Bangkok: The Secretary-General of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), Danucha Pichayanant, has announced that the current situation does not support raising the Value Added Tax (VAT) to 10%. He emphasized that even though raising taxes is a part of the original plan, the present conditions do not justify such a move.

According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Danucha Pichayanant stated that he has not yet scheduled a meeting to discuss raising the public debt ceiling, as he is waiting to first discuss the matter with Ekniti Nitithanprapas, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. He noted that for any consideration of increasing public debt, a meeting of the Disciplinary Committee is required, which has not yet been organized.

The upcoming meeting of four economic agencies, including the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Thailand, the Budget Bureau, and the NESDC, was addressed by Mr. Danucha. He described this meeting as a standard procedure for preparing the 2027 budget, which necessitates prior discussion to establish the budget framework. Mr. Danucha mentioned that the 2027 budget is expected to be finalized more swiftly, aiming for implementation by October 1st.

Regarding the tax increase from 7% to 10%, Mr. Danucha confirmed that there is currently no plan to implement this change. He expressed his view that such an increase would be challenging under the current circumstances, as the situation requires careful monitoring. Although raising the tax is part of the original plan, the timing of its implementation remains undecided.