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We have put this article together to provide an outline of the eligible activities for BOI promotion in Thailand.
It is commonly known that the Thai government provides incentives to businesses operating in selected industries to decentralise Thailand’s industrial base and attract investments from both foreign and local entrepreneurs.
Let’s find out what the promoted industries are.
What is BOI?
The BOI (Office of Board of Investment) is a Thai government agency that has a role of promoting valuable investment both into Thailand and Thai overseas investment. It does so by provide a series of tax and non-tax incentives.
BOI investment promotion policies
Investment promotion policies under the BOI are to:
- Promote investment that helps enhance national competitiveness
- Promote activities that are environment-friendly
- Promote clusters to create investment concentration in accordance with regional potential and to strengthen value chains
- Promote investment in border provinces in Southern Thailand
- Promote special economic zones
- Promote Thai overseas investment to enhance the competitiveness of Thai businesses in the global economy
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Activities eligible for investment promotion
The following activities are eligible for BOI promotion in Thailand:
| 1. Agriculture and agricultural products | Manufacture of biological fertilisers, organic fertiliser, nano-coated organo-chemical fertiliser and bio-pesticides |
| Plant or animal breeding (only those that are not eligible for biotechnology activity) | |
| Crop dying and silo facilities | |
| Animal propagation or animal husbandry | |
| Slaughtering | |
| Deep sea fishery | |
| Grading, packaging and storage of plants, vegetables, fruits or flowers | |
| Manufacture of modified starch or starch made from plants that have special properties | |
| Manufacture of oil or fat from plants or animals | |
| Manufacture of natural extracts or products from natural extracts | |
| Manufacture of active ingredients from natural raw materials | |
| Tanneries or leather finishing | |
| Manufacture of natural rubber products (except for rubber bands, rubber balloons and rubber rings) | |
| Manufacture of products from agricultural by-products or agricultural waste (except for those with uncomplicated production processes, eg drying or dehydration) | |
| Manufacture of fuel from agricultural products, including agricultural scrap or garbage or waste | |
| Manufacture of preservation of food, beverages, food additives or food ingredients using modern technology | |
| Manufacture of medical food or food supplements | |
| Cold storage, or cold storage and cold storage transportation | |
| Trading centre for agricultural goods | |
| Manufacture of animal feed production and animal food ingredients | |
| Manufacture of modern agricultural products or services related to modern agriculture | |
| 2. Mining, ceramics and basic metals | Prospecting of minerals |
| Potash mining and/or dressing | |
| Manufacture of advanced or nano materials or products produced from advanced or nano materials | |
| Manufacture of glass or ceramics products | |
| Manufacture of fire-resistant materials or heat insulation | |
| Manufacture of gypsum board or gypsum products | |
| Manufacture of up-stream steel, eg hot metal, pig iron, sponge iron, Direct Reduction Iron (DRI) and Hot Briquetted Iron (HBI) | |
| Manufacture of intermediate steel, eg slab, billet and bloom | |
| Manufacture of down-stream steel | |
| Manufacture of steel pipes or stainless-steel pipes | |
| Manufacture of metal powder | |
| Manufacture of ferro-alloy | |
| Manufacture of cast iron/steel parts | |
| Rolling, drawing, casting or gorging of non-ferrous metals | |
| Coil centre | |
| Manufacture of construction materials and pre-stressed concrete for public utilities | |
| 3. Light industry | Manufacture of textile products or parts |
| Manufacture of non-woven fabric or hygienic products made of non-woven fabric | |
| Manufacture of bags or shoes or products made of leather or artificial leather | |
| Manufacture of sports equipment or parts | |
| Manufacture of musical instrument | |
| Manufacture of furniture or parts | |
| Manufacture of toys | |
| Manufacture of gems and jewellery or parts including raw material and prototype | |
| Manufacture of lenses | |
| Manufacture of medical devices or parts | |
| 4. Metal products or metal products including metal parts | Manufacture of metal products including metal parts |
| Surface treatment or anodised surface treatment (except coating or colouring treatment for decoration purpose) | |
| Heat treatment | |
| Manufacture of multi-purpose engines and equipment | |
| Manufacture of machinery, equipment and parts | |
| Manufacture of general automobile | |
| Manufacture of automobile engines | |
| Manufacture of vehicle parts | |
| Building or repair of ships | |
| Manufacture and/or repair of rolling stocks, parts or equipment for rail system | |
| Manufacture or repair of aircraft or aerospace devices and equipment | |
| Manufacture of motorcycles | |
| Manufacture of fuel cells | |
| Fabrication industry or platform repair for petroleum industry | |
| Manufacture of science equipment | |
| Manufacture and/or repair of vehicles and weapon systems for national defence | |
| Manufacture and/or repair of weapons and exercise-facilitating equipment for national defence and parts | |
| Manufacture and/or repair of combat facilitating equipment such as bullet-proof and flak-proof vests, armours or bullet-proof and flak-proof shields | |
| 5. Electronic industry and electric appliances | Manufacture of electrical products |
| Manufacture of parts and/or equipment used for electrical products | |
| Manufacture of electronic products | |
| Manufacture of parts and/or equipment used for electronic products | |
| Manufacture of material for microelectronics | |
| E-commerce | |
| Digital services | |
| 6. Chemicals, paper and plastics | Manufacturing of chemical products for industry |
| Manufacture of eco-friendly chemicals or polymers or products from eco-friendly polymers | |
| Oil refinery | |
| Manufacture of petrochemicals | |
| Manufacture of specialty polymers or specialty chemicals | |
| Manufacture of plastic products for industrial goods | |
| Manufacture of plastic packages with special properties | |
| Manufacture of plastic products from recycled plastic | |
| Active pharmaceutical ingredients | |
| Manufacturing of medicines | |
| Manufacture of chemical fundamental fertilisers | |
| Manufacture of pulp or paper | |
| Manufacture paper articles | |
| Production of printed matter | |
| Manufacture of body care products, such as soap, shampoo, toothpaste and cosmetics | |
| Manufacture of plastic products for consumer goods | |
| Manufacture of products from pulp or paper | |
| 7. Service and public utilities | Public utilities and basic services |
| Natural gas station | |
| Mass transit systems and transportation of bulk goods | |
| Logistics service centres | |
| Real estate development for industrial use | |
| Product sterilization services | |
| Recycling and reuse of unwanted materials | |
| Waste treatment or disposal | |
| Thai motion picture production | |
| Motion picture support services | |
| Tourism promotion services | |
| Activities to support tourism | |
| Medical services | |
| Development of labour’s accommodation in accordance with international standard | |
| Smart city area development business | |
| Smart city system development business | |
| Distribution centre with smart system | |
| International Business Centre | |
| EV charging stations | |
| Housing projects for low-income earners | |
| 8. Technology and innovation development | Targeted care technology development |
The following activities are knowledge-based activities focusing on R&D and design to enhance the country’s competitiveness that will be granted an eight-year corporate income tax exemption without being subject to an exemption cap:
- Economic forest plantation (except for Eucalyptus)
- Creative product design and development centre
- Manufacture of aircraft or aircraft parts, such as airframe, critical parts, appliance equipment or other components
- Manufacture and/or repair of unmanned systems for national defence and parts used in the manufacture and/or repair
- Electronics design
- Software
- Production of electricity or electricity and steam from garbage or refuse-derived fuel
- Energy Service Company (ESCO)
- Food innovation industrial zone
- Industrial zone or technology zone
- Cloud service
- Research and development
- Bio and medical industries
- Advanced manufacturing industries
- Basic and supporting industries
- High-value services
- Creative and digital industries
- Biotechnology
- Engineering design
- Scientific laboratories
- Calibration services
- Human resources development
Conclusion
Incentives can be both tax and non-tax related and depend on the type of business activity. A more detailed list of activities can be found on the BOI’s website.
If you are interested in opening a BOI company in Thailand, we recommend engaging with Acclime’s services to assist you in registering and setting up a BOI company in a hassle-free manner.
Related guides
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Five reasons for setting up a business in Thailand - Five common challenges when starting a business in Thailand
- 100% foreign business ownership in Thailand
- How to register a Thai limited company
- Articles of Association of companies in Thailand
About Acclime.
Acclime is Asia’s premier tech-enabled professional services firm. We provide formation, accounting, tax, HR and advisory services, focusing on delivering high-quality outsourcing and consulting services to our local and international clients in Thailand and beyond.
