Yet another crackdown - this time on "shoddy products" ordered online

[Gaybutton]

Along with this, which is one "crackdown" I'm in favor of, beginning January 1 there will be duties on imported products, even those ordered online. This is probably much more of interest to expats. I, for one, have ordered many products online. I have always received quality products. I have never received anything I would call "shoddy". One online platform I often order from, along with Amazon, Lazada, and Shopee, is Temu - and Temu offers are usually much less expensive. Temu is based in China, which means no matter what I order from Temu, it will be subject to import duties. So, I have been ordering everything I want from Temu, or even might want later, before import duties take effect, and I have been happy with everything I've received.

There is still time, if you wish, to order foreign products before the import duties come into effect.
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Customs cracks down on shoddy products

Focus targets online platforms

by Wichit Chantanusornsiri

December 23, 2025

The Customs Department has partnered with online sales platforms to crack down on sales of non-certified products.

Speaking after the Customs Department signed memorandums of understanding with online sales platforms to cooperate in supervising and suppressing the importation of illegal goods or those failing to meet legal standards, Phantong Loykulnanta, director-general of the department, said this cooperation should reduce the availability of subpar products.

The focus is on goods that lack standards certifications, such as from the Thai Industrial Standards Institute or Food and Drug Administration, as well as prohibited goods such as e-cigarettes, on items from online platforms.

"I believe searches for imported products without standards certification, or prohibited goods on online platforms, will become more difficult. For example, searching for the keyword 'e-cigarettes' may no longer yield results, unless sellers use alternative keywords," Mr Phantong said.

There are 23 agencies in Thailand authorised to issue product certifications in various categories, including industrial standards and food and drug standards.

Effective from Jan 1, 2026, imported goods with a low value (de minimis value) priced from as little as 1 baht are subject to import duties and value-added tax (VAT).

He said in fiscal 2025, which just ended, there were 160 million imported low-value items (worth less than 1,500 baht), with roughly 90% sold via online platforms.

The collection of taxes on de minimis goods starting next year is expected to generate an additional 3 billion baht in annual revenue for the department. Import duty rates vary by product category. For example, clothing and footwear is subject to a 30% import duty, while bags are taxed at 20%.

Regarding whether the new tax collection would increase the burden on consumers, Mr Phantong said it depends on the platform.

Some platforms may pass the tax on by incorporating it into product prices, while others may choose to absorb the tax.

He said the additional tax burden must be weighed against the need to ensure fair competition, as previously such imported goods were not subject to taxes, whereas domestic operators have long been required to bear local tax obligations.

"The collection of taxes on low-value imported goods is about creating a new system that ensures fairer competition for Thai small businesses," said Mr Phantong.

Thamakorn Supathanarangsri, vice-president and head of government affairs at Lazada, said the company is not concerned about the tax and believes it will not affect online sales volumes. As for pricing, he said it depends on promotional strategies adopted by individual merchants.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/ge ... y-products

[Dodger]

.......The focus is on goods that lack standards certifications, such as from the Thai Industrial Standards Institute or Food and Drug Administration, as well as prohibited goods such as e-cigarettes, on items from online platforms.

.......There are 23 agencies in Thailand authorised to issue product certifications in various categories, including industrial standards and food and drug standards.

This information is a bit misleading.

Some products like electronics, building materials, medical devices, and vehicles require mandatory Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI) certification to enter the Thai market to ensure safety and quality, although only a modest percentage of products being purchased on-line, e.g. Lazada, Shoppe, Ubuy, IHerb, etc. fall within these industry classifications. One exception would be food products which usually require Thai FDA certification.

The primary responsibility of TISI is to develop industrial standards that industry uses - again, primarily in the electronics, building materials, Medical Device, and automotive industries.

The statement that there re 32 agencies in Thailand authorized to issue product certifications is either intentionally, or unintentionally misleading. There are many agencies that perform third-party testing on products that require certification but I fail to see what this has to do with anything? Foreign imports would have to obtain third-party product certification before the products are shipped to Thailand - not after they arrive. So the statement that Thailand has 32 agencies that perform this work is meaningless.

There are also third party Registrars operating in Thailand like TUV, Bureau Veritas, Lloyds of London, etc. that certify (Register) a companies operations which is their core competency, although they rarely, if ever, perform product certifications.

Bottom line: This initiative is clearly aimed at collecting more tax money on foreign imports - not on guaranteeing product quality as they would like you to believe.

You can thank Trump.

[Gaybutton]

Bottom line: This initiative is clearly aimed at collecting more tax money on foreign imports

You can thank Trump.

Exactly - which is why I have been buying everything before import duties are imposed - and I have no idea how much those duties will be. I'd rather buy now instead of finding out the hard way how much I'd have to pay duties on the same products.

I think we also can thank Trump for these lousy exchange rates.

[Jun]

They could do with a crackdown on shoddy retail platforms. I have an item that came from China and has been awaiting assignment to a domestic courier since 12 Dec. I contact them and some bot says the item will be delivered by 17 Dec. Thankfully it's a low value item.

I won't name the platform, but the name rhymes with a word for urination.

As with everywhere, retailers are losing trade to online retailers. For example, Tuk Com has more empty spaces than ever before. Which admittedly isn't the greatest loss to society.

Someone has optimistically opened an underwear shop in Jomtien Complex. Good luck to him. Ask a bar boy where he bought an item of clothing and it's often online.

[2lz2p]

There should be no import duties on any goods coming from China. As to those coming from some other countries, Thailand already charges duties and VAT on any amounts in excess of 1,500 baht. So, the only change will be a requirement to pay duties and VAT on products that are priced from 1 to 1,500 baht.

I posted the following on this thread which was about Customs to start charging duties effective 1 January 2026 on goods: viewtopic.php?t=12120&hilit=customs

Thailand is part of ASEAN as is China and they are both in the ASEAN–China Free Trade Area. Wikipedia notes that:

The free trade agreement reduced tariffs on 7,881 product categories, or 90 percent of imported goods, to zero. This reduction took effect in China and the six original members of ASEAN: Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

So the plan to tax online purchases will no doubt exclude most items that come from China or any of the other ASEAN countries that are part of the Trade Area.

As to goods from other countries, they are usually accompanied by a Customs Declaration form stating the value of the goods. Any goods valued above 1,500 baht (about US$46 at current exchange rate) is already being taxed. So it appears Thai customs plans to start collecting taxes and VAT on goods that fall between 1 and 1,500 baht.

[Gaybutton]

There should be no import duties on any goods coming from China.

I did not realize that. I find this whole thing very confusing. Good. I do like Temu. But I doubt I'll be ordering much of anything from them in the near future since I've been on this buying spree thinking I would get stuck with import duties. So, now I've got just about everything available from them that I wanted anyway, but never got around to buying.

My purchases have been delivered by the same delivery person almost every time, so often we have gotten to know each other's names. No bonus there, though (dammit) - the delivery person has been a middle aged woman . . .

[Gaybutton]

The change enables fairer competition with foreign sellers, especially those shipping low-value items from China or other countries that previously entered duty-free.

This seems to me that they are going to charge import duties on items coming in from China. Now I'm glad I ordered when I did.
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New import duty a double-edged sword

by Suchit Leesa-nguansuk

December 24, 2025

The Customs Department's imposition of import duties on goods valued less than 1,500 baht starting on Jan 1, 2026 will have both positive and negative impacts for Thailand.

According to Kulthirath Pakawach- krilers, president of the Thai e-Commerce Association, on one hand the move will benefit Thai manufacturers and domestic sellers who have been paying full import duties and value-added tax (VAT) on higher-value goods. The change enables fairer competition with foreign sellers, especially those shipping low-value items from China or other countries that previously entered duty-free.

On the other hand, she said the shift will increase costs for Thai importers or small vendors who rely on imports of low-value goods from other countries. They will have to bear higher import costs, either by absorbing them or passing them on to consumers through higher retail prices.

E-commerce entrepreneurs earlier proposed Thailand adopt Indonesia's model of prohibiting the sale of imported products priced less than US$ 100 on online platforms, aiming to safeguard local producers and raise the standard of imported products.

Industry leaders also called for the Customs Department to operate with greater transparency, as well as creating a unified digital customs system linked directly with e-commerce platforms.

According to Phantong Loykulnanta, director-general of the department, the measure is expected to generate about 3 billion baht in additional customs revenue, based on the import value of items priced less than 1,500 baht that were previously exempt from VAT and import duties.

Despite macroeconomic headwinds, weak domestic consumption and rising household debt, Thailand's digital economy remains resilient, according to the 10th edition of the annual "e-Conomy SEA" report issued by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company.

The sector's gross merchandise value (GMV) is projected to reach $56 billion this year, powered by e-commerce and the rapid rise of video commerce.

Thailand retained its position as Southeast Asia's No.2 digital economy, projected to be worth between $90-160 billion by 2030.

Thailand is the fastest-growing e-commerce and second-largest video commerce market in Southeast Asia, noted the report.

This success is largely driven by Thai consumers' digital-first lifestyles, which translates directly to other sectors.

The country's e-commerce sector recorded the region's fastest expansion, set to hit $33 billion in 2025 thanks to the flourishing video commerce landscape.

The number of video sellers surged by 175% year-on-year to 850,000, making Thailand home to the region's largest and fastest-growing population of video commerce sellers.

Thailand's e-commerce GMV is expected to reach $59 billion by 2030.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/ge ... dged-sword

[Gaybutton]

Online imports now taxed from first baht as rule starts Jan 1

by THE NATION

January 1, 2026

Thailand begins taxing online imports from the first baht from Jan 1, 2026, ending the ≤1,500 baht exemption to level competition and tighten standards

Thailand has begun collecting tax on online imported goods from the first baht from January 1, 2026, removing the previous tax exemption for items valued at 1,500 baht or less, the government said.

Lalida Periswiwatana, deputy spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office, said the measure took effect on January 1 and is intended to create fairer competition, improve state revenue collection, and raise the standards of imported products to ensure compliance with Thai law.

Under the policy, online imported goods will be subject to value-added tax and import duties from a declared value of 1 baht, she said. The government says this will reduce disparities between Thai operators—especially SMEs—and low-priced foreign imports that previously fell outside the tax system.

Lalida said prices of some products may adjust. Clothing and apparel, for example, could rise by around 20–30%, while other goods will depend on the tax rate applied to each category.

However, she said the government has set guidelines to keep online purchasing convenient. About 97% of imported goods already have taxes calculated and included in the price shown on the platform, allowing consumers to pay once and receive deliveries as usual, without having to pay tax separately at a customs checkpoint.

On consumer protection, she said the Customs Department has coordinated with major online platforms including Lazada, Shopee, TikTok, SHEIN and TEMU to strengthen screening. Products that fail to meet Thai Industrial Standards (TIS) or Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements, as well as illegal goods such as e-cigarettes, will be removed from platforms and barred from import.

Lalida stressed the measure is not intended to add burdens on the public, but to make the system fairer, more transparent and better suited to the digital economy, while ensuring online shopping remains convenient and safer for consumers.

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/policy/40060625