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Published on August 7, 2007

Jantima Sirisaengtaksin, principal adviser on information and communication technology at the Revenue Department, said the public-private partnership would be a strategic plan by the department to encourage commercial and corporate users to pay their tax via the Internet. The PPP is a system in which the Revenue Department provides its services and operates through partnerships such as with banks and private-sector companies.

For example, the department will work with Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) to enable SCB's Koh Tao branch office to work as a Revenue Department branch where individuals and commercial taxpayers on the island can pay their tax at the bank counter without going to the more distant Revenue Department office. As a result, the department is able to reduce the cost of implementing its own branch office. Meanwhile, taxpayers will save time as they do not have to go to the Revenue Department office to pay tax.

"We want to work together with partners to create a win-win situation between them and the department to make it comfortable to provide services to users. Taypayers will be able to go to a bank and do their transactions as one-stop services," said Jantima.

She said the SCB's Koh Tao branch office was the prototype for the project before the cooperation expanded to other branch offices. Kasikornbank and Krungsri Bank are also in the project. The banks receive a Bt20 transaction fee per time and the Revenue Department will quickly receive the money taxpayers pay at the bank.

Meanwhile, the department will expand its services nationwide so everyone will have access to services via electronic channels. "We will try to provide new services and offer new information as well as knowledge over the Internet so individuals and companies will able to use the revenue services through their computers. This will increase productivity and the efficiency of service to customers or end users through the network," said Jantima.

She added that several years ago the department had started to provide electronic services which allowed taxpayers to pay taxes online. She said that last year 6.9 million taxpayers had paid their individual tax via the Internet from a total of eight million taxpayers. The department this year expects seven million taxpayers to pay their tax over the Internet. It plans to develop the system to support electronic business and government and commercial services for the public.

The department next year will also provide new online tax services for disabled people, aiming to reduce the digital divide. The department is testing an online prototype by applying text-to-speech technology, which allows disabled people to access the services. The department expects more than 60,000 disabled people will access the services.

Jirapan Boonnoon

The Nation