Revenue Department warns of tax filing scams

The Thai government has taken steps to protect the public from potential scams during tax filing season. They warn that, during this time, scammers posing as Revenue Department officials may attempt to obtain sensitive personal information from taxpayers.

Deputy Government Spokesperson Ratchada Thanadirek warned that imposters claiming to be from the Revenue Department will contact potential victims and insist that they are owed tax refunds or have outstanding tax debt. They will use this angle to try to gain access to sensitive personal information about their victims.

Tax season in Thailand runs from January 1 to March 31 and the government is urging people to be extra cautious during this time as scam calls are increasing and more likely to be believed.

The government spokesperson advised the public that anyone who has received a notification letter can call the Revenue Department directly. They said to use the phone number provided in the letter, but a safer option would be to call the department’s hotline at 1161 for further information. This is to help prevent scammers from taking advantage of unsuspecting taxpayers.

Unfortunately, reports of scams involving fake Revenue Department officials have been received since last year, with scammers contacting their victims by phone and asking for personal information via links or OTPs. To help prevent this from happening, the Revenue Department emphasized that they do not use LINE for tax-related transactions and urged the public to exercise caution and avoid engaging in any financial transactions or downloading any dubious applications, or clicking on links that may require personal information.

In addition, the spokesperson warned that if someone contacts you by SMS or phone asking for tax payments, they are probably not legit. Such requests are likely fraudulent attempts and taxpayers should only use the official website, www.rd.go.th, for filing their income tax returns.