NSTDA has been entrusted by the Government to implement measures to promote R&D investment in the private sector. Two measures for which NSTDA is responsible are:
300% Tax Exemption for R&D Expenses. NSTDA has been appointed as a certifying body for research, development and innovation projects submitted for tax privileges by companies since 2002. In 2017, NSTDA introduced RDIMS, a system that allows a company with a previous certified project and a registered account with NSTDA to self-declare a research and development project to receive this type of tax incentive, provided that the project does not exceed 3 million baht. This new self-declaration scheme is another option to the pre-approval scheme in which companies need to submit each individual R&D project for evaluation and certification. The new scheme is designed to provide more convenience to companies, and therefore promote the incentive among private sector operating in Thailand.
Thai Innovation List. In 2016, the Government Procurement Program was launched to support local enterprises engaging in the commercialization of local innovations. NSTDA was tasked to lead the implementation of this program, by establishing “Thai Innovation List” containing innovations (products and services) entitled to the fast-track treatment in the government procurement process. Innovative products and services submitted by companies are verified for their origination from R&D performed in Thailand and evaluated for the quality by a committee set up by NSTDA, and checked on the pricing by the Budget Bureau. The innovations passing the evaluations are published in “Thai Innovation List” by the Budget Bureau for a maximum of 8 years.