Thailandâs Excise Department is hoping the integration of a blockchain system can help it boost revenue and assist the nationâs economic recovery.
According to a report by the Bangkok Post on Monday, the department will implement a system to make tax receipt collection more efficient rather than raising taxes.
The Excise Department, which falls under the purview of the countryâs Ministry of Finance, is responsible for taxes on sales of certain goods and commodities manufactured or sold in the country.
Lavaron Sangsnit, the departmentâs director-general, said raising existing taxes would risk hindering Thailandâs economic recovery, so instead the department looked for different ways to meet the finance ministryâs tax targets.
Blockchain technology will be employed for the purpose of tax revenue collection for the 2021 fiscal year, he said.
The nationâs two other tax agencies, the Revenue Department and Customs Department, will also start rolling out blockchain systems in their operations, according to the report.
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Lavaron said tax evasion would be a lot harder with the blockchain integrations because the three departments will be able to coordinate when conducting tax audits.
Last year, the Excise Department began developing a blockchain-based system for assessing the tax returns of oil exports because of the large revenue generated by the industry. That system is expected to roll out in the first quarter of next year, according to the department chief.