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KhunHeineken

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Everything posted by KhunHeineken

  1. "Likely" is not a precise figure, is it? What figures? They are not accurate figures because you don't know them, and can't guarantee them. With Skype, $10AUD is $10AUD. You pay $10AUD and get $10AUD credit. With Local Phone, you don't know how much in fees you'll pay and what rate you'll get, so you don't know the final cost of the $10USD credit with Local Phone. You said earlier it's "likely what your bank charges." Do you know who I bank with? I never said. What about all the other banks in Australia. Do you know their currency conversion fees? You are dribbling again. You are trying to make unknown fees and rates into an exact amount, but you are embarrassing yourself as you refuse to admit that you can not guarantee the EXACT amount of money that is withdrawn from a customer's Aussie bank account when buying $10USD of credit with Local Phone. Now, how much does Local Phone charge to call 13 and 1300 numbers, and 1800 numbers? You never said. Do you know?
  2. Can you post a link showing a tax free threshold for non residents for taxation purposes? With a pension being deemed an income, and taxable, and the government eventually being able to classify an individual as a non resident for tax purposes by proving one has been outside of Australia for several years, what, exactly, are you relying on that ensures pensions are not taxed at non resident rates, the same as any other income?
  3. Link them and quote them then.
  4. Yeah, we do. It's not a Thai market where they throw a price at you and you haggle. Yeah, it does. We were comparing prices between Local Phone and Skype. I questioned if it was the "best" value and you can't even supply a final price to the customer. Not to mention, the price of 13 and 1300 calls, and 1800 toll free calls. Still waiting for these prices. But no EXACT price, right? With Skype, you pay $10AUD, it's a known value. You can't guarantee the price of $15.71 every time an Aussie customer buys $10USD of Local Phone credit, can you? Thus, your figures are rubbery. You haven't even mentioned the bank's currency conversion fee, that's probably because you are not Australian, and don't have an Australian bank account. This fee makes Local Phone even more expensive. Your personal attacks are wasted on me. You say Local Phone is the "best value" and I am asking you to prove it in AUD figures, but you can't, and you know you can't, because of exchange rates and bank currency conversion fees. It really is as simple as that. Thus, Skype becomes the better option.
  5. I have addressed this already, several times. The current 90 year old laws have more holes than Swiss cheese. That's why myself, and many others, have paid no tax. That's why I don't know anyone on a pension who has paid non resident tax. This is exactly why the proposed changes were drafted, and accepted by both major political parties. All those loopholes are closed, and iron clad closed. Simple as that. We know the pension is deemed an income. We know the pension is taxable. We know expats that haven't been back to Australia in years are non residents for tax purposes. We know non resident tax is 30% from $0. Put all the above together and there is cause for concern. As for human rights, do you really think this will end up a UN issue.
  6. This is the point many in the Australia Forum don't want to accept. Article 18 and Article 19 of Australia's DTA with Thailand deals with pensions. Article 18 relies on the "provisions" of Article 19, and Article 19 focuses on government occupational pensions. When this was put to members, one member's reply was, and I quote, "Forget about Article 19." Yes, it's like Article 19 does not exist, because Article 18 says the pension will be tax in the resident country only. Addressed in this video. Around 16 minutes to 18 minutes.
  7. Wrong. Do you even know how a DTA works? Did you watch the youtube video I posted?
  8. Squeezing money out of farang always seems to get the support of all political parties in Thai government.
  9. Read this. See the huge list of countries. Looks "global" enough to me. Scroll down to Thailand. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_taxation
  10. Tax in Thailand is like being the Prime Minister of Thailand, but in reverse. One day you are the PM, next day you are not. One day you have no tax to pay, the next day you have to pay tax. This Is Thailand. (TIT)
  11. Are you suggesting all the Thai government announcements about it are AI generated deep fakes by online trolls?
  12. Enforcement of the laws you mention are labor intensive. It involves police, check points etc. Or, fire inspections etc. For foreigners remitting money into bank accounts, computers will do the job. Big difference.
  13. Can you post a credible link that sets out the frequency and duration of these permissible "trips abroad?"
  14. I'd feel bad if I was living in Australia also.
  15. It's been proven the aged pension is deemed an income at law. It's been proven the age pension is taxable. When the proposed changes are passed, if you are outside of Australia for 183 days, which is the majority of expats living in Thailand, you will be deemed a non resident for tax purposes. No application for review, no appeals. Immigration records will show this in black and white. Non resident tax brackets start from $0, no tax free threshold. As for discrimination and racism, that's the "pensioners will be up in arms" argument. I asked the question in the pension thread, not one member said they went to the Australian Embassy and voted at election time. Why would pensioners living in Australia care about a policy that doesn't effect them, especially if the government "spins" it that by passing such a tax pensioners in Australia will receive more money and / or better services. On the above point, I can't see this being an election issue, despite at any one point in time there being approximately 1 million Aussies living / working overseas. (link previously provided) I say this because Liberal proposed it, and Labor didn't scrap it, and in fact, Labor took it to the consultation stage. So, it will eventually sail through parliament regardless of what party is in government. The current tax residency laws are 90 years old with more holes in them than Swiss cheese. Myself, and some friends here, are using some of these loopholes. The current laws are no longer fit for purpose. They will be changed to a physical presence and time based model, like many other countries have, even Thailand. What's interesting is expat pensioners are taking seriously that Thailand can / will tax their pension as a tax resident of Thailand after 180 days, yet see it as an absolute impossibility for Australia to implement a similar policy that taxes their pension as a non resident of Australia tax purposes after 183 days. Foreign resident tax rates 2020 to 2025 Foreign resident tax rates for 2019–20 to 2024–25. Foreign resident tax rates 2024–25 Taxable income Tax on this income 0 – $135,000 30c for each $1 $135,001 – $190,000 $40,500 plus 37c for each $1 over $135,000 $190,001 and over $60,850 plus 45c for each $1 over $190,000
  16. Not much difference, but the rate is now down from 32.5% to 30% for non residents for tax purposes.
  17. I addressed this myth some time ago on the pension thread. Basically, currently, all that pension money goes to support a foreign country's economy. In this case, Thailand's economy. The Australian government would like that money circulating inside the Australian economy, after all, it's their money. The two main reasons for this is the Australian government/s gets a lot of it back in fees, GST, excise, car rego, licensing, insurance, stamp duties, council rates etc etc. It also creates employment, and what do employees pay, income tax, so there is a flow on effect throughout the Australian economy to have more people spending money in it. Medical is the one issue most rely on for this argument. The myth that it's cheaper for the Australian government to have the elderly living overseas. The Australian government isn't going to recruit and pay an extra 1000 doctors to cater for returning expats. All that will happen is the Medicare waiting list will get longer. They have to pay for Medicare anyway, and couldn't care less how long the list is, history has shown this. In the same way Thailand wants that pension money inside its economy, so does Australia, and if they can't have it al inside Australia, at least they can get 30% of it.
  18. World wide income is a a global tax policy, not just a Thai tax policy. Thailand is falling into line with global tax standards. For tourists, and expats for that matter, bringing in cash, it will not be able to be tracked and taxed, unless it's over the declared amount when bringing it in, hence my F1 / cash run to Singapore. For anyone transferring funds into a Thai bank account, once Thailand get their ducks in a row, how do you propose they avoid paying tax? The money goes through a central banking system and makes its way to the retail banking system. Source, amounts, dates, rates, and deposit is tracked all along the money's journey. Your assessment is because it may force some expats to leave Thailand for 6 months a year, the Thai's will not implement it, but world wide income is a global policy, spreading across many countries. What they may lose in expats leaving for 6 months they can pick up in taxing the expats that remain.
  19. How old is the laptop? What processor does it have?
  20. Who said the sky is falling? It's Thai tax policy. It's the law. Why do you think you can stand outside of it? True, but in my opinion, that really would push the boundaries of Thailand's capabilities, especially when you consider the amount of tourism here. That said, banks, through various tax departments in different countries, are now communicating. Why is it so difficult for people to accept that the days of tax havens, tax free residency, and hiding money, are slowly coming to an end? As norbra said, it will still be a cheap party for many here, just no longer a free party. Just like many western countries, you can't keep the tax man at bay for ever.
  21. I agree, but it's just interesting that quite a few members have the believe that it will not happen, can not happen, is impossible to collect, is not enforceable, Thailand is incapable of doing it, it's scaremongering etc etc etc etc. Yet, they paid tax in their home country since they started working in their mid to late teens, but no way could Thailand have a similar tax policy.
  22. Sure, but no harm in considering all scenarios, good and bad, right? Panicking, or preparing? There is a difference. As I have said before, I consider best case scenario, worse case scenario, and every scenario in between. Like most on this forum, I am already a tax resident of Thailand because I have been here more than 180 days this calendar year. So, I am in the game. This was by choice. I decided to stay and let Thailand get me this first time around, but I am minimizing my cash remits and topping up with ATM withdrawals with my home country Visa card. I will also do a cash run when in Singapore for the F1. If I feel the tax is an amount I do not wish to pay in 2026, I will spend 179 days in Thailand next year, and the rest in Vietnam. So, nonsense or fact, that's my plan. In my opinion, some of the "facts" put forward have some nonsense in them, and some of the "nonsense" put forward has some facts in them. We must also remember "TIT" and on that basis, anything is possible. The only way to prepare for TIT is to consider all scenarios, even the ridiculous, because that's Thailand. So, you have no skin in the game. Taking active steps to ensure one does not become a tax resident of Thailand may be the way to go for some, possibly many. We just don't know at this stage what the Thai authorities will do between the 1st Jan and 31st March 2025. Until then, I'll continue to consider all "nonsense" and all "fact" put forward by all members. Some I will dismiss quickly, some I will give consideration to. As I have said before, I just can't see all of this going away, but I hope I am wrong and it basically becomes non existent for the majority of expat retirees. Time will tell.
  23. Why would it be so surprising to see Thailand go down the same tax path as many western countries who chase every dollar of tax from their middle class? The wealthy don't pay, the poor can't pay, so they squeeze the middle class. Certain classes of countries are designated as "developing nations." As the country "develops" they build a middle class, and the country's tax system develops with it. It was only a matter of time before Thailand started to track, trace, and tax funds. Perhaps 2024 / 25 is that year. Thailand has followed western countries in many ways, why wouldn't they adopt similar tax policies?
  24. I agree, but if that's the case, why did they return the documents in previous years, but kept them this year? Could it be they are under new instructions? Makes you wonder if they will be requesting such documents at renewal time next year. Best to be prepared for the possibility.
  25. The price of "peace" in Thailand went up in 2024.

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