Cabinet approves tax exemption for military early retirement payments

The Cabinet has approved in principle a ministerial regulation exempting the Early Departure Payment (EDP) lump sum paid to military personnel taking early retirement from personal income tax.

Deputy Government Spokesperson Lalida Periswiwatana told the media that the Cabinet approved the draft ministerial regulation, proposed by the Finance Ministry, at its weekly meeting last week.

She said that, under the draft regulation, Royal Thai Armed Forces personnel who join the Defence Ministry's early retirement programme during the 2025-2027 fiscal years will be entitled to a tax exemption on the EDP, accumulated returns from the Government Pension Fund (GPF), and a terminal support payment equivalent to seven to 10 times their final monthly salary, depending on their length of service.

Those eligible for the tax exemption are personnel who have served in the Royal Thai Armed Forces for at least 25 years, are at least 50 years old with a minimum of two years of service remaining before mandatory retirement, and retire with the rank of colonel, captain (Navy) or group captain (Air Force).

The early retirement programme is intended to optimise the size of the armed forces, improve organisational efficiency and reduce the long-term burden on taxpayers by lowering the Defence Ministry's personnel expenditure, the deputy government spokeswoman said.

Lalida acknowledged that the tax exemption is expected to reduce government revenue by about 120 million baht over the 2025-2027 fiscal years in support of the early retirement programme.