KhunHeineken

That's just capitalism, right?

Spot on. As foreigners, we have no rights here. That retirement visa / extension is nothing more than a 12 month tourist visa. As I said before, the Thai government says" jump" and foreigners ask "how high?" We'll pay what they say we have to pay, right or wrong, and if we don't like it, either leave, or only stay 179 days in Thailand in the future. I'm staying this year, and they will get me for this year, if they do, Thailand will get me once. That's the chance I am giving them. If I feel it's a rip off, it's Thailand 179 days, Vietnam for the rest of the year, with a few days in Singapore for the F1 to be under the resident for tax purposes days for both countries. Thailand is an unstable country, and I have never trusted the government or those in authority here, ever.

WHEN the proposed changes to tax residency are passed, that "pretty standard info" changes the game for many. Eg. Pattaya57 has been outside of Australia for 183 days, thus, no a non resident for tax purposes, therefore, non resident tax brackets apply.

Up to she. I bet she doesn't.

Could be the case. I'm not sure. However, I would say the Vietnamese want to go to the UK to work, not to get on benefits, like those crossing the channel.

The member bangs on about a great lifestyle in Australia on the aged pension. If it's so good back there, why aren't all the Aussie pensioners living back there, and not just those in Thailand, but everywhere, including places like Bali etc?

You post that your lifestyle on an aged pension in Australia is better than that of an Aussie expat living in Thailand, on the same aged pension. It's BS. If that was the case, all these Aussie expats on an aged pension would be living back in Australia. When asked for examples, your only examples were cheap cask wine and Medicare doctors. It's laughable.

So why bother posting on here? You live, full time, in Australia. What relevance do your posts have for expats in Thailand?

Can you imagine the insider trading? American politicians buying stock just before a contract is awarded. Of course, it would be a family member or trusted friend. What about the "lobbying" which is basically corruption, by buying political favoritism. The money involved is massive. War and oil. Big business.

When it's all added up, across ALL of it, it's massive, and the billions of USD involved is mind blowing. I'll be dead, but the next generation, possibly the one after, will have to deal with a country who will have around 400 million people by then, who has been the superpower for decades, dealing with a country with well over a billion people by then, that is catching up quickly, who have visions of global dominance, either through guns and bombs, or money. The money thing is already happening. This tells me, the west will have to make a move before they gain the capability to not only withstand invasion, but to counter invade. As I said, we are leaving a big mess for our children and grandchildren. If only we could all stay in our own backyard, but global politics and domination is not that simple.

I agree. What you describe very well may be the way it happens. Perhaps an end of calendar year total deposit document from your Thai bank/s, and that's the figure they use, and here's your biill. Easy money collection for them. if one wants to prove assessable / non assessable, DTA's etc etc, then they must gather all the paperwork and go through Thai bureaucracy to pay less or no tax. Good Luck doing that.

War is happening somewhere on the planet, everyday. Usually in more than one country / region. As World War 2 followed World War 1, World War 3 will follow World War 2. Ideology. Religion. Land. Energy. Politics. Economics. Humans can't help themselves.

See above post. It's all the outsourcing that I included, and called it an "industry."

Perhaps I should have stated "employer" rather than "industry" in relation to the figures I posted. More on being the biggest employer in the world, although Wiki has the Indian defense slightly higher. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_employers https://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-military-is-the-largest-employer-in-the-world-2015-06-17 You do know the US Department of Defense outsources a lot of work, don't you? That means they are not counted as employees, but they are certainly part of the defense "industry" in my book. Does a company called Halliburton sound familiar to you? Dick Cheney was the Vice President of Halliburton. Funny that. https://www.corpwatch.org/article/us-halliburton-moves-among-top-grossing-us-defense-contractors "The war in Iraq is fueling demand for services by Halliburton's KBR unit, which supplies everything from housing to daily meals for the 150,000 U.S. troops stationed there." The dollar figures are staggering. https://web.stanford.edu/class/e297a/U.S. Defense Industry and Arms Sales.htm " Lockheed Martin Corporation, based in Bethesda, Maryland, is the world’s largest defense contractor. Among Lockheed’s many claims to fame, it is also the largest military aircraft manufacturer in the world and the prime contractor on the largest defense contract ever, the $250 billion Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program." " Northrop Grumman Corporation, based in Los Angeles, California, will become the world’s second largest military contractor, after a recent $8 billion purchase of TRW propels the company up from the number three slot. Although Northrop Grumman is the world’s largest shipbuilder and the sole builder of the US Navy's aircraft carriers, it is more famous for being the manufacturer of the most expensive plane ever built, the $1.2 billion apiece B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber." I had a quick look at who makes ammunition for the US Military. This is one company. https://aollc.biz "American Ordnance LLC (AO) is a premier manufacturer of ammunition to the United States Military. " I could go on and on and on. Everything from R & D to the uniforms worn by the troops. Speaking of uniforms. https://www.propper.com https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propper#:~:text=Propper's core product has always,firefighters and emergency medical personnel. "Propper's core product has always been the current standard issue U.S. military uniform." Spend. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_highest_military_expenditures Three time more than its nearest rival, China, and nine times more than number three on the list, Russia. I simply put all of these together and called it an "industry." Perhaps my bad.

Simple article in today's online news about tax time, but it has an interesting line in it. https://www.9news.com.au/national/tax-return-2024-australian-taxation-office-warns-australians-not-to-rush-tax-return/e0f6d965-bad9-4202-8330-1f4018ebfc58 "Most information from employers, banks, government agencies and health funds usually load into your tax return from late July, Thomson said." "Government agencies" "load into your tax return." Mmmmmm.