Thailand v. Philippines

Thailand appealed a WTO Panel Report finding that Thailand acted inconsistently with trade law by subjecting imported cigarettes to Value Added Tax (VAT) in excess of that applied to domestic cigarettes and in other ways treating imported cigarettes less favorably than like domestic cigarettes. The Appellate Body upheld all of the Panel's findings concerning Thailand's unequal treatment of imported versus domestic cigarettes and recommended that Thailand bring its policies into conformity with its international trade obligations.

Thailand v. Philippines, DS371, WTO Appellate Body Report (2011).

  • Thailand
  • Jun 17, 2011
  • WTO Appellate Body Report
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Parties

Plaintiff Thailand

Defendant Philippines

Third Party

  • Australia
  • China
  • Chinese Taipei
  • European Union
  • India
  • United States of America

Legislation Cited

Order of Revenue Department Por 85/2542 Health Promotion and Foundation Act, B.E. 2544 (2001)

Thai Revenue Code Royal Decree issued under the Revenue Code Governing Exemption from Value Added Tax (No. 239) B.E. 2534 (1991)

Tobacco Act B.E. 2509 (1966)

Related Documents

Type of Litigation

Tobacco Control Topics

Substantive Issues

Type of Tobacco Product

None

"Thus, Thailand argues, the Panel's finding was not based on the tax burden under Thai VAT law, but instead was based solely on the difference in the "administrative requirements" for resales of imported and domestic cigarettes, and the consequences of failure to comply with those requirements. We consider that Thailand's description of the measure analyzed by the Panel under Article III:2 as "administrative requirements" in respect of VAT is both under-inclusive and over-inclusive. The description is under-inclusive because it does not account for the complete exemption from VAT for resales of domestic cigarettes, and therefore disregards that VAT liability will, when certain conditions prescribed under Thai law are not met, be incurred by resellers of imported cigarettes, but never by resellers of domestic cigarettes. For this reason, Thailand's observation that the domestic producer and importer pay the same VAT amount is incomplete because it disregards that, under Thai law, subsequent resellers of imported cigarettes, but not subsequent resellers of domestic cigarettes, may also incur VAT liability. At the same time, Thailand's description is over-inclusive because the relevant measure for purposes of the Panel's consideration of the Philippines' Article III:2 claim does not include all of the administrative requirements evaluated by the Panel in respect of the Philippines' Article III:4 claim. As we have explained, the relevant measure analyzed by the Panel under Article III:2 consists of an exemption from VAT liability for resellers of domestic cigarettes, together with the imposition of VAT on resellers of imported cigarettes when they do not satisfy prescribed conditions for obtaining input tax credits necessary to achieve zero VAT liability."