Fin Min may boost tourism through tax deduction on hotel expenses

BANGKOK, 29 May 2010 (NNT) — The Finance Ministry is considering whether to allow travelers to use their hotel accommodation receipts for tax deduction as part of the tourism stimulus measure.

During a televised interview, Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said that some tourism business operators had proposed to him that the government should allow personal income tax deduction for accommodation expenses of travelers. They believed that such measure would attract more people to travel and would stimulate tourism accordingly.

Mr Korn said that while it would take a while to restore foreigners’ confidence in traveling to the Kingdom, the government would focus on accelerating the domestic tourism instead. The Finance Minister asserted that he would mull over the tax deduction idea with the Revenue Department.

Last year, the government adopted a similar measure for people to submit travelling receipts for tax deduction after attending seminars or going on vacations. It was part of the government’s assistance to the tourism sector in the wake of the airport closure by the yellow shirt protestors.