Commerce Ministry “extends time for legal transactions” in flooded areas in the North

The Ministry of Commerce, through the Department of Business Development, is expediting assistance to juristic persons in flooded areas of 'Chiang Rai, Phrae, Nan and other provinces' to ensure that their businesses do not interrupt. This is done by issuing measures to help extend the registration period for juristic persons, report lost accounts and documents, and submit financial statements. They can explain the reasons for the necessity and evidence of the disaster for officials to consider after the floods have ended. Mrs. Aromon Sapphawittham, Director-General of the Department of Business Development, Ministry of Commerce, revealed that 'From the flood situation, flash floods, landslides and forest runoff in the northern region since August until now, it has caused severe damage to legal entities and people in the affected areas. Mr. Pichai Naripthaphan, Minister of Commerce, has urged all agencies to urgently provide assistance to those affected. In this regard, juristic persons whose head offices a re located in disaster areas cannot travel to register or submit a copy of the shareholder list or perform any other actions with the Provincial Commercial Office within the time period prescribed by law during the flooding period, including documents lost or damaged by such disasters. The Department has issued relief measures for business operators who have experienced the disaster and have been affected in the 3 northern provinces, including other affected areas, with additional business assistance measures as follows: A juristic person affected by the flood whose head office is located in the affected area can request an extension of time and provide reasons and evidence showing that they have been affected by the flood, making them unable to submit registration, financial statements, shareholder lists (Bor Chor 5), including reporting lost or damaged accounts or supporting documents that must be reported to the Accounting Inspector within the time period specified by the law under the responsibility of t he Department, so that the officer can consider extending the time to submit documents or take legal action for the juristic person. The juristic person can submit a request for an extension of time or take action as specified by law to the officer within 15 days from the date the flood situation ends. In the event that any juristic person receives a letter of accusation from a government official, which is a case that occurred during a flood, they can explain the reasons, necessity, and evidence showing that they were affected by the flood and were unable to take action within the time frame specified by the law under the responsibility of the Department, so that the official can consider ending the case and not issue a fine according to the law on fines. In addition, the department has developed a business registration system and various services using digital technology to facilitate. In the case that business operators want to contact the provincial commercial office in the flood-affected area but are u nable to travel, they can do so through the online channels of the provincial commercial office. Information from DBD Datawarehouse+ of the Department of Business Development as of August 31, 2024, the Northern Region (17 provinces) has a total of 80,758 juristic persons operating businesses with a registered capital of 519,310.31 million baht, of which Chiang Rai has 9,012 juristic persons with a capital of 49,900.38 million baht, Phrae has 1,922 juristic persons with a capital of 8,386.49 million baht, Nan has 2,064 juristic persons with a capital of 5,602.44 million baht. Source: Thai News Agency