Authorities in Phuket are considering raising the provincial hotel tax from 1% to 3% of room prices, a move that would affect visitors to the Thai island, including Israelis. The goal is to bring in more money for local development and tourism promotion, while also helping Phuket attract more visitors.
Outgoing Phuket governor Nirat Phongsitthithawon said the law already allows provinces to collect local development taxes from hotels at a rate of up to 3%. He said the increase would generate about 1 billion baht a year for the province, and that taxing unregistered hotels could raise revenue to as much as 1.5 billion baht.
In neighboring Phang Nga, hotel tax is already set at 2%, and the charge is usually included in the room price shown to guests. Phuket currently relies mainly on hotels, tourism and restaurants for income.
Phongsitthithawon said some of the tax revenue is used to promote the island at trade fairs and overseas events. He said a 3% levy would allow more marketing to help bring in 14 million tourists a year, compared with about 11 million last year. He added that the Revenue Department will monitor compliance so all taxes are collected together, without needing a change in the law. “If we receive 4-5 billion baht a year in development funds from hotels, we can develop Phuket,” he said.
