Anudit calls on the government to review the criteria for disqualifying state welfare cardholders when children use their parents' names for tax deductions, pointing out that the measure is excessively strict and lacks a human dimension, forcing low-income families to choose between their children's tax deduction rights and financial aid.
On 6 June 2026 GMT+7, Lt. Anudit Nakornthap, Deputy Leader of the Kla Party, said he urges the government to reconsider the policy of disqualifying state welfare cardholders when their children use their names for tax deductions. While he agrees with organizing state welfare to ensure taxpayers' funds reach those truly in need, he said the recent condition that elderly cardholders lose their welfare rights immediately if their children claim tax deductions, including retrospective tax audits and requiring affected individuals to appeal in person, is too harsh, inflexible, and inconsistent with Thai social realities.
Lt. Anudit further stated that assuming that when tax deductions are used it means parents receive adequate care is an oversimplification based on numbers alone, ignoring the true poverty structures in society. The tax deduction of 30,000 baht per year for supporting parents averages about 2,500 baht per month or less than 100 baht per day, which is insufficient to cover the living and medical expenses of today's elderly.
"If the government uses this criterion to decide that parents should no longer receive the state welfare card, it effectively forces low-income families to choose between the children's tax deduction benefits and the financial aid their parents need to survive," said the Deputy Leader of the Kla Party.
Additionally, Lt. Anudit raised concerns about the government's approach of retrospective audits and shifting the burden onto citizens to prove their eligibility, especially elderly people who may have to travel to appeal or, in some cases, file police reports to confirm that their children are not actually supporting them, just to maintain their rightful benefits.
"Forcing elderly parents to struggle to prove their hardship is not an effective way to manage welfare. Instead, it creates burdens, feelings of injustice, and potentially unnecessary family conflicts," Lt. Anudit said.
The Deputy Leader of the Kla Party proposed that the government integrate existing digital databases with local-level data through community mechanisms, local administration, and village health volunteers (VHVs) to comprehensively and accurately assess each family's hardship rather than using a single criterion to decide citizens' rights nationwide.
Lt. Anudit emphasized that effective public policy management should balance legal criteria with an understanding of people's living conditions and urged the government to carefully review the measure to avoid making the elderly victims of overly harsh policies lacking human compassion.