Deputy Finance Minister Santi Prompat has proposed a study to the Ministry of Finance for the reduction of import tax for EVs (electric vehicles) to make electrified cars more affordable in Thailand.
He declared that the study was based on the Chinese tax system for electric vehicles. For example, China has a no import tax policy for any electric vehicle. If the vehicles come from countries with an economic agreement with China, the import tax is still applied if they come from countries like the United States or Germany.
There is also a topic in the studies that discuss preparing and upgrading the infrastructure to be more suitable for electric vehicles, including more charging stations, a better road network, a more efficient way of generating electricity that might be able to meet the demand of electric vehicles, etc. He also encouraged Thais looking for electric vehicles to consider adding solar panels to their homes to effectively charge their vehicles.
“The reduction of import tax on electric vehicles should encourage people to use them more, but at the same time, it should not affect the production of cars in the country. Because the government expects Thailand to be a production base of electric vehicles for export Therefore, the adjustment of the import tax on electric vehicles must be balanced on both sides, both the user and the manufacturer. And the import tax on electric cars from each country will not necessarily be the same. but will be more balanced In the future, the price of electric cars will certainly be lower,” said Santi Prompat.
He expressed his anticipation to explain the studies in more detail at the next government cabinet discussion, which will also include Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and the Ministry of Interior.
