BANGKOK, 5 May 2014, – The Excise Department has predicted that the upcoming World Cup, to be held during June 12th – July 13th, would boost public spending on alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages as well as cigarettes, enabling the department to collect at least an additional 1 billion baht in revenues.
According to Mr. Somchai Poonsawad, the Director General of the Department, the department will step up its inspection of pubs, bars, and several commercial public venues in order to prevent consumption of illegal booze and cigarettes. He pointed out previous statistics, which clearly showed that consumption of the goods surged during the World Cup season.
The aggressive measures are aimed at purging the market of excise laws violators and encouraging illegal alcoholic beverage and cigarette producers to enter the tax system. Mr. Somchai said the strict policies would also indirectly protect consumers from low quality alcoholic beverage and cigarettes, which post more dangerous side effects on consumers than the genuine ones.
The Director General also urged residents to report any illegal production or trading of goods subjected to excise taxes to the department’s 1713 hotline around the clock.
