Thai 3,000 baht cash handout develops

BANGKOK, Sep 10, 2020, Bangkok Post. The Finance Ministry is finalising details of the 3,000-baht cash handout scheme, with initial daily spending disbursed through an e-wallet application and a cap of 100 baht, Bangkok Post reported.

Details are expected to be finalised by the Fiscal Policy Office before submission to the Center for Economic Situation Administration on Thursday, said a Finance Ministry source speaking on condition of anonymity.

The cash handout scheme’s total value is 45 billion baht.

Under the measure, the government will give 3,000-baht cash handouts to 15 million people to buy consumer goods.

Recipients are required to register for the cash and the money will be transferred through the Pao Tang app’s G-wallet app, similar to procedures under the Taste, Shop, Spend scheme.

The main difference lies in how daily spending is capped at a limited amount for the 3,000-baht scheme.

The initial proposal required individuals to spend at least 100 baht per day at shops registered to participate in the programme, said the source.

The government will subsidise 50% of all spending on a daily basis.

For instance, if a sum of 100 baht is spent at a local shop, the shop would collect 50 baht from a consumer, while the government would pay the remaining 50 baht to the store owner.

“We chose this spending approach because we want consumer spending to be distributed to different stores, especially small shops such as noodle shops and grilled pork vendors, instead of large sums being spent once,” said the source.

“This is in line with our objective to stimulate the overall economy.”

The scheme is expected to begin in early October and will run until year-end 2020.

Funding will come from a credit line of emergency loans allocated for economic recovery worth around 45 billion baht.

To be eligible for programme participation, individuals must be at least 18 years old and participating shops must be those who participated in the Taste, Shop, Spend scheme and We Travel Together programme.

The number of shops that participated in the two schemes number 70,000 nationwide, said the source.

For shops interested in participating in the 3,000-baht cash handout scheme, a registration system will be launched once the scheme receives cabinet approval, said the source.