khunPer

Samui's traffic is among the most dangerous in Thailand – if not the most dangerous – many tourists have accidents, and it seems like insurance is a returning subject. I have stopped counting the number of dead victims I've seen in the streets, some days up to three bodies. In average I see one or two traffic accidents per week, and I'm not driving that much on the island. If you head to Thailand as tourist, the most important part – after the ticket – is travel insurance. Make sure a relative at home get a copy of the policy, or at least the insurance number. Don't drive on a motorbike – even as pillion – before you know that your are covered by insurance.

A house book belongs to the house, not to any person registered in the book. If you sell your condo – or house – the house book follows the house, listed on first page, and the new owner of the new owner of the property. However, residents that moves out from the house need to be delised in the house book. If it is same procedure as the blue house book, the house – or condo – owner will be informed to bring the house book to the local tessa ban district office, to get names delisted, when registered in another house book. For a foreigner to obtain a yellow house book – i.e., to be registered first time – is a precedure, which includes translation of passport and often witnesses, which in some districts can be little complicated. I suggest, that you keep copy of the first or eralier yelloe house book and bring when applying for a new yellow house book in the new flat, as when already being accepted, and also having a pink ID-card for foreigners, it should be easy to get a new yellow house book issued for a new condo or house. You need to be registered as host or house master – owner of the condo/house should be be registered as host – to be the one allowing names registered in a house book. I write "owner of house", as a foreigner can own a house; it's the land under the house that the foreigner cannot own.

A typical UPS has a 8Ah battery. The time it can run depends on the load, but basically intended for enough time for short black outs (brown out) or time enough to safely close down. HomePro has a Power Box that they state can provide up to 6 hours power... feature Supports up to 350 watts of power, can charge and use continuously for up to 6 hours. The LCD display screen can clearly show the charging status. There is a 10W Power Delivery wireless charger 1 port, which can charge phones and tablets quickly. It has a battery capacity of 260Wh and comes with a Backup Lithium Battery of 70,000mAh. Can be charged with car power, home power, and solar panels, size 12-18V. Fully charged in 3-4 hours (depending on remaining battery power) Easy to carry, convenient to use, suitable for taking out to use outside the area. Hours of use depend on the electrical equipment used. Easy to carry, has a handle, suitable for keeping in the car and for use when traveling or camping. Product warranty for 1 year (according to company conditions) HomePro link: https://www.homepro.co.th/p/1250581?lang=th&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAq-u9BhCjARIsANLj-s3SkbQnOB2N_JU2hz07yywAsDH3ugvu5fN67Za1pdqStFjeMizPtqYaAnIREALw_wcB Shopee also offers a Power Bank... Shopee link: https://shopee.co.th/product/1381500814/28464179823?gads_t_sig=VTJGc2RHVmtYMTlxTFVSVVRrdENkVHQ3ZkZSUTMrR3pBWmZZNzdrcnRBMjdNbXFQeGtLRmdhOWF1UnZuNUZxek1pTTgwS1JzQXM3RndxWmp6bmRETjZxc3RVSzBHVHc4OGpJamw1VlJlVmcvUk5hNk13YVFWVlNCK2FFZVFRQ1h0b3dLZjFXNXdKY3dnWDVPN08rR3p3PT0&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAq-u9BhCjARIsANLj-s3ydK1yuJkddfgo6duMcIGqGC__5MpYxhbHzTbRvdwA4v9OydUQrpkaAsfZEALw_wcB

Cannabis is not allowed for "recreational use" in public areas...😉

"Middle class" seems to be a quite wide classification, more like lower middle class, middle middle class and upper middle class. The latter below the level of real rich people. Many Thais are now in the 15,000 baht per month income group – which also is the average monthly income – is that middle class, perhaps low middle class? This income level also means that they are paying the maximum Social Security, 1,500 baht per month, and obtain the benefits – including retirement pension – from that. If a household has double income it is in average around 30,000 baht per month. (Source link: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1030220/thailand-average-monthly-income-per-household-by-region/) As stated from above, the average household income in Bangkok is around 40,000 baht per month. The median salary is – perhaps a bit surprising – stated by Time Doctor to be 88,900 THB per month; implying that 50% of the population earns more than 88,900 THB, while the other 50% earns below 88,900 THB. (Source link: https://www.timedoctor.com/blog/average-salary-in-thailand/) However, this median salary might be based on foreigner's income level, or positions with education and some level of experience, as it range from 24,500 baht to 433,000 baht per month. (Source link: https://www.salaryexplorer.com/average-salary-wage-comparison-thailand-c215) So, the area around 90,000 baht per month could be the midlle of the middle class. And how do you save from that income. To me, it seems like a major saving is real estate – i.e., to own your home – and furthermore some might well be in deductible retirement savings, when we are up in that income level. With the mortgage typically around 50% of the property value, there could be quite a bit of saving there. My girlfriend told me that when she visited our Thai next door neighbour – good friends that I considered as being somewhere in the middle class level – the were making their budget. She told me the had 300,000 baht disposal income. I was a bit surprised, because that is 25,000 baht per month, I thought they had little more. My girlfriend replied: "It not per year, it per month! How would you else expect them to send their two kids in expensive schools?" Suddenly – me, the farang that many Thais are supposed to consider as "rich" – I fell a little poor...

And that is what I'm saying, "most systems stop working as intended".

If a license has expired, most systems stop working as intended...

No wonder the girlie-bars are empty, Pattaya is a family destination...

Sounds more like wishful thinking, tourist destinations are already serving alcohol after midnight in the nightlife...

The fund needed for extension of stay or visa application in a Thai bank, preferably as a 12 month fixed accounf, which might give you around 1.5% annual interest (before withholding tax). I use Bangkok Bank, but check around for both best interest and service in local branch. For excess funds beyond the needed visa or extension fund, I use fund book (mutual fund) from a bank, based on cash terms (lowest risk), which gives me around same outcome as fixed account interest, or slighgtly higher return, but can be sold (in lots) at any time with cash available within a few banks days; i.e. no interest loss upon withdrawal. I have fund books in both Bangkok Bank and SCB, but check yourself where you might get best return. Immigration don't accept fund books for extension of stay.

It seems to me like it begins with an unlicensed business; you can get work permits for foreign entertainment artists, but it might be hard to get an artist-work permit for an unlicensed venue. Just follow the law, then you avoid problems.

Yes, normal practise where I live. However, we have (so far) never had anything stolen. It might be that the local delivery person need to deliver the package within a certain time limite to be paid or fully paid – one of them told that their payment is 20 baht per package – in a few cases I got E-mail from the shop that the goods were delivered (scanned out), even not I haven't got it; the package arrived only next day.

I you talk about Thai income tax, the borderline is 1st January 2024; however, only the funds you transfer into Thailand are income taxable here. Savings from before 2024 are still free from income tax, so it's only any capital gain/profit from house sale that will be taxable. If the profit is already taxed in Britain, it might be covered by the DTA (Double Taxation Agreement).

I.e., you didn't contact the insurance company and made a claim before asking for repair?

By the way @phetphet: If it's motorbike remote/key battery, Honda in Maenam will have it.

Special batteries like this is hard to find locally, your best option is Honda in Lipa Noi.

"Some are more equal than others"...

Same as in some, if not several, Western countries.

Yes, I had a TIN and had filed tax return. As I wrote: "I had an unannounced visit from a kind Thai tax-officer..." that came to my home. But it was not because I had file a tax return, but because all knowing long-term residents from my home country in the area should have a visit to check that they paid income tax either to their home country or to Thailand. They even showed me the full list with names to visit, also to show me that my name was on the list. I know from others that they also had a visit. I was told that it should be done country by country and in co-ordination with the said country's tax authorities. They started with Finland and Denmark. It was a few years ago, so it had nothing to do with the 1st January 2024 change of savings and taxable fund transfers, foreigners staying 180 days or longer in Thailand was already tax residents before 2024.

Thanks, i.e., everything except health certificate and financial letter/statements, which are valid only 7 days; bank book update same day (if possible, day before was Okay for me in October where I had to come early before bank opens).

To OP @thesetat: Always ask for "talk to someone important", a big boss that can speak English. There is another AN-thread here about one, who did that (opening post)...

The first thing to do as tax resident foreigner in Thailand, is to check the DTA (Double Taxation Agreement) between Thailand and one's home country. Find the clauses that fits your income that are brought into Thailand. It's said that the DTAs are quite different from country to country, so the only general rules is: You are not being double taxed, but you will be taxed the highest income tax in question. Some DTAs might exclude taxation of retirement pension in Thailand, if the pension is already taxed in one's home country. In another thread (link in post above), a big boss in a local tax depart said that such pension shall not be included in one's tax report. Money that are brught into Thailand, which is not proven savings from 2023 or earlier, and not already income taxed, are taxable in Thailand. That money also includes ATM-withdrawals on foreign credit cards, according to an ASEAN NOW-news story. You have a personal deduction of 60,000 baht and other deductions depending of age and expenses. And the first 150,000 baht income after deductions is not taxed. So, for most of us with lower foreign transfers – and especially with some of the income already taxed in our home country, like retirement pensions – the Thai income tax will be between 0 and very low. The common practise is that you don't need to file an tex return form, if you have no taxable income; however, it is possible to file a 0-taxable foreign income in the form. My Danish home country's tax department issued me a statement in English, where they state that my retirement pension are fully taxed by them. I had an uanounced visit from a kind Thai tax-officer that accepted this statement, and she also saw another letter from my home country's tax department, in where they had issued a receipt for previous three years income tax. The officers only comment was a surprice over the very high tax I had already paid...

There is another AN-thread here with some quite helpful information:

Withholding tax on interest and dividends don't need to be included in a tax return form, if you accept the tax as final. Some includes the interest and dividend earnings in a tax return, if they are eligible for some of the tax, or it all, to be returned from these witholdings. Accoring to the news all foreigners staying more than 180 days in Thailand should have a TIN. However, your home country might well have a DTA (Double Taxation Agreement) with Thailand covering already taxed retirement pensions from your home country. If your home country's income tax is higher than the Thai tax, you should not pay tax in Thailand. I'm not sure what UK's DTA covers – not my home country – but I think it is only partly covering retirement pensions. You can find Thailand's DTAs in this link: https://www.rd.go.th/english/766.html There are two possibilities for the Thai tax authorities. The easy one is not to tax foreign retirment pension that has already been taxed in their home country. The other one is to tax it – the amount transferred into Thailand – and later return the tax, as agreed under a DTA. Unfortunately, it seems like we foreigners are still missing information about how the system shall work in practise.

If you stay less than 180 days combined in Thailand during 2025, it's not a problem. Nor if you can prove the funds are savings from before 2024. If you stay 180 days or longer, you shall check the DTA beyween your home country and Thailand. If the funds are earned after 1st January 2024 and already taxed, it might be covered by a DTA. If the fund are taxable in Thailand, it will be a minor abount, as you have a personal deduction of 60,000 baht and the first 150,000 baht income is not taxable. Income tax of 400,000 baht will be 17,500 baht (i.e., 7,500 baht of the first 300,000 baht and 10% of the remaining part).