BANGKOK, 20 January 2020: Thailand’s National Tourism Policy Board says a proposal to tax tourists THB300 when they enter the country will be used to rebuild tourism confidence.
Travel companies disagree. They believe the timing is way off when the tourism industry is on its knees and amid a second Covid-19 surge that has stalled domestic travel; the only remaining source of revenue.
One travel company’s CEO emailed TTR Weekly asking: “Have they finally lost their marbles?” Others confided that it was the worst possible time to extract additional cash from the few international tourists who might venture to Thailand.
“It plays into the hands of competitive destinations that will obviously benefit if they can demonstrate empathy with cash-strapped travellers,” another tour operator suggested.
To be fair the THB300 travel tax has been stewing on the board’s stove for years, six to be exact, and despite it gaining the green light last week there remain serious obstacles to negotiate before final approval. One is the collection process that has left the architects of the proposed tax in a constant muddle.
Would airlines add the travel tax to other fees and taxes included in the airfare? The answer is no unless there was a hefty commission on offer to make it worthwhile. Or would airports have to provide airport counters and queue channels for the thousands of tourists who in normal times jam Thailand’s gateway airports?
Local media latched on to the board’s announcement noting that it would take effect once the Royal Gazette publishes details of the ruling possibly later this month.
Arguments favouring taxing travellers suggest that a portion of the cash payment (The Bangkok Post claimed THB34) would cover a basic insurance package to cover medical emergencies incurred by tourists. Some of them abscond without settling their hospital bills. The remainder of the tax would support tourism marketing, management and development including the restoration of heritage sites.
Based on the latest Tourism Authority of Thailand forecast for 2021, the country could welcome at the most 10 million visitors up from around 6 million in 2020. The 2019 peak year, pre-Covid-19, registered just short of 40 million tourists. When you multiply the 2019 total by THB300 you have an enormous war chest for the government to tap, but Covid-19 changed all that. Today the arithmetic is not so compelling. Although THB3,000,000,000 should not be sneezed at, there is the risk that it could be perceived as the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back in the minds of cost-conscious tourists. They would shuffle off to other shores.
It’s a pity the board made the decision this month. It might hint of a mercenary mentality at play or a sneaky manoeuvre to get yet another tourism-related tax through the net while the industry is preoccupied. It is grappling with a financial crisis, mass closures of resorts and travel companies and a virtual travel lockdown in eight Thai provinces.
In four to five years from now when tourism is back in the driver’s seat support for a tourist tax might be forthcoming from travel trade circles. But until the watchword, “overtourism” returns to haunt us the national tourism board should put the pot back on the stove to stew for a few more years.
As as it stands the process of approval continues with a visit to the Office of the Permanent Secretary for Tourism and Sports where fee rules, collection and other administration matters require further scrutiny before the project goes to the Thai Cabinet for the final stamp of approval.
There is still, time for industry associations to lobby for sanity regarding all travel tax plans that might hinder recovery.
Seriously, I don’t believe any of this 300baht will be used for to support tourism marketing, management and development including the restoration of heritage sites. it will be for the government to use how they want to.
If 300 baht, tourists will pay 34 baht out 300 baht to cover medical insurance then why is the government asking for 100000 USD insurance coverage from tourists who wants to visit Thailand. If 34 baht is enough then why so much burden on tourists
Simple minds. Who the heck is in charge. Think there are far more important things to focus on.
The world is laughing at you Thailand. Well the ones that are even looking at you.
I don’t think anyone would mind a 300baht tax more, but Thailand’s infrastructure is deteriorating fast, zero money invested to make tourists, expats, and Thais feel happy and safe , but constantly milking everyone. The first thing the government should do is tackle the road deaths , over 20 000 dead a year, and that’s not counting the injuries and dying at a hospital ! Are they proud of being in front of most dangerous roads in the world ? It’s a worry every time you step into a car/bus/taxi wondering if you’ll get to your destination alive . After that, tackle corruption and double pricing , mostly the same thing . Tourists go on holiday for a safe holiday. Make travel insurance an obligation and stop filling your over flowing coffers for your own greed.
Typical Thai “ shoot yourself in the foot” mentality, you can always rely on them to defy logic and exacerbate an already dire situation and make it worse. They are past masters of this.
Thailand gets worse and worse.
I could understand if tourists would come without paying air ticket, hotels, restaurants, entertainment, tours, visa extensions, or long-stay visa at the consulate and much more, to ask this additional tax.
Maybe Thailand system should contribute to sustaining itself, otherwise, it becomes like the Thai girls that want to find a foreign husband to sustain the whole family members back at hometown….
The source of this additional money must come from internal sources not always from foreign tourists….
The thai government should start to have a dignity and shame themselves more and not thinking that they are the only holiday destination in this world…..
I fear the person who proposed this to the minister suffers from an empty brain
Terrible timing | terrible idea | terrible message
Unpaid tourist hospitals bills for emergency care and in some cases repatriation including deaths, was estimated at Bt 300m in 2019 with 39m tourists.
Since 2014 we’ve had 500, 100 and now 300 baht proposed.
Let’s not. Absorb it from revenue as an inevitable cost of tourism and move on.
Let’s focus on restarting, recovery and survival of our tourism industry.
Andrew J Wood
President
SKÅL INTL BANGKOK
The Thai authorities seem to forget that they already collect huge amounts of tax from every tourist in the form of the 7% VAT applied on all hotel, restaurant and shopping spending. A proportion of this VAT can and should be allocated to the avenues this tourist tax is intended for. Yet another tax is not the way to go.