Temporary reprieve

Thailand’s excise department will temporarily reduce a tobacco tax from THB0.10 ($0.003) to THB0.03 per gram for one year, starting Jan. 1, 2020.

The move follows complaints from tobacco farmers that the THB0.10 rate, which was introduced on May 7, was taking a toll on their incomes.

Earlier, the excise department postponed a 40 percent tax hike by one year to Oct. 1, 2020.

The temporary tax cut applies only to farmers who produce fine-cut tobacco and those with an annual production up to 12,000 kg

Thailand has 10,450 tobacco growers, of whom 15 have production capacity of more than 12,000 kg a year.

The May 7 tax hike was intended to narrow the price gap between factory-made and hand-rolled cigarettes, after many smokers switched to rolling their own tobacco.