OrBorJor agrees to lower tax on hotels

PHUKET: Lobbying by hoteliers has convinced the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) to reduce the amount of tax it will levy on hotel room revenues. The hotel tax is one of three local taxes the Thai Constitution allows the provincial OrBorJor to levy. The other two apply to fuel and tobacco, both of which were implemented in Phuket last year. Introduction of the hotel tax was postponed after an outcry from the industry. Dr Prasit Koysiripong, president of the Phuket OrBorJor, told the Gazette, “It has been agreed that the tax will be less than 1%, and will come into force in October this year. “I have had discussions with the Phuket Tourism Association, the Thai Hotel Association’s Southern Chapter, and representatives from most hotels and resorts in Phuket. “Most of them are aware of the tax and accept it. The OrBorJor now has to consult with the Phuket Provincial Revenue Office and the Tourism Authority of Thailand about the plan.” He said that income from the tax will be used to develop tourist attractions around the island. The final decision on the exact rate to be levied has not been made, but Pamuke Achariyachai, managing director of the Kata Group of hotels and resorts, and president of the Phuket Tourism Association (PTA), believes that it will be either 0.5% or 0.8%. “On behalf of the PTA, I sent a letter to the Or Bor Jor, asking it to reconsider its initial plan to set the rate at slightly below 2%. “Attached to my letter were questionnaires that I had sent to more than 100 hotels in Phuket. These showed that while most agreed to pay the tax, they felt it should start at 0.5%, then go up to 0.8% next year, thereafter increasing in small steps.”