“Our laws just can’t catch up with market trends”, Suraswadi said. “Current rules put the responsibility on the customer to come to us to pay the value-added tax. But in reality, it’s difficult to collect”, Suraswadi added.
Legislation related to VAT on e-commerce sales may reach Parliament by year-end, Suraswadi said, adding that the government is also planning to tax Thailand-derived earnings of internet platforms.
Thailand plans to require internet platforms ensure a 7 percent consumption tax is collected and sent to the government, Suraswadi said. A separate digital services levy could be imposed on the Thailand-derived earnings of such firms, he said. The rate has not been set yet.
Back in 2018, Indonesian finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati called on G-20 countries to make a joint effort to tax Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Uber, Lazada and Grab. The statement was made at the recent G-20 meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina. According to the Indonesian minister, taxes should be paid by the companies based on economic significance, as opposed to based on decisions by the companies' central or branch offices. Therefore, she called for international cooperation to fight for the right for governments to collect fair taxes, particularly from tax evaders.
