
The planned "salt tax" is expected to materialise within the next year, with implementation in the form of a tiered system based on sodium levels.
According to Kulaya Tantitemit, director-general of the Excise Department, Thai people currently consume twice the amount of sodium than the standard recommended, and measures to reduce this level of consumption are deemed necessary.
This is similar to the sugar tax introduced by the Excise Department 7-8 years ago, which led beverage producers to reduce sugar content in their products.
According to Ms Kulaya, the products likely to be subject to the salt tax first might be snacks, which are considered to be non-essential items when it comes to food consumption. The implementation of this measure will be made on a gradual basis to avoid burdening businesses, she added.
She also said the salt tax, based on the level of sodium found in foods, would result in the imposition of a higher tax rate on foods with a higher sodium content and a lower rate of tax on foods with lower levels of sodium. The tax will be structured in a tiered system.
Ms Kulaya said the department has also discussed the restructuring of the tax of batteries to promote environmental friendliness, saying that the existing excise tax rate on batteries is 8%.
Under the new structure, the tax will depend on environmental factors such as energy density.
For example, batteries that release a greater electrical charge relative to their weight would face a lower tax rate than those that release a lower charge but are heavier.
Additionally, the tax will also take into account a battery's life cycle, such as the number of charge cycles it can undergo. Batteries with a higher number of charge cycles will face a lower tax rate compared to those with fewer charge cycles.
On the excise tax collection target in fiscal 2025, the department has been assigned a target of 609 billion baht, up 16% from the previous fiscal year.