State Welfare Card applications to open by March
Applications for the State Welfare Card will open by the end of March, with low-income and vulnerable groups invited to register. The registration follows two years after the last round, which took place from September 5 to October 31, 2022.
Julapan Amornwiwat, Deputy Finance Minister, announced that the details of the new registration for the State Welfare Card this year are still under review. He mentioned that further time is required to finalise the updated conditions, which have yet to be agreed upon.
A meeting is scheduled for January to finalise these details, including the proposal of new criteria to the Cabinet for approval before the registration period begins in March.
“The conditions are not yet finalised, but there is still time to consider them thoroughly, such as determining wealth, which is challenging in Thailand due to insufficient data. However, conclusions will be reached before the registration opens in March.”
The registration process will utilise the Tang Rat application to facilitate convenience for the public. Relevant agencies have been tasked with studying the registration process through this app. Additionally, the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) has been instructed to review old and new criteria to ensure comprehensive coverage and prevent ineligible individuals from claiming benefits. The existing household income criteria remain unchanged, while the criteria for land ownership will be enforceable. Details concerning assets, bond holdings, and eligibility for the State Welfare Card this year will be examined individually and at the family level.
Eligibility
To qualify, applicants must be Thai nationals aged 18 or older with an individual annual income not exceeding 100,000 baht. The family’s average income should also not exceed 100,000 baht per person annually. Financial assets, including deposits, bonds, and other debt instruments, must not surpass 100,000 baht per person, with the same limit applicable per family.
Applicants must not own real estate or land beyond the criteria set by the finance ministry, possess credit cards, or have home loans exceeding 1.5 million baht or car loans over 1 million baht. The programme excludes monks, novices, prisoners, individuals in shelters, civil servants, government employees, pensioners, and political officials, including MPs and senators.
The State Welfare Card offers monthly cash assistance of 1,545 baht, including 300 baht for consumer goods, 750 baht for public transport, and an 80 baht discount on cooking gas every three months. Additional measures include a 100 baht monthly water bill relief and a 315 baht monthly electricity bill relief per household. The programme is estimated to cost approximately 4.8 billion baht per month or around 50 billion baht annually, reported KhaoSod.
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