Nomadd

Beach + Farang + protection money... Can't help myself and think about Rusians

Really, you can not help? can you help yourself to think its Thailand and its the locals

Being Thailand, the locals are referred to as "Thais", not "farangs". Being southern Thai islands, anyone who has been there for more than a month or 2 would know that farang gangs usually means Russians. But I did hear that Scandinavian bikers are finding a niché Gang war anyone??

I see nothing in regard to "free" tourist visa's.....

Yeah no mention about that. I read a while back they were considering it. Any updated news on that? I'm thinking about an extended holiday soon but if that doesn't happen I'll head down to Malaysia.

Maybe its just a rumor and hearesay that tourism in Cambodia and Vietnam is booming. Are these countries, that have not been hit by unusual heavy monsoon?

I live in Phnom Penh and Cambodia was hit pretty heavily but not in the big tourist areas of Siem Reap or Phnom Penh. Lots of flooding in the provinces that has caused a bit of a problem for the locals. Lots of aid being boated out to people in the sticks. Don't see that in the news though...

Don't know about Vietnam.

and you know exactly what you ought to do, right, as a non-resident in thailand....?

With respect to what? Her business?

with respect to.... keeping your good concerned self.... completely out of the picture....

won't even come around to help her tidying up or sweeping or whatever....

that can be construed by a jealous outsider that you are being employed and engaging in a trade

that most locals can easily do.... K? that is what i meant to say. good luck, good fortune and have plenty of joy and fun.... behind the scene, alright? cheers

Ahh yes I understand that bit i've told her already i will have nothing to do with the running of it. That is between her and her friends. Thanks a lot for the heads up though

And thanks for all responses. It's been very useful. She now understands and is excited to begin!

There is a limit under which she does not have to file for VAT.

There is a limit under which she does not have to file for a food licence (อย).

In general, it is much easier to open a small business for Thai people in Thailand than it would be in the West.

Gotcha thanks.

it also depends very much on where you are and where her stall is going to be setupped:

within your own property line? or

in front of your house but on the shoulder of the street?

Yet to be determined but she has a few options she is considering.

there are thousand and thousand of such stalls all over thailand from cm to sadoaw....

those small stall owners just setup shops however, wherever and whichever....

nevertheless, if you are within the city limit, then you really ought to apply for a license for her....

officials are much more stringent within city limit on this front, ok?

Sure, the intention (at least on my part) is to get the appropriate licences.

and you know exactly what you ought to do, right, as a non-resident in thailand....?

With respect to what? Her business?

Excellent thanks for the extremely informative reply. I'll have a chat with her later

Hi all,

My girlfriend wants to open a small business selling food and drinks. She is uneducated (although certainly not stupid) and I am trying to instill within her a sense of legal obligation. I asked her what the law requires and she said, "don't worry. I've done it before". I said i know that but I want you to be aware of what the law says. If you then choose to do different that is a calculated risk, not ignorance. She does not understand that concept. She keeps repeating that she's done it before and no problem. I asked her when she did it before did she speak to anyone about the legal requirements for a small business and she said yes. I asked what they discussed and she said that she was advised that as long as she doesn't put a sign up she doesn't have to pay tax. I sighed and left it at that.

So the point of this post is to ask if anybody knew what the legal requirements are for a Thai national to set up a small business selling food from our own property. Or even a link to a website that explains it would be fantastic.

Likely she will be fine but like i said, a calculated risk is a lot different to blind ignorance and an unwillingness to put any effort into knowing the rules. I just don't want anything bad to happen to her! In her mind as long as she doesn't put up a sign she is invulnerable to the law (heh). Something tells me the rules are a little more stringent

There are bus options but I can tell you about trains as I did it recently.

From Bangkok there are 2 trains a day that go to Aranyaprathet on the border and they both cost 48 Baht (free for Thais). The first one leaves at 05:55 and the later one at 13:05. There is only 3rd class but there are many padded seats (not all "hard" seats). The trains are busy and you cannot book seats in advance. Turn up early on the day and get your ticket. I recommend grabbing a seat early or you could be stood up for the 6-ish hour journey.

Once in Aranyaprathet take a tuk tuk or moto to Rong Glua market and the border crossing. The border is open until 20:00 and on the other side you can take buses to Phom Penh. The buses mostly leave early doors (around 08:00) so it might be better to overnight in Aranyaprathet, although you don't HAVE to if you are short on time but remember that Poipet is a bit of a shithole and accomodation options are limited whereas Aranyaprathet is quite a nice little place (for a short time at least). Buy tickets for the buses in Poipet (KH side).

Warning: Be careful of high ticket prices out of Poipet. The high prices come from a company called Oudom Rithy who will charge around $15 (if I remember correctly). Phnom Penh Sorya are generally the cheapest (but still decent quality buses for Cambodia) and they have an office in Poipet. I think they charge around $6 or so to PP from Poipet . You can grab a tuk tuk or moto to their office which can be found on NH5 near the turning for the new (rip-off) bus station. But remember if you arrive after 9am the chances of finding a bus that day lie mostly with Oudom Rithy.

Basically with a couple of tuk tuk rides included you can get from Bangkok to PP for under $10.

Good luck!

Thank you both very much. You have confirmed what I suspected. My girlfriend was of the opinion that there would be no problem and that she, "knew many farang who had made busniesses without obtaining B visas and work permits". I could see difficulties with it and I do not want to put myself or my girlfriend in a difficult position with the authorities. I will now look towards obtaining the necessary status to run the business myself.

I should piont out that once a portion of the business income (my girlfriend's salary) had been moved to my girlfriend's account it would then be personal funds and only then moved on to me, if needed. That was a solution discussed but holds too many possibilities for negative conotations.

Many thanks again

Hello all,

I am currently living and working in Cambodia with my Thai girlfriend of one year but we are both missing Thailand and wish to return soon. I had some questions about starting a business in Thailand to provide an income for us both and her family. I have read through the useful threads on this forum but had some specific questions I hoped some knowledgable folks on this board could assist me with.

So, we want to start a business. We want to do everything legally and above board. I understand what I need to get a work permit and non-immigrant B visa but my queries are related to how I can do this if I did not actually work for the business, just provided the capital (via my girlfriend). My questions:

1. If I provide capital and have no direct hand in the day-to-day running of the business is a tourist visa sufficient?

2. Can my Thai girlfriend, who will be the "owner" and "manager" of the business, transfer money to me on a tourist visa? Might this be construed as business income (which obviously it is) and I would therefore need a business visa and work permit? We were thinking of a joint account in Thailand that I could use for personal spending and transfer funds in bulk if needed elsewhere.

Thanks in advance if you can offer any advice on this.

Nomadd.