17 replies to this topic

[sharkdog]

If you think the US has lots of silly laws & regulations, inept government and corrupt administration... wait till you move to Thailand !!!  

 

[dixon cox]

If you think the US has lots of silly laws & regulations, inept government and corrupt administration... wait till you move to Thailand !!!  

 

Agreed, same goes for the UK too. Which is why it's best to keep your existence in Thailand as simple as possible.

 

In a nutshell, rent property in Thailand and fund yourself from the west.

[mardhi]

Agreed, same goes for the UK too. Which is why it's best to keep your existence in Thailand as simple as possible.

 

In a nutshell, rent property in Thailand and fund yourself from the west.

 

Having lived and worked here for some 13 years now, I would base anything on the following rule of thumb.  

 

If you are earning in Thailand, in excess of 80,000b month its worth the hassle of being legit.   If its less than that, do not bother.  

 

I am talking about using your own funds in anything related to the above.

 

However the elephant in the room is about how Thailand is changing its tax system.    There is a rule about people spending more than 180 days in Thailand have obligation to pay income tax.  It is not currently enforced except for people with a work permit.   There are lots of theories that this will be extended and partly linked to all the changes with visa's.    It making me look seriously at my tax liabilities, over and above my work permit income and if I should be domiciled into another nearby country.    My tax affairs are anything but straight forward though.     However many 'residents' have income being generated from outside Thailand investments and then bought in tax free.    I believe that will change and quite possibly even for the retired visa holders.      there is a big hole in the Thai tax collection system and they are looking at ways to extract more tax from everyone who cannot vote - that is us.     

 

I do not profess to have answers though - just alerting to what may be coming sooner rather than later. 

 

Edit: Incidentally there is another hardly known tax rule.   That is that money generated outside of Thailand, can come in tax free, provided its earned in the previous year - i.e its sat in a bank account offshore for a year or more.   It will be up to the individual to prove this and many guys will sensibly not want to declare what they hold abroad as its nobody's business but there own.   

 

I am not an accountant so the terminology maybe slightly off, but this is the intent of the various laws.  if you look at many Thai large companies, they are all investing funds offshore.   Good example, the Landmark hotel in Bangkok.  The family who own it are buying up London hotels by the truck load.     The baht is relatively strong and now is a good time for overseas investments in their eyes.    It also takes the funds outside of the Thai tax system.      

[rocketrocket223]

Thank you for that information Mardhi.  I will certainly keep it in mind.  Btw, do you own one of the lb bars in Thailand?

My wife and I are actually going to be visiting the Thai consulate in New York later in the year and hoping they will be able to provide some answers as well.

The problem for me is that I am only 47 and I am pretty sure that I will completely lose my mind if I have to wait until I am retired to move to LOS.  

My wife and I figure that, depending on where we live in Thailand(I prefer BKK or Pattaya, but, my wife is from KK), 60K-75/80K baht per month would probably suffice.  We do have some prime land in KK and some rental property up there which should help.  

Thank you again for the information my friend.  Much appreciated

[veveron]

Maybe this will be of a small help.  I went to school with a women who ended up in Bangkok working as counsler at an international school. She doesnt speak Thai but has a MA in Psychology, her husband, an Englishman works in some kind of climbing/physical training job (I never really cared).  My own background, foreground and current ground is accounting, though in TH not the actual work of course. Many of the banks hire consultants with a CFA and accounting experience(not CPAs alone though) none of work requires knowledge of Thai or the local reporting standards.

 

I just thought I'd mention these examples since they might apply. The skills you mentioned aren't completely useless in Thailand.

[rocketrocket223]

Maybe this will be of a small help.  I went to school with a women who ended up in Bangkok working as counsler at an international school. She doesnt speak Thai but has a MA in Psychology, her husband, an Englishman works in some kind of climbing/physical training job (I never really cared).  My own background, foreground and current ground is accounting, though in TH not the actual work of course. Many of the banks hire consultants with a CFA and accounting experience(not CPAs alone though) none of work requires knowledge of Thai or the local reporting standards.

 

I just thought I'd mention these examples since they might apply. The skills you mentioned aren't completely useless in Thailand.

Thank you for the information my friend.  Actually, the Counselor info may prove to be quite useful as I had not thought of that before.  I do not have the degree, but, I do have over 12 years of experience in the field.  It is certainly another venue to look into. Much appreciated.