Thailand’s Ministry of Finance has expected to present a new tobacco tax structure for Cabinet approval in the last two weeks of September, to be effective from October 1st.
Excise Department Director-General Lavaron Sangsnit said the new tobacco tax structure will raise more than THB60 billion in revenue per year and will not be lower than the current revenue from the cigarette tax.
The tax rate was lowered to 20% for cigarette packs priced THB60 or less. This rate will be used until September 30th. The old tax rate was 40%, effective from October 2017. Many cigarette companies decreased their retail price to lower than THB60 to reduce the tax burden.
Meanwhile, many parties have called for an increase in the tax of roll-your-own (RYO) cigarettes, to be closer to the cigarette tax, as it is lower by 6 to 7 times. The price of RYO cigarettes is THB10-12 per carton. (NNT)
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