The trip to Thailand is definitely re the manufacturing...

The trip to Thailand is definitely re the manufacturing facility...

I'd love to know which parties are involved though.

For those interested, this is a big part of why VMT is keen to set up manufacturing in Thailand. Apart from the fact that having manufacturing in both China and Thailand means we can easily get bikes/scooters to any location in south-east asia any time.

Specifically see the "motorcycles" section in the table.

To spell it out, a THB 10,000 subsidy is about AUD $413 at time of writing.

And a saving of 4% excise tax per unit (due to it being manufactured in Thailand) could save VMT retail customers (assuming it would usually be passed on to the consumer - highly likely) another AUD $83.20 or so on a bike that would cost them say AUD $2,080.00 after the subsidy mentioned above.

So, assuming usual cost price was AUD $2493.00 the total saving to the retail consumer per unit sold:
2493
- 413 subsidy
- 83.20

= AUD $1996.8 (consumer is saving AUD $496.20 aka ~20%)
= THB $48,482.13 (consumer is saving THB $12.047.69 ~20%)


Nothing helps encourage the uptake of two-wheel EVs like offering them 20% cheaper does
.

February 7, 2024
2024-0356

Thailand | Subsidies, duties, excise-tax incentives to encourage development and use of battery electric vehicles

	The BEV 3.5 incentive policy represents the Thai Government's continuing push to drive development and transition toward zero-emission vehicles and to promote Thailand as the battery electric vehicle (BEV) production hub for the ASEAN region. This policy offers a business operator subsidy; reduced duty and excise-tax treatment on BEV imports during 2024 and 2025 is available, provided the operator commits to commence local assembly of BEVs by 2026 or 2027. This policy is limited to BEV passenger vehicles, pick-ups and motorcycles.

Executive summary

On 28 December 2023, the Excise Department unveiled rules, conditions and procedures outlined in the Thai Government's "BEV 3.5 policy," which will enable battery electric vehicle (BEV) importers and/or local BEV manufacturers to take advantage of a new set of subsidies and excise-tax reduction incentives for BEV passenger vehicles, pick-up trucks and motorcycles whether imported and locally assembled. The BEV 3.5 policy aims to encourage the development and use of BEVs in Thailand from 2024 to 2027.

Likewise, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) concurrently introduced its duty privilege policy and specified requirements for BEV imports for the period 2024 to 2025 under the BEV 3.5 policy.

Background

In early 2022, the MOF and the Excise Department announced rules, conditions and procedures outlined in the BEV 3.0 policy, which grants subsidies and duty and excise-tax incentives for the period 2022 to 2025. Under this policy, businesses importing BEVs between 2022 and 2023 are eligible for these incentives if they commit to commencing BEV assembly in Thailand by 2024 or 2025. The key objective of this policy is to promote the development of the BEV manufacturing sector in Thailand and to leverage Thailand toward a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.

Now, the BEV 3.5 policy aims to further position Thailand as a production hub for BEVs in alignment with the Thai Government's 30@30 plan (which aims for BEV production volumes to constitute 30% of annual vehicle production by 2030) and to encourage the adoption of zero-emission vehicles. The Thai Cabinet has approved the BEV 3.5 policy for the period starting from 2024 to 2027.

BEV 3.5 policy

Key details of the BEV 3.5 policy, effective from 1 January 2024, are as follows:

a) For both imported and locally assembled passenger BEVs

BEV type	Passenger BEVs
Retail price & battery kWh	≤THBi2m and ≥ 10 kWh			>THB 2m but ≤THB 7m and ≥ 50 kWh
BEV battery standards	Must comply with TISIiistandards, pass ATTRICiiitesting, and adhere to Quick Charge standards, as specified by the Ministry of Industry (MOI).
Subsidy amount (per unit) based on battery size	Year	≥ 10 kWh but < 50 kWh	≥ 50 kWh	No subsidy
	2024	50,000	100,000
	2025	35,000	75,000
	2026 & 2027	25,000	50,000
Subsidy claimant party and period	BEV importers: from 2024 to 2025 Local BEV assemblers: from 2024 to 2027			No subsidy
Import tariffs	Up to 40% reduction (for the first 2 years: 2024—2025)			No reduction
Reduced excise tax	2% (from 8%)
BEV local assembly requirements	Under this policy, business operators importing BEVs must locally produce any type of BEV within either of the following volume thresholds: 1:2 ratio for every BEV unit imported if local BEV production is fulfilled by December 2026 1:3 ratio for every BEV unit imported if local BEV production is only fulfilled by December 2027
Battery local assembly requirements	Battery and its parts localization to commence from 2026

ⁱTHB is the abbreviation for the Thai Baht currency.

ⁱⁱTISI refers to the Thai Industrial Standards Institute.

ⁱⁱⁱATTRIC refers to the Automotive and Tyre Testing, Research and Innovation Center.

b) For BEV pick-up trucks and e-motorcycles (locally assembled ones only):

BEV type	BEV pick-ups ≤ 4,000 kg	Motorcycles
Retail price & battery kWh	≤ THB 2m and ≥ 50kWh	≤ THB 150,000 and ≥ 3 kWh
Standards required	For locally assembled vehicles: Same as the passenger BEVs mentioned above	As specified by the Excise Department (refer to the note below)
Subsidy amount (per unit)	THB 100,000 (Year 2024 to 2027)	THB 10,000 (Year 2024 to 2027)
Reduced excise tax	2024—2025: 0% (from 10%) 2026 onward: 2% (from 10%)	1% (from 5%)
Battery local assembly requirements	Battery and its parts localization to commence from 2026	Not applicable

Note:As per the memorandum of understanding, the Excise Department has established the following specifications for BEV motorcycles:

• The lithium-ion battery must be≥48 volts and certified by theThailand Automotive Institute (TAI).
• The battery must have a capacity of≥3 kWh or a range of≥75 km on a single charge. It must also pass the Worldwide Harmonized Motorcycle Emission Certification tests/procedures with Class 1 or above, as certified by TAI.
• The motorcycles must use pneumatic tires that meet one of the following standards:
• Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI) standard no. TIS. 2720 ??- 2017 "Pneumatic [tires] for motorcycles and mopeds" or higher
• The United Nations Regulation (UN Regulation) no.75 (00 series or higher).
• To qualify forapproval, the motorcycles must meet one of the following BEV-motorcycle safety standards:
• TISI standard no. TIS. 2952 - 2018 "Vehicles of category L with regard to specific requirements for the electric power train"
• UN Regulation No. 136 (00 Series or higher)
• Obtain a certificate for a motorcycle electric powered generator model as announced by the Department of Land Transport

Business operators that have signed up for the BEV 3.0 policy may transfer unsold BEV units imported under the BEV 3.0 policy to the new BEV 3.5 policy. However, to do so, the operators must also sign a memorandum of understanding with the Excise Department to comply with the BEV 3.5 conditions. Once the transfer is completed, the business operators can then claim the BEV subsidy amount provided under the BEV 3.5 policy when these BEV units are subsequently sold and registered with the Department of Land Transport.

The purpose of this Tax Alert is to facilitate understanding of the proposals and it should not be used exclusively for tax planning without prior consultation with experts.