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Have a look here - self explanatory.

"All foreigners with driving licences issued outside of the UK are allowed to drive in the UK for 12 months without obtaining a British driving licence."

But I suspect that as you're a British resident, you might have a few dramas if the boys in blue pick you up for a dodgy taillight trying to explain why a UK resident is driving on a Thai passport.

http://www.justlanded.com/english/UK/UK-Guide/Travel-Leisure/Driving-licences

You could try doing it yourself by contacting a shipping agent/freight forwarder. They can arrange the delivery and pickup of the container, documentation, international shipping, and on-land shipping at your destination. You do the packing etc yourself. You'll save considerably on an international moving company as all you're paying for is the freight.

Don't forget to get the appropriate insurance and if you use an international moving company, don't be tempted to accept their bog standard insurance unless you understand the risks and exceptions.

Here's a link to a summary of hospitals in Samui. One or two have paediatrics department. I'm from Pattaya and both the BKK Pattaya and the Pattaya International have reasonable child care facilities and doctors that have given us good service.

Has your child been receiving all the usual vaccines/immunisations etc that we would normally give in the west? This is something that many Thais (especially from the country) don't seem to realise is important. If not, I suggest you attend to this at the same time as many Thai children die of diseases that are virtually eradicated in the west - measles, rubella, diphtheria etc.

http://samui.thaivisa.com/koh-samui-hospitals/

I like how the colours of the umbrella complement the pink taxi - rather a nice touch I thought. Aesthetically pleasing.

I'd suggest you make your way to a doctor or a paediatrician as soon as you can. The child may have hearing issues or any number of things that are preventing him from learning to speak.

Having said that, I've had 4 kids and they all matured at different ages with speaking. My Thai daughter understood everything said to her in English and Thai but did not vocalise any language until she was about the same age (2 1/2) and that sort of worried me. And then over a 2 week period it was like a tap was turned on and suddenly she's involving us in conversations - more in Thai than English initially.

Given that most households in Thailand have air-conditioning these days, "avoiding the heat" is not a valid reason for getting up early. I would never get up at 5am unless I've got an early flight to catch - I'd rather get enough sleep and then there's no need to sleep during the day (indeed, except at my last workplace there wouldn't be any possibility of doing so these days). If I need to be at work at 9am, getting up around 7am is sufficient and I'll be on my feet all day sometimes entertaining my girlfriend and friends at a restaurant in the evening and not going back home until like 10pm or later.

In my opinion most Thais don't actually rise at 5am, it's more like 6am or 6.30am (unlike their Vietnamese counterparts that do indeed rise at 5am). A lot of it has to do with when the sun rises, in Thailand it generally rises not much earlier than 5.45am, but in Vietnam it rises as early as 5am. On the other hand in Vietnam it rarely gets dark later than 6pm, whereas in Thailand this time of year it's almost 7pm.

Those individuals in Thailand that do rise as early as 5am tend to be either 1) village dwellers often working menial jobs; 2) poorer inhabitants of Bangkok that work blue collar jobs; 3) people that work shifts and have to work the early shift starting at say 7am (including factory workers); 4) Bangkok residents that live 45km from their workplace and have kids to send to school (although these people will only rise this early when the kids have school, certainly never on weekends).

From my experience in the region, the Vietnamese rise the earliest, about 5am. The Thais rise around 6am or 6.30am while the Chinese rise the latest, usually not before 7am and often as late as 8am.

Um....I think you'll find that the sunrise is determined by the latitude. As Thailand and Vietnam share much of the same latitude range I think your conclusion is a little strange. Granted, the Vietnamese latitude does extend slightly more north than Thailand's, but not much.

So therefore the sunrise, length of day, and sunset are determined by latitude and season. At any point in Thailand that shares the same latitude as a point in Vietnam, sunrise and sunset will be at identical times.

...

I was sitting by myself just wanting to cool down and move on, when one of them asks me where I came from. I give them a polite smile and tell them I'm from New Zealand. Without further ado, I get lambasted very strongly for a policy that my government had back in the 80's. That policy was to prohibit the visitation to our ports of any nuclear powered warships from any country. Back then, it was regarded by America as a snub and actually ended in our two countries breaking off military ties for a while.

...

I'll go out on a lamb (sorry ) limb here and assert that you can tell 99 percent of Americans that you are from New Zealand and have a happy time. Of course well over half won't even know what New Zealand is. Just bad luck you had with some sorry old rednecks. You can never tell I guess.

Top marks on the edit (lamb). Aussies call us sheep shaggers as a term of affection so no problems. We've got a range of endearing names for them as well.

Yeah I wasn't making this an American issue, really just highlighting the tribal instinct I've observed when an ethnic group is fuelled by alcohol and there is a potential for conflict with an "outsider". As somebody else said, the group could be football supporters, a school, even sportsbike riders v Harley riders.

And you're right about many Americans not knowing where NZ is. Most think it's somewhere near Seattle.

JT is either very good at getting people going or he thinks too much. You were only pressured into engaging with them, not having group sex with them, get over it. You were bloody lucky your were not surrounded by drunk football hooligans who thought you were an enemy fan, that could have been serious.

Thanks for the laughs guys, have not laughed out loud like that for a while. The bloody sheep shagger from Pattaya has nothing to worry about. The Aussies have a lot more time for Kiwis than they think, we just don't want them to know.

Cheers Mate.....but we know you don't want us to know!! Less of the sheep shagger or I might have to mention the underarm incident.

JT - I'm going to put a bit of a twist on your post. I've had a similar situation in a small bar in the middle of the afternoon, just popped in to have a quick beer and sit under a fan to cool off. I hadn't been to the bar before, but there were five blokes who were obviously regulars, obviously mates, obviously very drunk, and obviously somewhat opinionated in their group discussion. They were American.

I was sitting by myself just wanting to cool down and move on, when one of them asks me where I came from. I give them a polite smile and tell them I'm from New Zealand. Without further ado, I get lambasted very strongly for a policy that my government had back in the 80's. That policy was to prohibit the visitation to our ports of any nuclear powered warships from any country. Back then, it was regarded by America as a snub and actually ended in our two countries breaking off military ties for a while.

One of these guys remembered the nuclear thing (which is surprising because 80% of Americans I've met aren't sure which state NZ is in) and said some very unsavoury things about me, NZ'ers and Australians in general, the western allies as a whole, and any country that didn't have the balls to be able to stand up for itself blah blah blah. They got very aggressive and very insulting, and they waved the "we saved your asses in WWI and WWII" card. They spent 10 minutes basically telling me that America was the best country in the world and that every other country were cowards and should be thanking God that America was there to defend them.

During the 10 minutes it took me to down the beer and pay for it, I had only said "Hi I'm from NZ", and "check-bin". As I was paying and leaving, the insults continued, to the point where I was called a chicken shit coward for not daring to argue with them and that I would be thanking them when "they" come and save my dipsh*t country from the commies.

They were all in their late 60's, I suspect Vietnam Vets judging from some of the comments. I was scared, but more than that, the confrontation has since skewed my view of America....probably unjustifiably. Interestingly enough, they didn't say one thing that was actually good about America other than its military strength. I also felt that no matter what country I said I was from, something similar would have happened. They were just looking for an argument with somebody - probably because they'd all been agreeing with themselves all day as they got drunk.

I know its not a fair comparison to your baht bus incident, mainly because they were getting on a bit in years and I could have easily outpaced them if they became physically threatening (I'm a runner not a fighter). But it does go to show that alcohol amongst friends of any common ethnicity can and does bring out the tribal instincts and for whatever reason, can lead to any outsider being perceived as a threat. Not a physical threat, but a threat to the beliefs and ideologies of the group. I think you were correct to stay mute - not for the political reasons you mention, but simply because they were friends of the same ethnicity, were drunk, and could potentially have been violent.

A big bike won't be much of a concession against a big dog but may help you with smaller dogs. I've hit a hogget (youngish sheep, so comparable to a big dog) on an R1 at 80klm/h and it was pretty messy - the sheep wasn't looking too flash either.

Even worse than a live dog is a recently run over dead dog on the road, just around your favourite bend. Been derailed twice at the back of Jomtien like this.

It's taken me quite a while and a few disastrous haircuts to finally discover a ladyboy hairdresser that knows how to cut hair properly. She/he is quick, precise, knows how to use a razor. Haircuts last a month to six weeks. Only after I discovered this one did my wife tell me that all the best hairdressers are ladyboys in her humble opinion.

A good haircut should last SIX weeks.

...and the difference between a good haircut and a bad haircut is TWO weeks.

nothing gets completed here because only 50% of the money allocated to the project actually gets spent on the project - the reds are in control, anyone trying to investigate will end up in a body bag

I think its more like 49.55555% actuaLY LOL.Do u work for city hall??????

I thought the officially accepted corruption ratio was circa 30% for all and any government purchasing and expenditure? Or has there been a policy change they haven't reported in The Post yet?

For any future payments make sure you ask for cash and avoid the dilemma.

As for the cheque you have now - give it back to them and ask for cash. It's all the same to them and in Thailand they will understand that for "personal reasons", a cheque is not suitable.

You don't need to explain anything beyond that as Thailand is largely a cash society - specifically for the reasons you have highlighted.

I tried to do the same but the house we rent has pool maintenance as part of the rental. The company comes in 3 times a week to clean and service etc. I turn the pump off but they come and turn it on again. I tried to explain what I was trying to do but oh no, they cannot do that because the owner not happy if pool/pump/water go kaput.

I still manage to save some power consumption but not as much as I'd like. I suspect that one day soon the pool maintenance company will override the manual setting as there were two blokes looking at the switches last week and I suspect that was there plan.....devious little buggers!!

The Transfer Fee and Specific Business Tax that you paid at the Land Office (142,000) seem about correct - depends on what the official Government "Appraised Value" was, not the actual Sale Value. However, it seems to be in the ballpark and I assume you have a receipt that shows what was paid for what, so you should have no confusion over that.

The 123,000 depreciation recovered figure also seems reasonable given a 10 year ownership period. 5% is the depreciation rate of buildings in Thailand. Without knowing what the attributed value of the building was, impossible to calculate, but your accountant should have annual accounts that show this data for your company. This would normally go into your annual accounting but maybe they're asking for immediate payment because the only asset of the company has been sold - just guessing.

The 50,000 penalty is difficult to understand so I suggest you ask your lawyer/accountant for the specific document he received from whichever government agency that shows how and why the 50,000 is payable, when it is payable, and to whom it is payable. If he cannot produce a document then be suspect and ask for further clarification. 50k penalty on a 123k tax bill sounds high so maybe there is more to it than just being a "penalty". Maybe he didn't file your return for last year or something and he's trying to wash the penalty into your land sale?

123,000 is not the depreciation - that is the tax on the depreciation (so the depreciation value is a LOT more)! Hence my scepticism about the method of deprecition and all else! As for a 50,000 penalty - that is a lot and also the timing is the issue - is the company still trading? (if yes, then the tax for this year is not late)!

We seem to be generally in agreement so let's not confuse the OP with our accounting semantics. Sorry, said depreciation when I meant tax on the depreciation. I don't know how you do your depreciation calculations but this is how I see it.

The company tax rate has been circa 30% over the 10 years. Assuming the building value for depreciation purposes was 820,000 claimed at 5% p.a Flat Rate, depreciation over 10 years, then the tax benefit was 123,000. That's assuming Flat rate and not Diminishing value. Regardless, the 123,000 seems about correct. Maybe the OP can confirm the building value v. land value?

I would suggest that the accountant has used the word "auditor" but more logically probably means the Tax Assessor or Tax Auditor, being essentially the Tax Office. Or possibly the tax specialist in his office who may be called the "Auditor". Thais have a habit of using official titles in ways that we sometimes find confusing.

I agree the 50,000 penalty looks odd but there may be an explanation - if documentation can be provided then the OP is at least in a position to seek clarification.

The Transfer Fee and Specific Business Tax that you paid at the Land Office (142,000) seem about correct - depends on what the official Government "Appraised Value" was, not the actual Sale Value. However, it seems to be in the ballpark and I assume you have a receipt that shows what was paid for what, so you should have no confusion over that.

The 123,000 depreciation recovered figure also seems reasonable given a 10 year ownership period. 5% is the depreciation rate of buildings in Thailand. Without knowing what the attributed value of the building was, impossible to calculate, but your accountant should have annual accounts that show this data for your company. This would normally go into your annual accounting but maybe they're asking for immediate payment because the only asset of the company has been sold - just guessing.

The 50,000 penalty is difficult to understand so I suggest you ask your lawyer/accountant for the specific document he received from whichever government agency that shows how and why the 50,000 is payable, when it is payable, and to whom it is payable. If he cannot produce a document then be suspect and ask for further clarification. 50k penalty on a 123k tax bill sounds high so maybe there is more to it than just being a "penalty". Maybe he didn't file your return for last year or something and he's trying to wash the penalty into your land sale?

Who is asking for the money . The Tax authorities or a lawyer ?

(P.S it is Baht not Bath)

When you sell a property in a company you are selling the company . The land office has nothing to do with it.

Given that you no longer have an interest in the company -then why are you being asked for company taxes .

Sounds like you are being conned

hello to all and thank you for taking the time to reply.It was my first post and i'm sorry if i did'nt make the post to clear.The property was sold to a thai person in their own name.The compny is not closed down yet. The lawyer's office doing the company books for the last ten years have sent me the letters asking for the money.

Quote.Second letter from the lawyer.

I have to inform you that your company have to pay tax 173,000 baht

The auditor still confirm that the house must have accumulated depreciation for every year.

This is the principle of accounting and is not the same as market value.

If you miss the schedule there will be a penalty for delay.

Can anyone tell me if imposing a penalty is legal

Just do the maths for the above:

173,000 accumulated depreciation in 1 year? That is a f___ing big amount! If it is for more than 1 year, then the accountant and "auditor" should have a carrying amount for depreciation listed on last year's accounts (official accounts submitted to the relevant government bodies) - is that there? If it is not there then you have caught them with their pants down!

Penalty for delay - as mentioned in my previous post, the tax year has not even eneded yet, and after that there are a few months (ie all due in 2014)!

I smell another "let's milk the farang scam"!

It's actually TEN years and I would suspect quite reasonable. Also, it pays to assume that you're NOT being ripped off and try and understand what is actually going on from a logical perspective. If logic cannot be discovered then assume otherwise - but don't bring out the big guns just because you don't understand the accounting.

Laem Chabang is the main port of Thailand and by far the biggest. I have a business acquaintance who uses it all the time and he claims the port and the agents he uses are extremely helpful. However, on-land transport prices in Thailand may be an issue for you depending on where the ultimate destination is.

I'd suggest you contact a shipping agent before you go too far in getting a CIF quote ex China and make sure you know all there is to know about landing product in Thailand before it actually gets here - lots of potential pitfalls and the agent can also handle internal transport and customs clearance etc,. for you. You'll need an agent anyway, so best to make enquiries before you commit or pay anything.

It would appear to me that your accountant has been claiming a tax deduction for each year based on the annual calculated depreciation of the asset. You have sold the property for more than the "written down value". (The written-down value or "Book Value" would be the original purchase price, less the amount of depreciation claimed or attributed to the property over the years.)

Therefore you have received a tax advantage during your period of ownership that must now be reimbursed to the tax office as you have affectively received a gain in the sale value over and above what was the book value of the asset.

Always been aware of the huge sums they can take in as the OP has observed. Watch any beggar or singer for more than a few minutes and you'll realise that their earning capacity is huge. I estimate that it is not unreasonable for a beggar in WS, Beach Road, or Jomtien to make in excess of 5,000 baht per shift - they're not going to make 3,000 an hour as the OP calculated, but still a handy sum.

Watch the dude that scurries up the beach with no legs - seen him make 500 baht in 5 minutes and then come back up the beach 2 hours later not remembering who he's already scammed and looking for more. His cup is virtually empty.....but watch him carefully and you'll see him squirrelling the notes away into his pockets, and then meets his minder occasionally who discreetly relieves him of his "donations".

Seen the 2-week millionaires give some of the beggars 100 or 200 baht many a time - they think it impresses their "dates". Idiots!