Insights

As the world’s economic engine slows, countries are moving to stimulate their economies by increasing government spending and cutting taxes to inject cash into the domestic economy. Such actions are intended to boost the economy, and prevent it from stalling.

Now that the political climate in Thailand has stabilised, the government is looking to speed up its Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with key trading partners. Plans include resuming negotiations with the EU and UK post Brexit, as well as talks to join major multilateral FTAs. To be successful in these negotiations, Thailand needs to keep in mind the consequences that non-tariff barriers will have on improving trade as a whole.

This is the first article for Experience and Insights, a series of interviews and articles where I discuss best business practices and insights – particularly in matters of finance – with successful thought leaders based in Bangkok. Watewiboon Pumipue is the Founder and CEO of Talad Invoice, Thailand’s first on-line invoice factoring platform. Watewiboon is also a member of the Thai Fintech Association and has worked closely with various government and public agencies such as the Bank of Thailand, the Securities Exchange Commission, the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society on the latest developments in rules and regulations on the emerging fintech industry in Thailand. I recently met with Watewiboon to discuss his business as well as some of the challenges new Fintech companies face in Thailand.

On 28 February, the National Legislative Assembly approved the Personal Data Protection Act (“PDPA”). The Act is aimed at regulating the lawful collection, use, or disclosure of personal data that can directly or indirectly identify a natural person – but does not apply to the data of a deceased person. This Act also provides a framework how to process the personal data. The PDPA, which in many ways resembles a similar initiative in Europe (the General Data Protection Regulation, known as GDPR), requires a data controller (a natural person or a legal person), who has the authority to decide to collect, use, or disclose the personal data, to follow guidelines in an effort to protect each data owner.

In April, the Bangkok Post reported a curious case of Thailand forcibly removing a US national’s “seastead” residence on the grounds that it compromises Thai sovereignty. “Seasteading” is described as the making of a home in a new, previously uninhabited place at sea, and is associated with the concept of autonomy, self-sufficiency and a frontier lifestyle. This is usually achieved by building residential structures just beyond the fringes of a country’s territorial waters in an attempt to remove the structures from any governmental control.

1Q 2019 has gone by and we are fast approaching the mid-year mark. Thus far, the Thai economy has demonstrated mixed results, with modest expectations for the months ahead. The World Bank has cut down Thailand’s growth projection from 3.9% to 3.8% amid an anticipated global slowdown. The Bank of Thailand appears to agree and trimmed its growth outlook from 4.1% to 3.8%. At the same time, the Bank cut down export growth estimates from 7% to 3%. The performance of the country’s largest banks has also left some room for improvement, as they posted declining net earnings in the first quarter of this year.

TFRS 16 largely retains the definition of a lease in TAS 17 but changes the guidance on how to apply it. This refinement was necessary, as the removal of ‘off-balance sheet’ operating leases created a greater need for distinguishing between a lease and a service contract.

January 2019 marked the one-year anniversary of the inception of the US - China trade war. What started with the US increasing import tariffs on Chinese solar panels and washing machines, later spiralled into retaliatory and counter-retaliatory tariff measures between the two countries. Throughout much of 2018, the global business community looked on with apprehension as the two largest economies escalated their trade dispute, which, at its peak, tallied 360 billion USD in combined tariffs. At the close of 2018, the world breathed a sigh of relief when the US and China called for a temporary truce and agreed to resume trade negotiations.

The Labor Protection Act (No.7) has been officially published in the Royal Gazette on 5 April 2019, and will be in effect on 5 May 2019. The essentials of the amendments are set out in this article.

On 26 March 2019, the Cabinet approved draft Royal Decrees revoking all tax benefits granted by the Thai Revenue Department (“TRD”) to the following Board of Investment (“BoI”) regimes: 1. Regional Operating Headquarter (ROH); 2. International Headquarter (IHQ); and 3. International Trading Center (“ITC”)

January 2019 marked the one-year anniversary of the inception of the US - China trade war. What started with the US increasing import tariffs on Chinese solar panels and washing machines, later spiralled into retaliatory and counter-retaliatory tariff measures between the two countries. Throughout much of 2018, the global business community looked on with apprehension as the two largest economies escalated their trade dispute, which, at its peak, tallied 360 billion USD in combined tariffs. At the close of 2018, the world breathed a sigh of relief when the US and China called for a temporary truce and agreed to resume trade negotiations.

In this article, we explain how taxpayers could leverage on Advance Pricing Agreements (“APAs”) to guard against the uncertainties of tax compliance in an era of increasingly complex tax rules.

In an ever-increasing integrated global economy, businesses have been establishing their footprints in various locations across the continents. These so-called “multi-national corporations” or “MNCs” have sophisticated supply chains and business platforms comprising of dozens, if not, hundreds of entities, all of which are directly or indirectly related to one another. Under this corporate umbrella, the affiliates would trade and transact with one another.

In July 2018, the trade war between the United States and China went live. The war of words which saw threats, posturing, and “nudges” to impose tariffs on goods traded between the United States and China became a reality.

The Chinese authorities have released proposed changes to tax law that may significantly impact how international assignees and long-term expats in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are taxed. From changes to residency, personal taxation, payroll withholding and tax efficient benefits for assignees, the potential changes are far reaching.

Since its inception, the digital realm has been an economic “wild west.” Laws and regulations written in the “brick and mortar” world often do not apply or are, for all practical purposes, unenforceable in the digital counterpart.