Thailand offers 5-year income tax exemption for foreign actors

Petch PetpailinTuesday, June 21, 2022Last Updated: Tuesday, June 21, 2022

279 1 minute read

Thailand offers 5-year income tax exemption for foreign actors — Photo via The Hangover II which was filmed in Thailand in 2010

Photo via The Hangover II which was filmed in Thailand in 2010

The cabinet approved a 5-year personal income tax exemption for foreign film stars who earn income from foreign movies shot in Thailand.

The government revealed they wanted to attract more film crews and expected the movie industry to generate about 17.5 billion baht over those 5 years.

The PM’s Deputy Spokesperson, Ratchada Thanadirek, says that the government wants to encourage Thailand as a film-shoot destination, and hopes movie investors will take advantage of the income tax exemption.

Ratchada says Thailand benefitted greatly from foreign film crews between 2017 to 2021, earning an average annual income of about 3.5 billion baht. Last year the kingdom generated more than 5 billion baht from the industry.

Thailand has offered several financial incentives to the film industry in the past, including a cash rebate of up to 15 to 20 percent of the expense film crews spend in Thailand. But in the past foreign stars still had to pay personal income tax.

Thailand offers 5-year income tax exemption for foreign actors | News by Thaiger

The southern province of Krabi turns the Fast and Furious 9 shooting location into a tourist attraction | Photo by Hasana BailapSOURCE: Thai News Agency

Petch Petpailin

Petpailin, or Petch, is a Thai translator and writer for The Thaiger who focuses on translating breakingThai news stories into English. With a background in field journalism, Petch brings several years of experience to the English News desk at The Thaiger. Before joining The Thaiger, Petch worked as a content writer for several known blogging sites in Bangkok, including Happio and The Smart Local. Her articles have been syndicated by many big publishers in Thailand and internationally, including the Daily Mail, The Sun and the Bangkok Post. She is a news writer who stops reading news on the weekends to spend more time cafe hopping and petting dwarf shrimp! But during office hours, you can find Petch on LinkedIn and you can reach her by email at petch@thethaiger.com.