Recipients of the government's welfare scheme who buy goods at Thong Fah Pracha Rat shops from Oct 1 to Dec 31 will get a VAT refund, says Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong.
The proposal to refund value-added tax to the government's welfare smartcard holders will go before the cabinet soon, he said.
The three-month trial period will prove whether the Revenue Department's system can record items purchased by each smartcard holder and how much VAT they will be paid back, Mr Apisak said.
The government's welfare recipients will be paid back VAT through their smartcards, he said, adding that the Finance Ministry is considering returning that money 1-3 months after the purchases are made.
Repayment of VAT one month after purchase should be more efficient, the minister said.
The VAT payback scheme is intended to create more disposable income for low-income earners while strengthening their purchasing power.
The government is giving a monthly living allowance of 200-300 baht to 11.4 million people earning no more than 100,000 baht a year to buy staple goods at Thong Fah Pracha Rat shops.
Those who signed up for job training receive an additional living allowance of 100-200 baht a month.
Some 5.3 million out of 11.4 million recipients of the government's welfare and subsidy scheme are living below the national poverty line, earning less than 30,000 baht a year.
Mr Apisak said the Finance Ministry is considering capping the VAT payback at 7,000 baht per person.
Revocation of the universal healthcare coverage scheme's 30-baht fee for welfare smartcard holders will also be sent to the cabinet for approval in the next few weeks.
Mr Apisak said it is unnecessary for low-income earners to sign up for the government's sponsored welfare and subsidy scheme if big data systems are completely installed, as state agencies can use other information such as rental fees and utility bills to determine who should receive aid.
Big data can be used to improve tax collecting efficiency and the government's adoption of such technology is not considered to be a privacy breach, as the data is being used for the state's benefit, not commercial purposes, he said.
Meanwhile, regarding the cyber-attacks reported by Kasikornbank and Krungthai Bank on Tuesday, Mr Apisak said hacking is an unfortunate reality of life that can happen anywhere in the world.
"Hackers are working day and night, and service providers must take responsibility for any loopholes, but it's been reported that there was no damage," he said. "We need to find protective measures, which I believe can build up people's confidence."
The two banks announced that data for 123,000 customers had been stolen by hackers.
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