On January 1, 2021, the government of Vietnam issued Decree No. 152/2020/ND-CP dated December 30, 2020, providing guidance concerning foreigners working in Vietnam (Decree 152). Foreign investors and expatriates should be aware of some notable new points.

The renewed spread of COVID-19 in Thailand since December 2020 has led to additional tax relief measures to lessen the economic impact of the outbreak. Most recently, it has prompted the Ministry of Finance to propose a draft Royal Decree on Land and Building Tax Reduction B.E. 2564 (2021), which is expected to be similar to the 2020 measures that reduced land and building tax payments by 90 percent. In the meantime, on January 21, 2020, the Ministry of Interior announced an extension for the payment of land and building tax in 2021, which is now due by June 30, 2021 (extended from April 30, 2021). In light of the new land and building tax payment deadline for 2021, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, or the relevant municipality or local administrative office, will now send land and building tax assessment forms to taxpayers by April 30, 2021 (extended from February 28, 2021). For more details on these measures, or on any aspect of Thailand’s land and building tax, please contact Chaiwat Keratisuthisathorn at [email protected] or +66 2056 5507.

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 implementation to encourage wider

Following the recent delisting of almost all parts of the hemp plant from Thailand’s list of prohibited narcotics (see here for further details), the Ministry of Public Health has issued a notification allowing hemp to be used in cosmetics. Prior to this development, this use of hemp (whether from natural or synthetic sources) was not allowed, as it fell under the definition of narcotics under the Notification Re: Ingredients Not Allowed for Use in Cosmetics B.E. 2559 (2016). Under the Ministerial Notification Re: Use of Hemp in Cosmetics B.E. 2564 (2021), which was published in the Government Gazette on January 11, 2021, domestic manufacturers are now allowed to produce cosmetics containing hemp seed oil or hemp seed extract, provided the cosmetics do not have a THC level exceeding 0.2% by weight. To register such products with the Thai FDA, applicants must submit a certificate of analysis, safety data sheet, and label for the agency’s evaluation. The timeline for approval of the registration (notification) of a cosmetic containing hemp seed oil or hemp seed extract is three business days. The applicant (i.e., manufacturer or toll manufacturer) must declare the amount of hemp seed extract or hemp seed oil used in the cosmetic in their notification application. Cosmetics must not use a name for the product that evokes an association with hemp flowers or narcotics, and the name of the product must be within the scope of cosmetics. For example, names containing “inflorescence,” “flower,” “CBD,” “THC” or similar will not be allowed. It should also be noted that Thailand does not yet allow the importation of cosmetics containing hemp seeds or hemp seed extract, and this regulation only applies to domestically produced hemp products—a business currently restricted to individuals or companies with Thai nationality. For more details on this development, or on any aspect of

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 in the new Digital Asset Business

The Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI) has postponed a requirement to display QR codes next to the Thailand Industrial Standards (TIS) logo on certain product labels, linking to each product’s licensing information. Originally scheduled to take effect on January 21, 2021, TISI has agreed to extend this implementation date by a further six months owing to complexities involving product labeling and the COVID-19 pandemic. Manufacturers and importers therefore have an extra six months to prepare for compliance with the new regulations, which will now come into force on July 20, 2021. Thailand’s Ministry of Industry (MOI) requires various manufactured goods, such as gas water heaters, fans, light bulbs, rice cookers, fuel oils, toys, and so on, to meet Thailand’s industrial standards before they are imported or manufactured domestically. The standards, governing product qualities such as design, shape, manufacturing process, durability, safety, and packaging, are laid out in the Industrial Product Standards Act (No. 6) B.E. 2548 (2005) and overseen by the TISI (which operates as part of the MOI). As the MOI prescribes these compulsory standards, via TISI, to ensure product safety and prevent harm to consumers and the public, once a product becomes subject to them it cannot be manufactured or imported without an appropriate license from TISI. Such products must display the TIS logo on their labels. However, many products have been found to display the TIS logo dishonestly—that is, without having been evaluated or licensed by TISI. To deal with this dishonest use of the TIS logo, MOI Regulation Re: Format and Methods to Label and Use Markings on Industrial Products B.E. 2563 (2020) was issued in July 2020, mandating that various household appliances and other approved goods display a QR code linking to the TISI license information. With the postponement of this regulation, all affected companies should take

Thailand’s Office of the Insurance Commission (OIC) recently issued two notifications—one for life-insurance companies and another for insurance companies—establishing key criteria and requirements for insurance companies to manage risks relating to IT and cybersecurity. The notifications, entitled Notifications Re: Criteria for the Supervision and Management of Risks Relating to Information Technology for Life/Non-life Insurance Companies B.E. 2563 (2020) came into effect on January 1, 2021, and cover eight major aspects of IT risk management as detailed below. IT Governance Insurance companies are required to monitor and manage IT risks and cyber threats in accordance with the size, characteristics, complexity, and context of their business operations, and each company should have at least one director with knowledge of, or past experience in, the field of information technology. IT Project Management Insurance companies are required to develop a written framework for IT project management, covering at least the commencement, implementation, and control of the project, as well as the project closing and post-project auditing. Companies must also appoint a committee for supervising and monitoring IT projects. IT Security Insurance companies are required to institute a written IT security policy, which must be reviewed at least once a year or upon implementing any significant changes. The policy must be approved by the board of directors, or a relevant subcommittee appointed by the board of directors. In outsourcing IT activities to third-party service providers, or entering into any arrangement that allows business partners to connect to or access the company’s IT system, insurance companies are required to specify their own criteria and procedures for the selection of third-party service providers, enter into a written service agreement and a service level agreement with the third-party provider, and conform with other requirements under the notifications. Insurance companies will also be required to comply with the OIC’s forthcoming guidelines on the criteria for the supervision of

Due to the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand since December, 2020, Thailand’s Ministry of Labor recently published two regulations under the Social Security Act (SSA) in the Government Gazette: The Regulation on Entitlement to Compensatory Benefits in the Event of Unemployment Due to Force Majeure from the Pandemic of Dangerous Communicable Disease Under Relevant Law Relating to Communicable Diseases B.E. 2563 (2020) (the Force Majeure Regulation); and The Regulation on Determination of the Amount of Contributions to the Social Security Funds B.E. 2563 (2020) (the SSF Contribution Regulation). Details of the two regulations are provided below. The Force Majeure Regulation This regulation is similar to a previous regulation from April, 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic, stating that the definition of force majeure under the Social Security Act B.E. 2533 (1990) (the SSA) includes hazards from pandemics of dangerous communicable diseases (including COVID-19). This definition therefore affords protection to insured persons (i.e., employees) in the event that the COVID-19 pandemic results in their being unable to work, or their employers being unable to operate their business normally. This regulation allows the Social Security Office (SSO) to pay compensation to employees who: are insured persons who qualify to receive compensatory benefit in case of unemployment in accordance with the SSA; have to cease working temporarily during the period from December 19, 2020 onwards; and do not receive wages from their employer during the temporary cessation. This applies only if the circumstances above result from the following force majeure events related to hazards from COVID-19 (or other pandemics of dangerous communicable diseases that affect the public under the Communicable Diseases Act B.E. 2558 (2015)): The employee cannot work, or the employer does not allow the employee to work, because of quarantine or to comply with a COVID-19 preventative measure; or, The employee cannot work because the employer temporarily ceases