasorn said although the bus bid drew only two firms, the bidding process would continue. No information has been released as to who the two bidders are - that does not promote TRANSPARENCY. Furthermore, citing the urgency of the bus procurement project, Mrs Pranee said in case of only one bidder being qualified to enter the final bid, it will be accepted [as] a winner but the BMTA will negotiate the lowest price with it. So the bidding process is discarded!

Selection of one bidder out of a pool of two bidders borders on sole source procurement. This forced procurement should not take place until there is an adequate number of bidders to assure FAIR MARKET PRICES.The idea that the government will "negotiate" a price with the only bidder is a procurement irregularity!

And since when did urgency trump procurement procedures? If inadequate number of bidders respond, CANCEL the purchase! Anything less implies conflict of interest and possible collusion by the government.

Absolutely and entirely hypothetically speaking - that is, in a fictional world in no way referencing the real world of government procurement in this country - I suppose it is actually possible and possibly actual that bid evaluation committees could work together with favored suppliers to ensure that a bid evaluation committee is faced with 15 non-compliant (and so rejected) bids out of 16. Of course, it would be unethical and morally irresponsible (not to mention dangerous) to cite any actual cases as this would embarrass the country and this is a far greater sin than the collusive practices themselves and the consequent drainage of public funds into private hands.

[rubl]

completely disagree with this, should have been left alone or even adjusted the other way, the good PM should step in here and earn a few browny points - this is just wrong in so many ways

The 10% tax on the General's B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) land "inherited" from Daddy would have been B60,000,000 (that's sixty million baht) but now it is down to B30,000,000 (that's thirty million baht) - one more 5% cut in this tax should do the trick - the tax due by the good General on his B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) windfall - B0 (that's zero baht).

Anyone under any doubt as to the sort of country these coup happy elites want Thailand to be?

and without the annoyingly good work of the NLA and the push from the Minister of Finances there're wouldn't even be such tax

[Pib]

With the inheritance tax now being neutered and since huge inheritance amounts are usually based on land holdings, the on again, off again land/building property tax proposal which was "almost" killed off by the PM last week but apparently the Finance Minister is keeping it on life support by dropping the taxing of buildings/residences portion but continued taxing of land, the great majority of NLA member are big land holders. I expect the NLA will also neuter or finally kill off this proposal by just letting it rot away in committees review.

"the great majority of NLA member are big land holders." Are they?

I expect NLA members who are generally well-off and heavily dominated by senior level retired and active military & police officers who always seem to have plenty of building/land assets. For example let's look at a 28 Mar 15 The Nation article below identifying the land assets owned by former politicians....I expect current NLA politicians have similar land assets....which means people of their means would be the primarily targets of a land tax.

LAND TAX

Group pushes govt on land tax amendment

The Nation March 28, 2015 1:00 am

Local Action Links, a non-profit organisation that aims to protect farmers' land rights, has urged the government to ensure fairness in landholding in Thai society, suggesting that a land tax is the most appropriate fiscal measure to achieve this.

Tax exemptions should be made for farmers and other people who own small plots of land with low value, it says.

According to a study by the organisation, the 284 Pheu Thai Party members who held seats in the House of Representatives before the military seized power last year owned 31,797 rai (5,087 hectares) of land worth Bt8.27 billion, followed by the Democrat Party's 167 MPs with 27,074 rai worth about Bt6.07 billion. All 530 MPs owned 8,388 plots of land totalling 68,765 rai and worth about Bt18.09 billion.

Anchalee Tephabutra, a member of the Democrat Party, held 207 plots totalling 4,115 rai worth Bt337.44 billion.

Democrat Pracha Potipipit held 67 plots on 3,830 rai worth Bt142 million.

The third-biggest landowner among MPs in the last House was Malinee Inchat, a member of the Pheu ThaiParty, with 148 plots on 2,492 rai worth Bt302 million.

Amnuay Kangpla, another former Pheu Thai MP, held 2,084 rai worth Bt60.18 million.

Democrat Sopa Kanjana held 2,046 rai worth Bt280.91 million, and Pheu Thai's Chuchat Hansawat had 2,026 rai worth Bt149 million.

Local Action Links director Pongthip Samranjit said the organisation supported the proposal for a land and building tax, believing it would reduce inequality in society.

However, the government has to revise the proposal to reduce its impact on lower- and middle-income Thais before putting it into law, she said.

The bill to establish a real-estate tax is already undergoing revision after the Finance Ministry weathered a lot of criticism over the original proposal.

[Gunna]

Paying the piper. Meanwhile, discussion about increasing VAT (which hits low income people hardest) goes on....

VAT hits middle income as most poor Thais don't pay VATas there are so many exemptions

Any person or entity who regularly supplies goods or provides services in Thailand and has an annual turnover exceeding 1.8 million baht is subject to VAT in Thailand

Certain activities are exempted from VAT. Those activities are :

1. Small entrepreneur whose annual turnover is less than 1.8 million baht;
2. Sales and import of unprocessed agricultural products and related goods such as fertilizers, animal feeds, pesticides, etc.;
3. Sales and import of newspapers, magazines, and textbooks;
4. Certain basic services such as:
   • transportation : domestic and international transportation by way of land;
   • healthcare services provided by government and private hospitals as well as clinics;v
   • educational services provided by government and private schools and other recognized educational institutions;
5. professional services : Medical and auditing services, lawyer services in court and other similar professional services that have laws regulating such professions;
6. income from business, commerce, agriculture, industry, transport or any other activity not specified earlier.
7. Cultural services such as amateur sports, services of libraries, museums, zoos;
8. Services in the nature of employment of labour, research and technical services and services of public entertainers;
9. Goods exempted from import duties under the Industrial Estate law imported into an Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and under Chapter 4 of the Customs Tariff Act;
10. Imported goods that are kept under the supervision of the Customs Department which will be re-exported and be entitled to a refund for import duties; and
11. Other services such as religious and charitable services, services of government agencies and local authorities.

[Pib]

Paying the piper. Meanwhile, discussion about increasing VAT (which hits low income people hardest) goes on....

VAT hits middle income as most poor Thais don't pay VATas there are so many exemptions

Poor Thai's don't pay VAT???!!! The VAT they are talking about is the 7% VAT you pay on many items you buy from stores like at Lotus, Big C, Makro, etc...etc...etc. Yes, there are some VAT exemptions for certain businesses/activities and products but generally when the poor, middle class, or rich go to a store to buy something they will be paying a 7% VAT on most items. And even in the outdoor markets and small stores/shops where no receipts are given a higher VAT raises prices as those markets/stores must pass their increased tax cost of goods/services along to their customers. Oh, yea, don't forget the VAT charge on electric, water, cell phone, internet, TV, etc....etc...etc., bills.

[fatjack]

completely disagree with this, should have been left alone or even adjusted the other way, the good PM should step in here and earn a few browny points - this is just wrong in so many ways

The 10% tax on the General's B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) land "inherited" from Daddy would have been B60,000,000 (that's sixty million baht) but now it is down to B30,000,000 (that's thirty million baht) - one more 5% cut in this tax should do the trick - the tax due by the good General on his B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) windfall - B0 (that's zero baht).

Anyone under any doubt as to the sort of country these coup happy elites want Thailand to be?

and without the annoyingly good work of the NLA and the push from the Minister of Finances there're wouldn't even be such tax

Only there won't be a tax meaning the NLA aren't doing good work, they're just collecting their paycheques and giving office jobs to their unqualified wives and kids.

Prayuth has nothing to fear, 0% of B600,000,000 is 0

[rubl]

completely disagree with this, should have been left alone or even adjusted the other way, the good PM should step in here and earn a few browny points - this is just wrong in so many ways

The 10% tax on the General's B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) land "inherited" from Daddy would have been B60,000,000 (that's sixty million baht) but now it is down to B30,000,000 (that's thirty million baht) - one more 5% cut in this tax should do the trick - the tax due by the good General on his B600,000,000 (that's six hundred million baht) windfall - B0 (that's zero baht).

Anyone under any doubt as to the sort of country these coup happy elites want Thailand to be?

and without the annoyingly good work of the NLA and the push from the Minister of Finances there're wouldn't even be such tax

Only there won't be a tax meaning the NLA aren't doing good work, they're just collecting their paycheques and giving office jobs to their unqualified wives and kids.

Prayuth has nothing to fear, 0% of B600,000,000 is 0

Wishful thinking.

It would seem there will be a tax. The hight of the tax and possibly scales are under discussion.

Still Prayut has nothing to fear as he already sold the land he and his direct family inherited and the 'inheritance tax law' will apply to all NEW cases AFTER the law has become accepted and published in the Royal Gazette.