Corruption is a major concern that must be tackled by the government if it wants to attract foreign investment to Thailand, according to a report by the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Thailand (JFCCT).
The report, in which foreign investors expressed their views and concerns about Thai investment policies, will be forwarded to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha next week, said JFCCT chairman Stanley Kang.
"Corruption is a major problem that makes the process to get a licence to start a business longer than expected, and that may have deterred investors from investing here," Mr Kang said.
He said the JFCCT would be pleased to work together with the Thai authorities to help reduce corruption and increase transparency in business, which will ultimately enhance Thailand's competitive advantage.
"We will send our proposals, regarding comments and concerns of foreign investors, to the prime minister shortly," Mr Kang said.
Robert C Fox, a member of the JFCCT, said foreign businesses were also concerned about the longer-than-expected duration of Thai legislative procedures, which sometimes incur increased production costs.
"After running a business in Thailand for years, we have found that there are a lot of legislative procedures and processes, which sometime drag on the project," Mr Fox said. "They finally become obstacles."
The government recently enacted the new Licensing Facilitation Act, aimed at boosting confidence among investors -- especially foreigners.
The new law is meant to cut through the long and complicated paperwork involved in obtaining a licence, which is the first step for foreigners investing in Thailand.
The JFCCT also wants the government to loosen some laws and regulations on labour movement to improve technology transfer, as well as foster more research and development and innovation.
"The government should lend support to help increase innovation, which means it should allow the private sector to move its workforce to match its needs," Mr Fox said.
To achieve the goal, foreign investors have urged the Thai government to be more flexible about foreign worker movement and allow a longer period for work permits, which would free up time and resources for foreign businesses to run their operations in Thailand.
"We know that the Thai government has lent full support to help create innovation and high-technology transfer, and this is one way for us to help support the government so that the workforce can be moved freely," Mr Fox said.