Reading a Thai Withholding Tax Certificate: What Each Line Means and Who Needs It
When a Thai company pays a contractor, landlord or advertiser, it usually keeps a small slice of the payment and sends it straight to the Revenue Department. The payee receives a document proving that happened. Treating that document as filing clutter is one of the more expensive habits in Thai bookkeeping, because the payee needs it to claim the tax back.
What the certificate is
Section 50 Bis of the Thai Revenue Code requires the payer to give the payee a certificate whenever tax is withheld at source. A guide from Invoice Data Extraction on 2026 requirements describes it as the payer’s proof that tax was deducted, and the payee’s proof that a credit is due.
The payer issues it, signs it (or has an authorised representative sign) and produces two copies. The original goes to the payee. The payer keeps the second copy and attaches it to the relevant PND return, which is PND 3 for payments to individuals and PND 53 for payments to companies.
What must appear on it
An incomplete certificate can be rejected when the payee tries to use it. The guide lists these required fields:
- Payer’s legal name, address and tax ID
- Payee’s legal name, address and tax ID
- Date of payment
- Type of income, matching a Revenue Department category
- Gross amount paid before withholding
- Rate applied and amount withheld
- Signature of the payer or its representative
The tax ID on the certificate has to match the payee’s registration with the Revenue Department. A mismatch is a common reason a credit claim fails, and the fix is a corrected certificate from the payer.
Common withholding rates
The same guide gives these rates for 2026. They apply to the payment amount before 7% VAT, and withholding generally applies to payments above THB 1,000 per transaction.
| Income type | Rate |
| Services paid to companies or individuals | 3% |
| Professional fees (individuals) | 3% |
| Rent and property | 5% |
| Advertising | 2% |
| Transportation | 1% |
| Insurance premiums | 1% |
| Prizes and awards | 5% |
On a THB 100,000 consulting invoice, a company pays THB 97,000 and withholds THB 3,000. The consultant then holds a certificate worth THB 3,000 against next year’s income tax.
How the payee uses it
The recipient adds the certificates up at year end and subtracts them from the income tax they owe. Where the certificates exceed the tax due, the difference can be claimed as a refund.
That makes record-keeping a practical matter:
- File each certificate when it arrives, not at year end.
- Check the tax ID and the amount against the invoice.
- Chase any missing certificate within the same month.
- Match certificates to bank receipts before preparing the return.
What goes wrong in practice
Payers sometimes withhold the wrong rate or issue a certificate weeks late. The guide notes that under-withholding can lead to surcharges and fines for the payer, while late or incomplete certificates can block the payee’s credit. It recommends issuing the certificate on the day of payment.
Businesses that deal with many suppliers often struggle most with consistency. A withholding tax certificate in Thailand has to be accurate for every supplier and every month, so accounting teams tend to set up a standing process: the payment run triggers the certificate, and a second person checks it before it leaves the building.
A worked example for a freelancer
A graphic designer in Chiang Mai invoices three clients in one month: a company for THB 40,000, another for THB 25,000 and an agency for THB 15,000. Each is a service fee, so each payer withholds 3%, which is THB 1,200, THB 750 and THB 450. The designer receives THB 77,600 in total and three certificates worth THB 2,400 combined.
Across a year the same pattern produces a stack of certificates. If the designer’s final income tax bill comes to THB 30,000 and the certificates add up to THB 28,000, only THB 2,000 remains to pay. A missing certificate for even one client raises the bill by that client’s share.
Foreign companies and individuals
Foreign payees need the same certificate when Thai payers withhold from them, though the rate may differ under a double tax treaty. The payee should ask for the certificate and keep it with the contract and the invoice, since it supports any foreign tax credit claim in their home country.
The year-end checklist is short: a certificate for every payment where tax was withheld, and a total that matches the figure on the tax return.
