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The Thai Government has recently announced a series of measures to help companies affected by the economic consequences of the coronavirus and to combat the outbreak.
Such measures will hopefully curtail the impact that the corona virus has had in the Thai economy and see businesses and entrepreneurs bounce back as soon as possible.
Below you may take a look at these measures:
Tax aid
Withholding Tax – Down to 1.5% from 3% from April to September 2020 upon payment for services;
Social Security – Monthly contributions down to 4% of gross salary from 5% and capped at THB 600 per employee per month (usually capped at THB 750 per employee per month) from March to August 2020;
Value-Added Tax (VAT) – Quicker refunds: online refunds would be made within 15 days and refunds from tax branch offices would be made within 45 days;
Payroll expenses- Triple tax deduction on payroll expenses paid by SMEs* to employees earning up to THB 15,000 per month and provided the no. of employees is no less than that on 31/12/2019 from April to July 2020;
Interest expenses- 1.5x tax deduction on interests incurred from soft loans for SMEs from April to December 2020;
Investments in Super Savings Fund (Government Fund) – Up to THB 200,000 deduction from assessable income for both individuals and companies;
Donations – If made between March 5, 2020 and March 5, 2021:
– Individuals may deduct up to 10% of assessable income;
– Companies may deduct up to 2% of net profit before taxes;
– Donations of assets (equipment, computers, etc.) will be exempt from VAT.
* SME or Small and Medium Enterprise refers to the following companies:
– Turnover not exceeding THB 500 million / fiscal year;
– No. of employees not exceeding 200;
– Fiscal year ending on 30/09/2019 or before.
In addition to the measures outlines above, the Department of Business Development – Ministry of Commerce (DBD) announced that companies unable to hold their Annual General Meeting (AGM) within the legal deadline, due to the coronavirus outbreak, may submit an explanation letter to the DBD stating the reasons why the AGM may not be held, to which the DBD shall answer on a case by case basis.
Control measures
The Thai Immigration Bureau classifies countries affected by the covid-19 in two categories:
1. Disease Infected Zones: South Korea, China including Macao and Hong Kong, Italy, and Iran;
2. Ongoing Local Transmission Areas: France, Spain, Germany, USA, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden,Denmark, UK and Japan for some areas [Hokkaido, Tokyo, Aichi, Wakayama, Kanagawa, Chiba, Okinawa, Kyoto and Osaka]
A foreigner entering Thailand from either a disease infected zone or an ongoing local transmission area shall abide by the following rules:
1.Obtain a medical certificate issued not over 3 days before the departure date;
2.Be covered by a valid health insurance (the health insurance certificate shall be presented);
3. Self-quarantine for 14 days;
4. Download an application on their smartphone to let the government track their movements and ensure they self-quarantine.
Do not hesitate to contact us if you need any assistance at contact@orbis-alliance.com