Thai govt to allow citizens to convert part of losing lottery tickets to retirement savings

Thailand's citizens will soon be able to convert some of the money they spent on losing digital lottery tickets into retirement savings.

The Nation reported that this is because of a policy that the Thai government is introducing.

This policy is supposedly a means to "return profit" and encourage thrift in the face of an ageing population.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Ekniti Nitithanprapas confirmed the plan on Oct. 1.

He has reportedly instructed the Permanent Secretary to finalise the mechanism's criteria.

Quick Big Wins

This project is reportedly scheduled to be launched within the next four months.

As one of the government's priority "Quick Big Wins", this new initiative will see a portion of the price of non-winning digital lottery tickets automatically channelled into a dedicated savings account.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the "Lottery Savings" scheme has not been formally named.

He also highlighted that this will be different from the "Lottery Pension" scheme run by the National Savings Fund (NSF).

Withdraw funds

He added: "The money will be segmented from the ticket price and held under principles similar to a Retirement Mutual Fund (RMF). Funds can be withdrawn once the individual reaches the age of 55."

Citizens aged 56 and older can continue saving for an additional five years, he said.

The accumulated funds can be used as collateral for loans, which offer liquidity to savers.

The Ministry also intends to offer 1 per cent interest government bond investment opportunities to elderly and retired citizens once a month.

This ensures that retail investors can participate easily.

Promote saving, not gambling

However, the project's goal is not to promote gambling, the Ministry of Finance's Permanent Secretary Lavaron Sangsnit emphasised.

He said this project's aim is purely to promote saving.

It will be limited to tickets purchased via the "Pao Tang" digital application.

Its digital infrastructure allows it to accurately track purchasers and credit their individual savings accounts.

He said the funding from these returned savings will be taken from the 17 per cent share of revenue currently allocated to the Government Lottery Office (GLO). This falls under the Minister's authority.

The savings will be managed with an emphasis on safety and capital preservation, he added.

This will supposedly be done through a highly secure fund structure.

Gambling problem

In 2024, The Nation reported that nearly five million children and young people in Thailand participated in various forms of gambling.

This number was revealed by health experts and academics speaking at a forum on Nov. 29, 2024.

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