The Thai Retailers Association is proposing that the government unlock the "Thai Help Thai Plus" program, expanding eligibility to stores of all sizes to curb concentrated purchasing power.
Retail sales indices are plummeting, and businesses are preparing to raise prices of consumer goods by no more than 5% after the "Thai Helps Thai Plus" scheme negatively impacted medium-to-large retailers and restaurants within the VAT system, causing sales to plummet by 30-50%. The association is urging the government to review the new criteria, emphasizing the "Expand-Create-Maintain" concept to support employment and inject liquidity into the economy.
June 14, 2026 – Mr. Nat Wongpanich, President of the Thai Retailers Association, revealed the results of a retailer confidence index survey conducted jointly with the Bank of Thailand. The survey found that the retail business confidence index in May continued to decline across all components and store types, reflecting pressure from weak consumer purchasing power and high business costs. However, the outlook for the economy over the next three months (July-September) has risen above 50 points again, as businesses remain hopeful about the government's economic stimulus measures under the "Thai Helps Thai Plus" project.
Although the project injected funds into small shops and highly vulnerable micro-enterprises, the association found that this measure resulted in a concentration of purchasing power among participating shops. This had a severely negative impact on the sales of medium-sized businesses, especially restaurants properly registered for Value Added Tax (VAT), which saw sales decline by 30–50 percent.
Mr. Nat Wongpanich expressed concern about the inflationary pressures stemming from production costs currently affecting the retail industry, stating, "Businesses remain worried that after the project ends, purchasing power may slow down again, while operating costs continue to rise. As a result, most businesses are preparing to gradually adjust prices in several categories, expecting increases of no more than 5%. This reflects the inflationary pressures caused by production costs, leading consumers to face higher prices and a higher cost of living, while their purchasing power decreases."
Businesses registered in the tax system face a 20% increase in costs but are ineligible to participate in the program.
The current economic structure indicates that retail and restaurant businesses with annual sales exceeding 1.8 million baht, registered in the VAT system, play a crucial role in government revenue collection, employment, and the broader supply chain. However, they are currently facing pressure from all sides, including rising energy costs, transportation costs, and operating expenses. Restaurants, in particular, are bearing a 15-20% increase in raw material costs but are not benefiting from economic stimulus measures due to stipulations imposed by those programs.
Therefore, the Thai Retailers Association has submitted recommendations to the government for improving the conditions of the next phase of the “Thai Helps Thai Plus” project, based on the “Expand-Create-Maintain” concept, to maintain the balance of the overall economic system. The recommendations focus on three key areas:
- Expanding participation: Opening the program to all sizes of retailers, including modern trade stores that are properly registered in the tax system, will allow them to participate. This will distribute funds throughout the supply chain, as many products in modern trade stores come from Thai SMEs, thus helping to transfer more funds to small-scale producers. It is also proposed to link this measure with the use of the government welfare card within modern trade stores to provide the public with more options for quality, affordable products.
- Incentives for Tax System Entry: Designing measures that benefit businesses already within the tax system will be a significant incentive for small business owners and shops to see the benefits of properly entering the system. This is especially important during a period when the government is promoting the use of technology and AI in business management. This will encourage small businesses to willingly grow and join the tax system in the future.
- Maintaining employment balance: Expanding the eligibility criteria will help support medium and large-sized businesses, which collectively employ a large number of people, allowing them to continue operating during a period of sluggish overall consumer purchasing power.
Mr. Nat concluded by outlining policy approaches to benefit the country's revenue structure, stating, "We believe that if the government expands its assistance to include businesses within the tax system in the next economic stimulus measure, it will help sustain both grassroots businesses and those that drive the country's tax structure, enabling them to weather the economic downturn together."
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