THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Personal income tax deduction helps boost credit-card spending

Personal income tax deduction helps boost credit-card spending

The government’s newest measure to reduce personal income tax should help boost credit-card spending later this year, credit-card operators say.

Nayanee Peaugkham, chief of the Krungsri Consumer Group, said she believes this measure will help boost growth in the country’s total credit-card spending this year to minus one digit from the previously estimated minus two digits, or the same level as last year.

However, she said, this may not have a long-term effect because the measure is only valid from October to December. The measure is also being offered to a limited few.

The Cabinet had early this month approved a new stimulus package granting personal income tax deduction of up to Bt30,000 per person to help boost people's spending on goods and services.

The measure will run from October 23 until December 31 and will apply to the 2020 tax year. Around 4 million people are expected to be eligible for this scheme.

Nayanee said credit-card operators have also launched heavy campaigns to encourage spending for the rest of this year.

Pittaya Vorapanyasakul, executive vice president for Krungthai Card, agreed that this measure will help boost spending this year.

She said spending via KTC cards has improved after the easing of lockdown restrictions, with the exception of tourism. The top three places where cards were most used were on insurance policies, at petrol stations and supermarkets.

Spending on electrical appliances, beauty items and food have also improved, she added.

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