BANGKOK, 6 Mar 2015 – Deputy Prime Minister M.R. Pridiyathorn Devakula told press members that the Cabinet would grill the new land and house tax collection scheme within the next 2 weeks, while expecting its promulgation in 2 years’ time.
M.R. Pridiyathorn briefly explained that the new scheme would collect tax starting from 0.1% of the land price, from the owner of a land with building. He added the tax for land without a construction would be slightly higher than before, and the tax for land with residential building would be as much as that of annual vehicle tax.
He expected the new bill would be promulgated within the next 2 years. In the meantime, the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, or GISDA, needs to survey the entire area and constructions in the country while the Treasury Department should work out prices of land in different parts of the country.
As for a hike in the Value Added Tax, the Deputy Prime Minister said there is no indication of the hike for the moment, adding that the necessity of the move may be negated if the Government implements the new land and house tax collection scheme. However, he said the amount of tax collected from February would also contribute to the decision.
M.R. Pridiyathorn admitted that the amount of tax collected last month may be lower than that of January, but expressed his confidence that the figure would be higher than the one in the same period last year by 7-8%.
He said the number signals an improvement in public spending, despite the falling Consumer Confidence Index last month.
