Speaking at a press conference, he affirmed that the infrastructure would be completed within 18 months and the system would be fully operational by 2018.

The press conference followed the first meeting of the national e-payment steering committee, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak.

Apisak said the system would enhance tax-collection efficiency and boost the country’s tax revenue, which in turn would also assist in budget allocation to the low-income group and reduce income equality.

When the system is completed, lower-income people will be able to use their ID cards to buy products priced from Bt20, he told reporters.

“This is an open opportunity for all Thais to join the e-payment system,” he added.

The system is aimed mainly at reducing ‘cash’ transactions via credit or debit card, which are generally considered costly and risky.

At present, each transaction via costs Bt0.25 for operators, but the minister said negotiations were under way to bring down the cost once the e-payment system was fully operational and the number of users increased.

Of the total Bt3.5-billion investment, the private sector will outlay Bt500 million to develop the system and expand the use of electronic data capture/chip terminals nationwide.

Government agencies will invest Bt3 billion in the national infrastructure.

While Bt2.5 billion of the government investment sum is geared for tax-related infrastructure, the remainder will be used to develop the database on individuals eligible for subsidies and welfare.

The steering committee also re-solved to set up five working groups, to ensure completion schedules are met.

The first group will work on the Any ID scheme, which is a collaboration between the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Thailand that allows anyone to transfer money by using their ID card, mobile number or e-mail address, Apisak said.

The second will focus on electronic data capture/chip terminals, aiming to expand the number of card-receiving machines from 400,000 currently to 2 million by 2018.

Both of these groups will be headed by the governor of the central bank.

The Revenue Department will take charge of the third group, which is responsible for the e-tax payment system. The Finance Ministry permanent secretary, meanwhile, will lead the other two groups, which will focus on the integrated e-payment system for government and state agencies, and the low-income-individuals database. These last two groups will also take charge of educating the public about the e-payment system, the minister said.