The Electric Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) will call for bids soon for the construction of two new power plants which will be fueled by liquefied natural gas.

Under changes to the Foreign Business Act, it will soon be possible for foreigners to own more than 50% of com- panies involved in rental, operations leasing, financial leasing and factoring. The Commerce Ministry also announced that by next month it will ...

Thailand saw a 75% increase in the number of patent application filings due to a “Fast Forward” initiative started last year. More scientists and research centers have become involved in the process.                                           

The new Public Health minister announced that he will follow the previous government’s policy to support compulsory licensing of cancer drugs. The European Union plans to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) about Thailand’s policy to ...

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) is mak-ing it more difficult for companies under reha-bilitation to return to trading. Under new rules a company can only return to trading when the shareholders’ equity is positive and the company’s most recent full-year...

On July 4, 2008 condominium buyers will gain more protection when an amendment to the Condominium Act comes into effect. Develop-ers will be held accountable for any claims that they make in their advertisements, and will be fined from baht ...

A new Escrow Account Law will help protect buyers from builders who do not have enough money to complete projects. The law, which has already been approved by the National Legisla-tive Assembly, will come into force 90 days after it is signed by His Majesty ...

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) announced that commercial banks will run “stress tests” on liquidity this year in order to comply with a Ba-sel II capital accord. By the end of the year, 15 out of 17 local commercial banks plan to adopt a standardized approach ...

The government has introduced a 42 billion baht tax exemption package in order to stimulate the economy. The new measures will affect both corporate and individual taxpayers and greatly ben-efit the property market. The corporate income tax for ...

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) and four other state agencies have started a campaign to stop illegal non-bank lenders who take advantage of low income people. The Bangkok Metro  politan Administration (BMA) has gathered informa-tion about 267 different ...

Employment Visa Cancellation

Due to the fact that the Employment Department no longer requires the cancellation of work permits, the Immigration Department has changed the procedure for the cancellation of a work permit holder’s employment visa and for ...

Foreign Reserves Rise

Following the Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) put-ting an end to capital controls on February 29, 2008, the nation’s international reserves have rapidly increased. The rise in reserves has been due to a number of factors including the BOT’s change in position ...

A number of car manufacturers have requested tax privileges from the Board of Investment for eco-car production. To be eligible the manufacturer must produce 100,000 vehicles per year and the vehicle fuel consumption must be at least 20 kilometers ...

Land appraisal values for the entire country are set to increase by 10% at the beginning of 2008. Appraisals are generally undertaken once every four years, however prices for some areas in Bangkok situated near mass transit routes have been reappraised ...

Building owners have asked for a 180-day extension from the December 31, 2007 deadline to comply with new inspection rules. The law requires that nine types of buildings be inspected before the end of this year. Many building owners are unable to ...

The Securities and Exchange Act has been amended to allow small shareholders to file dam-age claims against listed companies and their executives. The new law gives more autonomy to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) has passed a Responsibility for Safe Products Bill which allows the Consumer Protection Board to file lawsuits against makers of unsafe products. The new law imposes legal liabilities on the manufacturers, distributors ...

Thailand and Cambodia have signed an agreement to allow foreign tourists to visit both countries using a single visa. However, the agreement will not take effect until related regulations have been issued. The scheme is part of the Ayeyawady-Chao Phya- ...

The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) has postponed voting on the controversial Retail Business Bill. The decision will be left to the next government.                                                                                                      

The Finance Ministry has proposed that the new government impose a tax on businesses such as factories, hotels, and shopping malls which discharge polluted water. Proposed fees would vary depending on the size of the company. Large polluters would ...