Bangkok: In a 10-month crackdown on illegal excise goods, 32,812 cases have been apprehended. The government is pushing ahead with its crackdown on illegal excise goods. In the first 10 months of fiscal year 2026, 32,812 cases have been apprehended, with tobacco-related offenses accounting for 20,160 cases.

According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Ploytalay Laksmisangchan, Deputy Spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office, revealed that the government is moving forward with intensified measures to prevent and suppress illegal excise goods nationwide, especially the smuggling and sale of illicit cigarettes, which remain the most frequently detected illegal product and cause significant revenue loss to the state, impacting businesses operating legally.

Ms. Ploytalee stated that the government, through the Excise Department of the Ministry of Finance, has integrated cooperation with security agencies and related organizations to enhance investigation, intelligence gathering, and proactive operations to continuously intercept smuggling of tax-evading goods, in accordance with government policy and the directives of Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Anutin Charnvirakul. As a result, nationwide crackdowns on excise law violations during the 10-month fiscal year 2026 (October 1, 2025 - July 31, 2026) resulted in the arrest of 32,812 cases, yielding fines totaling 901.82 million baht, with an estimated total fine of 4,508.18 million baht.

Tobacco-related offenses remain the most common type of product with 20,160 cases, or over 61% of all cases. Fines totaled 609.39 million baht, with an estimated total fine of 4,376.97 million baht. A total of 4,862,367 packs of tobacco were seized.

"Through the integrated operations of relevant agencies, the suppression of illegal goods has become more effective. Several significant cases involving the seizure of illegal goods have been recorded in various areas nationwide, covering all types of excise tax products. The government is committed to improving the efficiency of state revenue collection while simultaneously cracking down on smuggling and tax evasion, in order to create fairness for businesses that comply with the law and protect the national interest."