On January 25, 2019, a source from the Ministry of Finance revealed that the ministry has instructed the Excise Department to adhere to the revenue collection target for the fiscal year 2019, as stated in the budget document, amounting to 622 billion baht. The department is required to report monthly tax collection figures in comparison to the targets outlined in the budget document.



          Previously, the Excise Department indicated that the Ministry of Finance's reduction of the tax collection target for fiscal year 2019 to 584 billion baht was not feasible, as the collection targets in the budget document are legally binding. Whether the targets can be met or not will require justification for the reasons behind any shortfall.




          For the latest tax collection by the Excise Department in December 2018, which was the third month of the fiscal year 2019, 52.8 billion baht was collected, falling short of the budget target by 1.57 billion baht or 2.90%. This shortfall was primarily due to lower-than-expected revenues from oil, beer, and tobacco, which collectively missed the target by approximately 4 billion baht. However, revenue from vehicle taxes exceeded estimates by about 2 billion baht.


          Additionally, tax collection in November 2018 surpassed the budget target by 19 million baht, while in October 2018, it fell short by 9.86 billion baht, resulting in a total tax collection for the first quarter of fiscal year 2019 being approximately 10 billion baht below target.


          "In the past, the Excise Department reported tax collections based on the reduced targets set by the Ministry of Finance for the entire year, resulting in a first-quarter collection of 52.1 billion baht, which was 225 million baht or 0.43% above the target. The excess revenue came from vehicle taxes (1.5 billion baht), beer taxes (214 million baht), and liquor taxes (569 million baht). However, the collections that fell short of the target included oil taxes (919 million baht) and cigarette taxes (1.18 billion baht), which do not reflect the collection targets established in the budget document," the source stated.

 

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