Thailand’s Digital Boost: Crypto Trading Becomes VAT-Free, Here Are The Details

According to local reports, Thailand’s Finance Ministry has announced new measures to boost its digital asset industry and push the country to solidify its position in the nascent industry.

Crypto Trading Exempt From 7% VAT Requirement

As reported by the Bangkok Post, Thailand revealed its new move to develop the country’s digital asset industry. The Finance Ministry announced the exemption of value-added tax (VAT) on digital assets trading “to push Thailand towards becoming a digital asset hub.”

The Finance Ministry suspended the requirement to pay 7% VAT on income derived from cryptocurrency and digital token trading to ease tax rules on digital assets.

According to the report, Paopoom Rojanasakul, secretary to the finance minister, expressed the Ministry’s desire “to promote digital assets as a new alternative tool for fundraising.”

Finance Ministry has announced the exemption of VAT on trades in digital assets, to boost capital mobilisation through digital assets, in an attempt to make Thailand regional digital asset hub, says Paopoom Rojanasakul, secretary to Finance Minister. #ThaiPBSWorld #Thailand #VAT

— Thai PBS World (@ThaiPBSWorld) February 6, 2024

The VAT exemption, effective since January 1, 2024, has no expiration date. Additionally, digital investment tokens transferred to a third party will remain exempt from VAT, as they have since May 14, 2023.

Previously, the VAT exemption on digital asset trading was only applicable to authorized digital asset exchanges, and it has now extended to include brokers and dealers under the regulation of Thailand’s Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to the report, this adjustment on tax rules is based on the authorities’ hope that the measure will “support the growth of the digital asset industry in Thailand as well as provide the necessary boost to facilitate the country’s digital economy in the near future.”

Thailand’s Amendments To Crypto Regulation

Thailand, a country with one of the highest crypto adoption rates, has strict regulatory rules and licensing requirements for crypto assets, creating a challenging landscape for businesses and investors.

As previously reported, after the US SEC approved Spot Bitcoin ETFs last month, Thailand’s regulatory agency announced it didn’t plan to approve the investment products soon.

However, Thailand’s SEC expressed that it would continue to monitor the development and operations of the ETFs to develop further policy guidelines that could allow the launch of crypto-based investment products in the future and suit Thailand’s regulatory landscape.

Most recently, Thailand’s Finance Ministry and SEC announced they are amending the 2019 Securities and Exchange Act to enable digital investment tokens to resemble securities “to have an adequate and appropriate mechanism for overseeing digital assets.”

The amendments to the country’s regulatory rules and tax policies could facilitate Thailand’s efforts to expand its digital asset market in the region.