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Thai Govt Decides to Lift Tobacco, Alcohol Tax
Aiming to increase revenue and discourage consumption of "unhealthy products', the Thai government on Tuesday decided to raise tax level on tobacco and alcohol goods.
The decision, which was made at the weekly cabinet meeting, will add nearly 3 billion baht (68 million US dollars) to the revenue in the current fiscal year to September 30, according to Finance Minister Somkid Jatusripitak.
He said on Nation TV Channel after the cabinet meeting that the lift, which is due to take effect from Wednesday, will raise alcohol tax by two to 10 percent and increase tobacco tax by 4.5 percent.
The move is also aimed to cut consumption and imports of those "harmful products", said the finance minister.
However, the revenue from the tax increases will be added into the government's main budget and will not be poured into any specific projects as media earlier suggested, he said.
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