KhunHeineken

Why seek out news on this forum when you live full time in Australia?

The advice I gave, and some others, was due to you saying you would like to go back to Thailand to live in the future. I wouldn't had given the advice I did, if you were going to live in Australia for the foreseeable future.

Which can have consequences. Which is interesting if you have a Thai wife. She might just see a solicitor on the side and make a will leaving YOUR two houses not to YOU, should she pass first. Perhaps you are renting the property you bought, but put in your wife's name, for cheap rent. I don't know, and I don't care, but as you said, "I tell lies" and government data bases are now chatting to each other like never before. Just for the record, are you stating what you are doing is completely legal, or not?

Which makes the AUD stronger to the Thai Baht, but not necessarily stronger in general.

Yeah, I know, but you don't have to put up with bar hopping, and all the different associated bar BS and prices from different bar owners to meet up with a girl. Sometimes I couldn't be bothered and just pick up the phone.

I note the words "for me" meaning, just yourself, not everyone is the same, and "the fun I had" meaning past tense, probably before smart phones and apps. What you describe used to be fun, because it was the only show in town, pre smart phones and apps. Now, it can be quite a laborious and expensive task. We all know the tricks. The one pretty girl welcomes you to the bar and hands you off to the other staff that are either old, overweight, unattractive, or all of these. I just turn around and walk out, because even if you buy that one and only pretty girl in the bar a lady drink, it's gone in 30 seconds and she's out the front of the bar again doing the same, because that's her role in the business. Gogos the same. Buy one a drink and it's gone 30 seconds later and she says she has to get back on stage and dance again. Who says you can't chose one for the night off an app? Short time / Long time, it's available and all negotiable, just like meeting them in a bar. I always ask for their LINE ID and do a video call with them. If it goes well, we go for drinks, music, dancing, and then back to my place. We all know once you "chose a girl for the night" you get her out of her own bar. Not much different, except no lady drinks and bar fine involved. It's like a dating website, but with a guaranteed result at the end of the night, and we know how popular dating websites are around the world. I still go to bars, the odd gogo, gentleman's clubs, and occasionally Soi 6, but I now have several girls in my LINE contact list that I "chose" initially off an app, and I am happy to see about 90% of them again for another night out whenever I want. You don't have to go to their place of employment right on 6pm to pay the bar fine. Everyone is different. Some like short time, some like long time, some like what I call anonymous s*x, like you get in a soapy. That's no chit chat and drinks at all. Smart phones and the apps have just added another option for mongers. Some guys don't like the non a/c bars. Some guys don't like the loud music and style of music in many bars. Some guys don't like how pushy for drinks the bar girls can be. Some guys don't like bar hopping for hours looking for their "one for their night." Some guys have mobility issues. Not everyone using an app to get a girl is a Cheap Charlie. Sometimes I have paid more for a girl off an app than a short / long time bar girl, but the girls have been very attractive, humorous, and good company. Gradually, I have seen more attractive girls go to the apps, than to work in businesses here. Not saying that's a good or bad thing. Just saying this is what I have noticed over some time.

A lot of attractive girls are working online these days. They don't have to worry about lady drinks and bar fine quotas, and penalties for not meeting their quotas. They don't have to stand around a nightclub all night with ridiculously loud music that they don't like. They don't have to dance on a pole for hours. They don't have to sit around the bar all shift fighting over the few customers that come in. They chose when they want to work, who they want to go with, and set their own price. They can even be on a night out with their friends and have some messages come in and they leave for an hour and come back to their night out with friends. I have seen this first hand. The attractive girls have realized they are the business, not the bar, nightclub, or gogo, and they are now freelancing on the internet. The quality is not in the bars, in the clubs, or on the stages anymore. It's online. Some of their prices can be a little high, but take out lady drinks and the bar fine, and the fact you can meet them anywhere you like, there ends up being not much difference in price. Not sure what businesses here can do in order get the attractive girls, other than pay them a lot, which means drink prices, lady drink prices, and bar fine prices all increase, which then makes even more people have a look online at the apps. Bar owners will tell you guys like to go to bars to have fun with the girls, but you can take a freelancer into wherever you want, even a girly bar, and still have fun. Bars, nightclubs and gogos will still be here for years to come, but I don't think the attractive girls will be working in them, or out of them, which you can already see is happening.

If that's the case, why are you posting on this forum?

This the unknown factor in the equation, life expectancy. Live to a ripe old age in Thailand, and the 2 years back in Australia for the pension was worth it. Die not long after the 2 years back in Australia and it wasn't worth it. That said, their is a sense of entitlement, and rightly so. Why let the government off the hook for it?

Which would be illegal, and if / when they catch up with him, not only is there the fine, but he'll have to pay it all back. Actually, for a case like this, he very well may be criminally charged with fraud.

Some may say the fools are the ones that work all their life, just to give the money to those that have never worked a day in their life.

The owner pays these fees, not the tenant. of course, they are reflected in the rent price. Basically, what I am getting at is this, say you have $500,000AUD to buy a unit in Australia. To buy the unit you are also up for stamp duty, legals, strata, council rates, maintenance etc, and are also exposed to the property market. Then, when selling, you are up for agent's commission. If you put that $500,000AUD in a bank account paying say 5% per month in interest, that's $500,000 x 5% = $25,000 per annum, which is $480 per week. Rent a unit for around this price, no other taxes or fees to pay, and you may get rent assistance also. Stamp duty on purchase and agent's commission on sale is going to be thousands and thousands of dollars, so even if you can sell the unit 2 years later at a higher price, the profit is gone with just these two fees alone.

Seriously? I'm on topic and not hijacking. I've commented on the points in your post. and supplied links as you requested. Taxation, residency, DTA's, percentages, thresholds, enforcement etc are all part of a taxation system that we are all in whether we like it, or not. This thread was launched to discuss such things with the people who wanted to. You are seeking to turn it into another KH bashing thread like the Australian Pension thread. If my post breaches forum rules, a Mod will delete it, but why personally attack me on a thread specifically set up to discuss taxation on pensions? You really have to stop thinking pensioners and pensions are a protected species. Times are changing and taxes are changing. I have posted a link in the other thread how Australia is currently updating all of its DTA's with contracting countries, Thailand being one of them. The Thailand DTA is dated 1989. It can't remain in place forever. At some stage it has to be updated as it's 35 years old. They are currently updating Korea, which was 1981, and from memory, Sweden, which was 1984. I would suggest updating Thailand's is not far away. By all means work with the current DTA, because that's the one in force at the moment, but there's nothing wrong considering, based on more recent DTA's, what the new DTA with Thailand may look like in the near future. Legislation and policies change, so do taxes and governments. Look how quickly Thailand implemented its new tax on foreigners remitting funds. If you think the DTA's with Germany and Iceland are irrelevant, that's your opinion. My opinion is different, and I have given them some consideration and explained why. Put me on ignore or don't read my posts, but why continue to personally attack me because I disagree with your opinions?

The tax is on the money, not the person. That's everyone from a pensioner, to Elon Musk. There are no thresholds to the tax. Eg. everything over 1 million baht a year, or over 100k baht a month. It's on all remitted funds from anyone, who could be from anywhere. The Germany DTA is interesting because it's actually the DTA that sets out the 15% tax, not the non resident tax brackets. The brand new DTA with Iceland is interesting because whilst Article 17 and Article 18 are similar to what is is in the Thailand DTA, it says this on the Treasury page. "The source (paying) country may also tax any pensions paid under the social security legislation or other public schemes organised for social welfare purposes of that country." Make of this what you will. Where did you get $32,00AUD from? Here's the Australian resident tax brackets. Here's the link where they came from. https://www.ato.gov.au/tax-rates-and-codes/tax-rates-australian-residents The pension is taxable, or as you say, "assessable." We know the pension is deemed an income. We know the pension is taxable. We know that living in Thailand we are non residents of Australia for tax purposes. We know the first tier of non resident tax is from $0 to $120,000 and is 32.5% tax. A new DTA with Thailand might be similar to the DTA with Germany and offer pensioners some tax relief from the 32.5% non resident tax. The Germany DTA clearly shows there's no free passes for non resident pensioners. Australia is currently updating all of its DTA's with contracting countries. Here's the link. https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals-and-families/income-deductions-offsets-and-records/income-you-must-declare/government-payments-and-allowances Taxable pensions, payments and allowances You must include taxable Australian Government pensions, payments and allowances in your tax return. Taxable government payments, pensions and allowances include: age pension In relation to enforcement, they could tax all remitted funds into Thai bank accounts at the highest marginal rate, and then give a refund when the foreigner submits a tax return, or, they could take out tax at the end of the financial year, based on the flow of money through the account. If the balance is too low to pay the tax, they keep what's in the account and close the account and black list the foreigner from opening another account until they have paid their tax bill. That black list could also be sent to immigration, so no extension and you are an overstay until you pay your tax. They have many options available to them, and they don't have to chase anyone for the money. Foreigners will have to go to them. Resident tax rates 2023–24 Taxable income Tax on this income 0 – $18,200 Nil $18,201 – $45,000 19c for each $1 over $18,200

Did you consider the capital you are going to put into buying a property, the earnings of said capital, would subsidize the rent, and as a tenant, you have no other fees, taxes, commissions, legals, and maintenance to pay?

There's some government schemes to retrain older Aussies for other occupations. Sign up to some Mickey Mouse 12 month online course and claim the student allowance, or whatever it's called. It's probably only one short assignment a week to submit, which you can do online.

He should tell Centerlink he lost it all to a Thai bar girl. Way more believable scenario.

And let's hope the OP doesn't want to retire in Germany, and probably some other countries, because that makes everything you just said WRONG.

Then, he would have to pay agents fees upon the sale, and there's no guarantee he could sell it for more than he paid for it, and in a timely fashion, not to mention the capital tied up in the property is not earning. If all of the above is greater than paying two years rent, then renting would not be "dead money." I know a guy that saw out the two years in a mobile home, traveling around Australia, some of it with the Thai missus. He bought his accommodation and transport all in one. It may not be for everyone, but he said he enjoyed it and got a good price on the vehicle when he sold it.

You edited and added more to your post. No argument from me the hourly wage is higher in Australia, but you have to spend a lot more of that hourly wage just to be able to earn that hourly wage, such is the higher cost of living in Australia.

But you can compare the difference in purchasing power. What does 1000 baht buy you in Australia? What does the same 1000 baht buy you in Thailand? It's important to compare "like for like." That's where "The Big Mac Index" comes in. Google it.

Well, for one, they are not earning a wage to compare.

Most on this form are retired.

I would expect most posters reside in Thailand, but it's no problem if you don't. I just find it strange you post on here about the cost of living in Australia when everyone knows living in Thailand is soooooooo much more affordable. Sure, wine and cheese, and a bulk billed visit to a doctor. Do you have anything else? Should we compare property prices and rents?

It's well known that, culturally, Thai's do not consume a lot of wine, nor eat cheese. Yes, Thai's pay the same price, I never suggested it's a dual pricing system, like entering some national parks here, but basically the Thai government is ripping off foreigners for some items they know are in demand by foreigners, all in the name of protecting Thailand's wine making industry and dairy industry.