BANGKOK, THAILAND – Thailand’s government under Anutin Charnvirakul ruled out a near-term value-added tax hike, prioritising economic recovery over higher state revenues.
Government rules out near-term VAT increase
Deputy Bhumjaithai Party leader Siripong Angkasakulkiat said there were no plans within the next two to three years to raise the value-added tax (VAT) from 7 percent to 10 percent. He explained that the administration and its economic team first aimed to revive an economy marked by stagnation rather than expand revenue through higher taxes.
Recovery takes precedence over higher tax burden
According to Siripong, the priority was not to increase the tax burden while households and businesses were still under multiple forms of economic pressure. He said long-term ideas to boost state income and strengthen the confidence of international rating agencies had been discussed, but these were explicitly framed as concepts for the distant future.
“A review of taxes will only be considered when people feel that the economy is already doing well and when the recovery is reflected in a broad circulation of money across all social groups.”
said Siripong Angkasakulkiat, deputy leader of the Bhumjaithai Party.
Call for trust after Senate tax reform push
Siripong urged the public to trust the government’s economic team and stressed there would be no short-term measures that increased citizens’ tax burdens before the economy was truly ready. His remarks followed a move by the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs, Finance and Fiscal Policy, which proposed a comprehensive reform of the national tax structure at a specialist seminar on 12 February 2026.
Senate warns of “boiling frog” demographic risks
The Senate committee warned of a “boiling frog syndrome”, describing gradual harm from demographic change, falling birth rates and the shift to a “super-aged society”. It cautioned that this raised the risk of Thailand becoming economically old before achieving sufficient prosperity.
To stabilise public finances, the panel proposed raising VAT step by step from 7 to 10 percent, by one percentage point per year, to generate an estimated 200 to 300 billion baht in additional revenue annually.
Higher VAT tied to pensions and savings accounts
Under the Senate concept, the extra 3 percentage points of VAT would flow into individual savings accounts. This was intended to support an increase in the monthly old-age allowance to 3,000 baht.
At the same time, the committee warned that public debt could rise to 69.78 percent of GDP by 2028, approaching the legal ceiling of 70 percent, while the national budget had already been in deficit for more than a decade.
Lotteries, market taxes and travel levy examined
Beyond VAT, the Senate panel floated additional revenue options, including a Thai Receipt Lottery designed to motivate citizens to request receipts for tax purposes. It also suggested introducing a 0.11 percent tax on stock sales after decades of exemption.
The committee said further study should be given to a tax on gold trading and the revival of a departure levy of 1,000 baht per person on air travel by Thai nationals. The government, however, continued to emphasise that it was currently refraining from new financial burdens on the public.