Old Car Trade-In Program Not as Simple as It Seems: Finance Ministry Insists on Fair Valuation Conditions, Urges Revenue Department to Clarify Quickly
Thailand's old car trade-in program faces delays because officials struggle to fairly value used vehicles and lack systems for properly dismantling scrapped cars, the Finance Ministry said.
On May 11, 2025, Luaworn Saengsnit, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, revealed that the Revenue Department has reported on the government's old car trade-in program, which is part of measures utilizing funds from a 400 billion baht emergency loan decree. However, implementation is more complicated than initially thought due to the challenges of fairly valuing used vehicles with complex and detailed considerations, such as determining acceptable vehicle age. When older cars are the same age but in different condition, it becomes difficult to assign fair prices—whether 50,000 baht, 60,000 baht, or another amount. This requires careful handling to prevent expensive cars from receiving low valuations or cheap cars from receiving high ones.
Additionally, Thailand currently lacks a systematic process for disposing of scrapped vehicles and recovering their components, such as scrap metal and batteries. Officials must ensure that purchased old vehicles are actually dismantled properly and don't leak out of the disposal system.
"Based on reports from 2-3 weeks ago, the Revenue Department indicated that the project details are not straightforward because we don't want to create opportunities for officials to exercise discretion when evaluating individual vehicles," Luaworn stated. "If two cars are the same age but one is well-maintained while the other is neglected or a wreck, but they receive the same price, we don't want to implement a project lacking clarity and relying on official discretion."
Luaworn emphasized that transitioning to electric vehicles is an important goal for the Finance Ministry, but the program must proceed with clarity. Before the loan can be screened and approved, the plan must be clear. Lack of clarity could delay consumers' vehicle purchase decisions. The faster and clearer the program, the better. The Revenue Department is expected to submit revised project conditions for the Finance Ministry's consideration, and may even return with an improved alternative to the simple car trade-in model.
