Thailand’s new land and buildings tax bill to see considerable changes

Thailand’s new land and buildings tax bill to see considerable changes

BANGKOK, 1st June 2017 (NNT) - The Government Housing Bank has organized a seminar to discuss what the public can expect from the new land and buildings tax law, which will come into effect at the beginning of 2019. 

Financial Policy Advisor of the Fiscal Policy Office at the Finance Ministry, Pornchai Thiraveja, told participants of the seminar that the National Legislative Assembly is currently considering varying the maximum value of “main” residential properties that will enjoy a tax waiver to much lower than the current ceiling of 50 million baht. 

Mr. Pornchai said that the decision to reduce the value was conceived after a survey found that over 90 percent of residential properties in Thailand are worth no more than five million baht. 

Concerning the proposed 5-percent tax collection on what are considered windfall gains from land and buildings near electric rail routes and expressways, Mr. Pornchai said that a feasibility study is still underway. 

Mr. Issara Boonyoung, honorary president of the Housing Business Association, said that the government should make clear the conditions applying to the utilization of land for different purposes in order to make sure correct tax rates are applied. 

He also asked the government to make sure that only licensed property developers with specific permits are able to enjoy the 0.05-percent property tax rate during the first three-year period of grace, during which their projects are under construction.

 

-- nnt 2017-06-01