The World Trade Organization concluded in a recent panel report that Thailand failed to implement the recommendations and rulings of the Dispute Settlement Board pertaining to the cigarette dispute case filed by Philip Morris Philippines Manufacturing Inc. against Thailand.
A 300-page compliance panel report published by the WTO Tuesday showed that the board came to a supporting conclusion that Thailand’s value added tax notification requirement “accords less favorable treatment to imported cigarettes as compared to like domestic cigarettes by exposing cigarette importers to legal risks and additional administrative burdens and costs, which the domestic producer of cigarettes does not have to face.”
The WTO also called on Thailand to conform with the measures cited by the group under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the Customs Valuation Agreement.