In 2019, Thailand introduced an online system for payment of stamp duty (e-Stamp Duty) and a requirement for e-Stamp Duty to be paid on the following five instruments when executed electronically (e-Instruments): hire of work service instrument; loan instrument or bank overdraft instrument; powers of attorney (POA); proxy letters for voting at company meetings; and guarantee instrument. However, given the strict financial penalties on those who fail to pay stamp duty, the government implemented a grace period until December 31, 2020, to allow people to become familiar with the e-Stamp Duty system before the requirement is strictly enforced. During the grace period, taxpayers could pay stamp duty for the five e-Instruments at an area revenue office, rather than via the e-Stamp Duty system, and could also pay stamp duty for traditional paper versions of those five instruments through the e-Stamp Duty system. On January 19, 2021, the Revenue Department issued Notifications of the Director-General of Revenue Re: Stamp Duty (Nos. 61 and 62) B.E. 2564 (2021) further extending that grace period until December 31, 2021. The following table summarizes the revised methods of stamp duty payments available for the five instrument categories mentioned above under the new notifications. The e-Stamp Duty system allows taxpayers to pay stamp duty online by filing the prescribed form (Form Or.Sor.9) through (i) the website of the Revenue Department (www.rd.go.th), or (ii) the Application Programming Interface (API) of the Revenue Department before or within 15 days from the date of instrument execution. Taxpayers can currently file a request to pay for e-Stamp Duty no earlier than 30 days before the date of instrument execution. Taxpayers should note that the e-Stamp Duty system does not currently support late payment. Therefore, late filing and stamp duty payments will have to be made at an area revenue

Thailand’s Department of Business Development (DBD) has released a new notification to emphasize and encourage the online issuance of company affidavits and certification of corporate documents, in an effort to prevent further spread of COVID-19 in Thailand. This notification, which was announced on January 7, came into effect on January 11, 2021. The new notification repeals and replaces a similar DBD notification issued on April 10, 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic, and notes that requests to issue company affidavits and certify corporate documents can be processed through the DBD’s e-service system via the DBD website (www.dbd.go.th). In using this online system, applicants can choose to receive the documents either as PDF e-certificates or in paper form. The digital signature of the relevant DBD official will appear on the documents using a public key infrastructure (PKI) encryption—an accepted cryptographic practice that binds digital identifiers to people and organizations and verifies any amendments to the information or digital signature. In accordance with Thailand’s laws on electronic signatures, a digital signature by a DBD official is deemed as legitimate as an ink signature on paper. The authenticity of both electronic and paper documents issued by the DBD can be verified via the document’s QR code and through the reference number at the bottom of the document. For paper documents, the authenticity can also be verified by checking the micro-text (which is illegible when photocopied), and the DBD watermark (which disappears or becomes obscured when photocopied). Anyone can verify a legal entity’s current information on the DBD’s website through the “DBD DataWarehouse+” or “DBD Service” portals. The DBD e-certificate service described in the new notification is now available for public use. Even though the DBD had already introduced an online system for this service in 2020, the new notification highlights this

On November 26, 2020, the Notification of the Ministry of Finance Re: Addition to Other Business Relating to Digital Assets B.E. 2563 (2020) (the Digital Asset Business Notification) and the Notification of the Ministry of Finance Re: Licensing of Digital Asset Business No. 2 B.E. 2563 (2020) (the Digital Asset Business Licensing Notification) were published in the Thai Government Gazette. Additional Digital Asset Businesses The new Digital Assets Business Notification adds two new categories of digital assets business to the list prescribed in the Royal Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). Digital Asset Fund Manager is defined as a person who manages funds from digital assets for another person for benefits, or holds themselves out to the general public as being ready to do so, in the ordinary course of business. It does not include the management of digital assets as prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Digital Asset Advisory Service is defined as a person who provides consultations to other people, directly or indirectly, regarding the value of digital assets; the suitability of investment in digital assets; or the buying, selling, or exchanging of any digital assets in the ordinary course of business in return for service fees or other compensation. However, this does not include consultations as a part of or relating to a digital asset exchange, digital asset broker, digital asset dealer, digital asset fund manager, or other personal consultation as prescribed by the SEC. Additional Digital Asset Licensing Requirements The Digital Asset Business Licensing Notification amends the definition of “License Applicant” to include cryptocurrency exchanges, digital token exchanges, cryptocurrency brokers, digital token brokers, cryptocurrency dealers, digital token dealers, cryptocurrency fund managers, digital token fund managers, cryptocurrency advisory services, and digital token advisory services. Additional requirements for granting licenses have also been added

At a meeting on December 21, 2020, the Thai Board of Investment (BOI) approved a series of stimulus packages aimed at encouraging local and foreign investment, as the government seeks to boost Thailand’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The additional investment incentives, which will be promoted by the BOI in the upcoming year, include a number of sector- and project-specific stimulus measures.   Additional Tax Incentives for Large-Scale Projects Projects in target industries with investment of at least THB 1 billion (approx. USD 33 million) over a 12-month period, starting from the issuance of the BOI promotion certificate, will be entitled to an additional 50% corporate income tax (CIT) deduction for a period of five years, calculated on top of the standard 5–8 year CIT exemptions offered under the normal BOI tax-incentive scheme. To obtain this special tax incentive, eligible projects may apply to the BOI from January 4 to December 30, 2021.   Stimulus Package for Digital Economy and Software Industry Projects that support digital technology adoption, such as software integration, artificial intelligence, machine learning, or big data analytics, may benefit from 50% CIT exemptions on profits generated from their existing BOI projects for an additional three years. Applications for the exemption must be submitted by the end of 2022.   Application Deadline Extensions for Special Economic Zones and Five Southern Provinces Measures relating to special economic zones cover more than 300 investment promotion categories, with both tax and non-tax incentives, including an additional tax incentive for target industries such as textiles, agriculture, home furniture, jewelry, and others. These incentives are available to projects located in the border areas of Thailand (i.e., the 10 special economic zones in the provinces of Chiang Rai, Kanchanaburi, Mukdahan, Nakhon Phanom, Narathiwat, Nong Khai, Sa Kaeo, Songkhla, Tak, and Trat), with the