Thailand Law Library

by Thailand Lawyer

A VAT registrant who is commencing business in sale of goods or provision of services, shall have the right to make an application for value added tax registration before the date of business commencement.

An application for value added tax registration under paragraph 1 shall be in such form as prescribed by the Director-General and filed at local Amphur office where the place of business is located.

If a business person has several places of business, value added tax registration application shall be made at local Amphur office where the headquarters is located.

Application of value added tax registration and issuance of certificate of value added tax registration shall be in accordance with rule, procedure and condition prescribed by the Director-General.

A business person who carrying on business in sale of goods or provision of service shall apply for value added tax registration within the following time limit:

1. for business person carrying on business on sale of goods or provision of services and the value of tax base of the business exceeding value of tax base of small business as prescribed by the Royal Decree by virtue of Section 81/1, value added tax registration application shall be made within 30 days as from:
1. the date which the value of tax base of business exceeds the value of tax base of small business in the case where the Royal Decree making the provision for determining value of tax base of small business or;
2. the date which the Royal Decree comes into force in the case where there exists a Royal Decree making new provision for determining value of tax base of small business or the Royal Decree is amended such that the value of tax base of small business is less than previously prescribed;
2. for a business person who notifies the Director-General of value added tax payment in accordance with Section 81/3, value added tax registration application shall be made within 30 days as from the date of notifying the Director-General.

Paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Section 85 shall be applied.

Agent under Section 82/1 (1) shall be responsible for value added tax registration of business person residing abroad.

The following business persons shall not be required to register for value added tax:

1. business person residing abroad and entering Thailand to carry on business on sale of goods or provision of service temporarily;
2. business person providing service from abroad and such service is used in Thailand;
3. other business person as prescribed by the Director-General if there is a reasonable cause.

The Director-General may allow a business person under (1) or (3) whose business is in accordance with description and procedure prescribed by the Director-General, to apply for temporary value added tax registration.

Application for temporary value added tax registration and issuance of temporary value added tax registration certificate shall be in accordance with form, rule, procedure and condition as prescribed by the Director-General.

For the purpose of paragraph 1, the Director-General shall have the power to prescribe rule and condition to specify which entering into Thailand to sell goods or provide services is a temporary one.

A VAT Registrant shall display certificate of value added tax registration at a prominent place which can easily be seen at each place of business.

In the case where the certificate of value added tax registration is lost, destroyed or essentially damaged, a VAT Registrant shall make a request for a substitute for the certificate of value added tax registration at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from the date the certificate is lost, destroyed or damaged.

Request for and issuance of a substitute for the certificate of value added tax registration shall be in accordance with form, rule, procedure and condition as prescribed by the Director- General.

A substitute for the certificate of value added tax registration shall be deemed certificate of value added tax registration.

In the case where there are changes in essential particulars in value added tax registration including change in the name of place of business, category of business, goods sold or services provided, a VAT registrant shall notify such changes at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from the date the changes occur.

The notification of changes in particulars under paragraph 1 and issuance of an amended certificate of value added tax registration shall be in accordance with form, rule, procedure and condition as prescribed by the Director-General.

Any VAT registrant wishing to have additional place of business shall notify such changes at the place of registration for value added tax prior to the opening date of the additional place of business within 15 days in order to request for a certificate of value added tax registration for such place of business.

In relation to closing of some places of business, a VAT registrant shall notify changes in value added tax registration at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from the date of closing.

A VAT registrant closing places of business shall return the certificate of value added tax registration of such places of business at the place of registration for value added tax and notify changes in value added tax registration. Paragraph 2 of Section 85/6 shall be applied.

A VAT registrant wishing to move a place of business shall notify changes in value added tax registration at place of registration for value added tax within 15 days prior to the date for moving.

A VAT registrant moving place of business shall notify an opening of new place of business at local Amphur office which the new place of business located within 15 days prior to the opening date of the new place of business in order to request for a certificate of value added tax registration of such new place of business and return the certificate of value added tax registration of the former place of business.

The Director-General shall have the power to prescribe description and condition for place of business which a VAT registrant temporary establishes to be specific place of business.

Temporary place of business which is in accordance with description to be specific place of business as prescribed by the Director-General shall not be deemed place of business under Section 85/6, 85/7 and 85/8, but the VAT registrant establishing such specific place of business shall prepare books and comply in accordance with form, rule, procedure and condition as prescribed by the Director-General.

The following VAT registrants shall be entitled to request the Director-General to cancel certificate of value added tax registration:

1. in the case there exists a Royal Decree prescribing value of tax base of small business, is a VAT registrant whose business having value of tax base less than that of small business as prescribed in the Royal Decree for at least 3 consecutive years prior to the request for cancellation of certificate of value added tax registration;
2. in the case the Royal Decree is amended such that making provision for higher value of tax base of small business as previously prescribed, is a VAT registrant person whose business having value of tax base prior to the amendment of Royal Decree less than that of small business for at least 3 consecutive years;
3. in the case where a VAT registrant notifies the Director-General for the purpose of value added tax payment under Section 81/3, is the VAT registrant who pays value added tax consecutively for a period of time not less than that prescribed by Ministerial Regulation as from the first day of being a VAT registrant, and has a business having value of tax base less than that of small business as prescribed by Royal Decree during such period of time;
4. in the case where a VAT registrant liable to tax under Section 82/16 whose business having value of tax base less than that of small business as prescribed in Royal Decree consecutively for a period of time not less than that prescribed by Ministerial Regulation prior to the request for cancellation of certificate of value added tax registration.

A request to the Director-General to cancel a certificate of value added tax registration under paragraph 1 shall be in accordance with form, rule, procedure and condition as prescribed by the Director-General.

Ministerial Regulation under (3) may prescribe a different period for each category of business; however, the prescribed period shall not be less than 2 years.

Any business registered for value added tax and having value of tax base exceeding that of small business as prescribed by Royal Decree issued under Section 81/1 which consequently amended such that prescribing value of tax base of small business higher than previously prescribed resulting in the value of tax base of the said business to be lower than the newly prescribed value of tax base of small business, the value added tax registration of such business person shall be in force, except the VAT registrant exercises the right under Section 85/10 (2) and (4) in requesting the Director-General to cancel the value added tax registration.

Any VAT registrant wishing to temporarily cease the business for more than 30 days consecutively, such VAT registrant shall notify the temporary cessation at local Amphur office which the place of business located within 15 days as from the date of temporary cessation.

Any VAT registrant wishing to transfer business partly or wholly shall notify such transfer and change in particulars in value added tax registration, if any, or notify the transfer and business cessation in accordance with Section 85/15, as the case may be, in such form prescribed by the Director-General at the place of value added tax registration at least 15 days prior to the transfer date.

In the case where a transferee is a VAT registrant, he shall notify the transfer and change in particulars in value added tax registration, if any, at the place which the transferee registers for value added tax at least 15 days prior to the date to transfer. In the case where a transferee is not a VAT registrant, he shall make a request for value added tax registration at least 15 days prior to the transfer date and when the request is made, the transferee may meanwhile carry on the business.

Paragraph 2 of Section 85/15 shall be applied in the case of transfer of the whole business.

A VAT registrant, being a juristic person, wishing to merge, the VAT registrant shall notify the business cessation in accordance with Section 85/15 and form prescribed by the Director- General and the new juristic person, resulting from the merger, shall make the request for value added tax registration within 15 days as from the date of business registration of the new juristic person.

Any VAT registrant ceasing the business shall notify such cessation in accordance with form prescribed by the Director-General at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from the date of business cessation.

A VAT registrant ceasing the business shall return the certificate of value added tax registration at the place of registration for value added tax at the time of notification of business cessation.

In the case where a VAT registrant being an individual dies, his status of being VAT registrant shall terminate and the possessor of the estate responsible for carrying on that business shall have the right to carry on the business for not more than 60 days as from the date of the death, but the value added tax registrar must be informed of such death at the earliest opportunity.

In the case where an estate possessor responsible for carrying on the business of the deceased exercises his right in carrying on the business as specified in paragraph 1, he shall have the right and liability as a VAT registrant and in case of reasonable cause, an estate possessor may request the Director-General for extension of time as specified in paragraph 1 by giving necessary reasons, then the Director-General shall have the power to extend the time as he deems appropriate and may also set condition for such extension.

In the case where an estate possessor responsible for carrying on the business of the deceased does not exercise the right under paragraph 1, he shall return the certificate of value added tax registration of the deceased at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from the date of the death.

If an estate possessor or heir wish to carry on the business of the VAT registrant who dies, an estate administrator or heir shall have the right to transfer the business of the VAT registrant in accordance with form, rule procedure and condition prescribed by the Director-General and paragraph 2 of Section 85/13 shall be applied mutatis mutandis.

When the Director-General orders the transfer of business, the right of the estate possessor under this Section shall An estate possessor or heir being a transferee of business shall return the certificate of value added tax registration of the deceased at the place of registration for value added tax at the time of notification of changes in particulars in value added tax registration or application for value added tax registration, as the case may be, and in the case where an estate possessor responsible for carrying on the business of the deceased exercising the right to carry on that business under paragraph 1 but where the time limit specified in paragraph 1 or time extended by the Director-General under paragraph 2 passed without a request for transfer of that business being made by the estate administrator or heir under paragraph 4, the estate possessor responsible for carrying on the business of the deceased shall return the certificate of value added tax registration at the place of registration for value added tax within 15 days as from date following the last day of time limit.

A VAT registrant fails to comply with the provisions in this chapter, the Director-General shall have the power to cancel the value added tax registration of the said VAT registrant and shall notify the business person of the cancellation in writing.

The business person being notified under paragraph 1 shall return the certificate of value added tax registration at the place of registration for value added tax within 7 days as from the date of receiving the notification of the cancellation.

In the case where the Director-General cancels the certificate in accordance with Section 85/10, or where the VAT registrant ceases the business in accordance with Section 85/5, or where VAT registrant dies and an estate possessor responsible for carrying on the business of the deceased who died exercising the right in carrying on the business but later on such right terminates without an estate administrator or heir requesting for transfer of that business in accordance with Section 85/6, or where VAT registrant being cancelled the value added tax registration under Section 85/17, the VAT registrant or estate possessor responsible for carrying on that business, as the case may be, shall be liable as a VAT registrant until the Director-General orders the name of such VAT registrant be stroked off the value added tax register in accordance with Section 85/19.

In the following cases, the Director-General shall order the name of VAT registrant to be stroked off the value added tax register-

1. where the Director-General cancels the registration in accordance with Section 85/10;
2. where VAT registrant ceases the business in accordance with Section 85/15;
3. where VAT registrant dies and no request for transfer of business of the deceased is made in accordance with Section 85/16;
4. where the Director-General cancels the value added tax registration in accordance with Section 85/17.

The Director General shall notify the VAT registrant, estate administrator, heir or estate possessor of the order in writing without delay. VAT registrant or estate possessor responsible for the carrying on the business of the deceased and exercising the right in carrying on that business in accordance with Section 85/16 shall not be liable as the VAT registrant effective on the date the order to strike the name off the value added tax register is made by the Director-General.

If the VAT registrant is a juristic person, the Director-General shall notify a business registrar under the law on such matter of the striking the name off the value added tax register within 30 days and the said registrar shall record the value added tax registration cancellation in the register without delay.