The Customs Department has already proposed lowering the import duty on luxury cars from the current rate of 80% of cost, insurance and freight (CIF) to the Finance Ministry, says an informed source at the department.
The move is aimed at discouraging luxury car importers from avoiding tax payments. The source did not reveal a new tax rate.
Luxury car importers have complained that an import duty of 80% of CIF is too high, as the combined rate reaches 328% when other taxes -- vehicle excise tax, value-added tax (VAT) and local tax -- are taken into account. The high levy has encouraged some importers to evade or understate their tax payments.
Kulit Sombatsiri, director-general of the Customs Department, said it has already submitted a proposal to the Finance Ministry for consideration, but could not disclose how the import duty will be adjusted.
He said the new import duty proposal is "appropriate".
After a Department of Special Investigation (DSI)'s crackdown last year on false declarations of import prices for luxury vehicles, particularly Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati, he said that 958 cars, including hundreds of supercars, remain impounded and are awaiting price evaluations to compute the import duties.
The Customs Department is considering discharging the supercars by using imported prices based on DSI recommendations and prices listed on the websites of overseas dealers as the reference point for calculating the appropriate duties.
For other brands, the tax-collection agency will apply its own price reference guide, collated with those listed on foreign deals websites, to calculate duties, he said.
Mr Kulit said that if importers have been accused of under-declaring vehicle value, they can submit copies of invoices and other import-related documents to prove they are above board.
Importers are further required to issue certification letters to the Customs Department showing that their declared prices are accurate in the event doubts to the contrary surface, he said.
Mr Kulit said that 300 of the 958 seized cars are supercars, and 500 vehicles are expected to be discharged soon.
The Customs Department held a seminar to prepare for the implementation of the pre-arrival processing system at Laem Chabang port from March 1, while other entry points will start from Feb 1.
With the new system, goods shipped by sea or air can be discharged from customs immediately upon arrival, compared with 5-7 days at present.
The new system will require all cargo ships to send an e-manifest to the Customs Department within 24 hours after they depart from their host countries, while airlines must send an e-manifest to the department immediately after take off.
To facilitate the adoption of the pre-arrival processing system, the Customs Department will evaluate the risks of imported goods and importers' history, employing big data analytics to facilitate that process. Even after goods have been discharged from Custom House, the department will also conduct random checks, said Mr Kulit.
He said that the department is amending regulations governing settlement on customs offences to prevent wrongdoers from repeatedly making false declarations by cancelling settlement at the Customs Department and letting courts rule on the matter.
Those who are found guilty under the amended regulations will be subject to a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and/or a fine, and their names will be placed on a watch list.