JB300

I guess here's as good a place as any?

Fee-free bank accounts launched

No offense but even less relevant than the Visa discussions (at least those were about people who were knocking on & looking at retirement in Thailand).

So I'll pro offer this (more uk pension related than Thailand specifically but hopefully of interest)...

The 2015-16 pension changes explained in 10 questions... http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32087038

And Pension freedoms to be 'open season' for fraudsters... http://www.bbc.com/news/business-31762371

(Apologies if these have been posted before, I don't recall seeing them.. That in itself could be a subject for an OAP thread [emoji12])

Thanks Faz, I've just checked on the London website & never knew that they issued Non-Os & Non-OAs with the latter being available (at their discretion) to anybody over 50.

Non-Immigrant Type O

Birth Certificate (applicant's child)

Certificate of Marriage or its equivalents (if married to Thai national)

a copy of marriage certificate,a copy of Thai passport/a copy of Thai ID of spouse and (3 months bank statement showing monthly income of more than £1,400 anuually.)

An official recommendation letter from organization perform voluntary job in Thailand (for volunteer job)

Pension statement if the applicant is a pension earner.

Non-Immigrant Type O- A

Proof of income with a minimum of £1,400.00 per month or £1,400.00 or £16,500 anuually

Medical Record

Criminal Record check

But I take SandyF's point, have strayed away from the topic at hand so despite learning a lot today , I wont comment any further on this...

Back to UK Pensions

Sorry but the information above is wrong. Rather than debate this issue any further, here's the link to the Thailand Embassy UK and the visa options page which explains the details, interested parties can explore as needed.

http://thaiembassyuk.org.uk/?q=node/44

Awesome, information I posted was from the same website http://thaiembassyuk.org.uk/?q=node/49

No wonder confusion reigns [emoji17]

Anyway, back to UK Pensions [emoji4]

Edit: Sorry guys, promise no more visa posts in this thread.

Thanks Faz, I've just checked on the London website & never knew that they issued Non-Os & Non-OAs with the latter being available (at their discretion) to anybody over 50.

Non-Immigrant Type O

Birth Certificate (applicant's child)

Certificate of Marriage or its equivalents (if married to Thai national)

a copy of marriage certificate,a copy of Thai passport/a copy of Thai ID of spouse and (3 months bank statement showing monthly income of more than £1,400 anuually.)

An official recommendation letter from organization perform voluntary job in Thailand (for volunteer job)

Pension statement if the applicant is a pension earner.

Non-Immigrant Type O- A

Proof of income with a minimum of £1,400.00 per month or £1,400.00 or £16,500 anuually

Medical Record

Criminal Record check

But I take SandyF's point, have strayed away from the topic at hand so despite learning a lot today , I wont comment any further on this...

Back to UK Pensions

Confusion definitely rules as I understood it to be:

- Non-O is issued in your own country & in the case of the U.K. Requires a state pension so effectively you need to be 65 (or whatever your state pension age is) This is a 1 year visa, though exiting & re-entering just before the expiry date gets you almost 2 years.

- Non-OA is issued in a country other than your own (& Thailand) based on being 50 & proving sufficient funds. This is a 90-day visa valid for 1 year (again, re-entering just before it expires gets you an extra 90 days).

- Visas are only issued outside of Thailand though it is possible to convert your current permission to stay to a retirement visa in Bangkok (believe this is a 90 day non-OA) if you're 50 & have the necessary funds.

Indeed the conversion can be from a "Permission to stay" stamped at the airport. What I got was a non-O visa and entry stamp valid for 90 days -- giving me plenty of time to sort out the annual extension requirement. Your mileage may vary according to the local rules of the immigration office you use. There are plenty of threads in here about the inconsistencies in the requirements by different immigration offices -- and on occasion by different officers in the same office. The rules have a habit of being "same same , but different"

I believe non-OA is issued in your own country, but I have never used that.

Yeah, I got the Non-O & Non-OA the wrong way round [emoji17]

Xmas hangover [emoji17]

Public sector pensions are never frozen though no matter where you live

And far bigger than the govt pension

Most public sector pensions are classed govt.pensions

Technicality with a subtle difference. The Non O visa can only be obtained with the government state pension.

Confusion rules. The non-O visa is the one that will be given by immigration offices within Thailand on the basis of retirement and need proof that you are over 50 and have either enough money in the bank, or enough monthly income. There is NO requirement to have a UK state pension.

Confusion definitely rules as I understood it to be:

- Non-O is issued in your own country & in the case of the U.K. Requires a state pension so effectively you need to be 65 (or whatever your state pension age is) This is a 1 year visa, though exiting & re-entering just before the expiry date gets you almost 2 years.

- Non-OA is issued in a country other than your own (& Thailand) based on being 50 & proving sufficient funds. This is a 90-day visa valid for 1 year (again, re-entering just before it expires gets you an extra 90 days).

- Visas are only issued outside of Thailand though it is possible to convert your current permission to stay to a retirement visa in Bangkok (believe this is a 90 day non-OA) if you're 50 & have the necessary funds.

Just stumbled on a series called Dig, interesting premise but the 1st Episode was a bit slow.

Has anybody watched it? Is it worth sticking with?

Thanks

JB

I really like the lead actor Jason Isaacs, but this one didn't do it for me I'm afraid.

Each to their own I guess.

Thanks guys, I've had it on (mainly in the background whilst Xmas chatting with family back home) & have enjoyed it so far (just finished episode 6) so will see it through to the end.

Now if somebody can please tell me where I can stream Series 2 Episode 4+ of Matrioshki ( aka Matroesjka) Christmas would be complete

[emoji4]

Just stumbled on a series called Dig, interesting premise but the 1st Episode was a bit slow.

Has anybody watched it? Is it worth sticking with?

Thanks

JB

Razor blades. Tho I'm told they make them here, the price is sky high compared to back home. I also believe those sold here go through a different quality control process..., as in none.

Definitely Fusion Power blades... So much cheaper in the UK & they have all sorts of offers on during the year so my dad stocks up for me [emoji106]

my brothers just been to visit for a few days and my order was,

pg tips t bags

bisto gravy powder

oxo cubes

calpol for the kids

lemsip powder

birds custerd powder

I can't believe you missed of mushy peas & milk chocolate hobnobs, if anybody turns up without those in their case they're sent back home [emoji15]

Agree about shoes (limited choice for anybody over an 8 or 9), sports gear (especially running shoes, so cheap in the UK) & if it's me that's coming back, a trip to AIX in Liverpool for genuine Armani tops at 1/2-1/4 price.

P.s. Recently found Bisto, Oxo Cubes & Birds Custard in the supermarkets in KL, rumour has it that there's bachelor mushy peas at the Giant near the airport so will have to check that out on my next visit.

No sign of milk chocolate hobnobs though [emoji17]

Following this thread with interest as I've never been to South America but would love to do a 6-9 month tour covering Panama, Columbia, Ecuador etc to see what it would be like living there.

Is the level of English reasonable there (my Spanish is schoolboy stuff) or should one learn the lingo (Spanish or Portuguese?) before going?

Last pair of Tevas I bought (IIRC approx £130 in the UK), the Velcro straps rubbed my heel/ankle raw & had very little grip (proper slipped on my ass when walking on a wet rock at a waterfall in Cebu).

Ymmv, but I found the Nike equivalent more comfortable & better grip (not to mention about 1/3rd of the price).

With the Wave hotel asking £354 per night for a room 2nd-17th January, I'm guessing that (at least) they are pretty busy or increasing their prices to make up for lack of customers (can get a room in there for £99 the week after).

Even though it doesn't include Xmas/New year, seems a lot of hotels are busy/expensive in Pattaya around this time, by contrast, no problem getting a room in the Ambassador in Bangkok for 1/10th of this for NYE, might just have to stay there longer this trip.

But the production was amazing. Took two years to make. Miller had been working on getting it made for 20 years. Twelve full time metalworkers. The production was so vast they had to move the film from Australia to Namibia and South Africa because the Aussie desert was not large enough. 80% of the stunts were live action. No idea how they did that. Kudos to the filmmakers for that production.

Movie made by talent-less wannbees.

Don't matter how much they spend or how long they take.

George Miller is a talentless wannabe? The production crew is talentless? That production was so difficult and so dangerous a 27 year old stunt man with a lot of experience died on the set during filming of one of the scenes. Don't know where to start to respond to such ignorance. Maybe the truth is closer to home?

maejoMTB enjoys an occasional spot of fishing....never knows when he will get a bite

You think this movie had a script?

Apart from the bra less 'wives' it was a total loss.

Movies that take an excessive time to make are always pants.

Name one remake that was even a shadow of the original?

The Godfather part II. Aliens. Airplane II. Star Trek, First contact. Naked gun 2 1/2. Color of money. Desperado. The Bourne Ultimatum. Batman Returns. X2. The Bourne Supremacy. Terminator 2. There are others. What you said was just wrong.

I think he said "Remake" not sequel... & (as I posted at the time) I thought this one was rubbish, no real storyline just one long car chase with wooden / dimensionless /soulless characters (I normally like Tom Hardy & Charlize Theron so was even more disappointed).

Not a patch on the original, but then again it wasn't really a remake in the style of films like Running Man where it's script-4-script the same movie.

Speaking of remakes, anybody seen Point Break yet? Any good?

Thanks SantiSuk, really hope you're right about no changes for non-Tax residents re disregarded income [emoji106]

Cheers

JB

... Snip...

never really understood the need to have to stay in thailand that long without any sort of break.

i think it must be folks who have family here, long term leases or cant do without a "guide" for a couple weeks.

thats not the case here for a newbie. as a single fellow dropping in a short stint to a neighboring country at least once a year is almost a given, especially if he dont need to work. simply get a new visa, even a single entry is going to get three months more time possible.

Agree, especially when you 1st "Retire", I left my job in Singapore end of Jan/Singapore itself end of Feb & since then haven't spent more than 4-6 weeks in any one country before moving on to the next.

You do need a "Base" to operate from though, I'm lucky in that I have good mates in KL & Singapore that have spare bedrooms so use these (mainly KL) as my base, but if I didn't then I'd either look at some form of easy access/long term storage or rent somewhere in Thailand & take the hit that it would be empty some of the time (in my case it would have only been used 2 months out of the 9 1/2 so quite a hit to take).

[before anybody calls me a sponger, these are mates that I put up in my Condo for 3 & 6 months when they 1st moved to Asia so insist on returning the favour until I pick a base of my own].

why would you need a "base" if your living somewhere else?

your just pissing money effectively renting two places at once.

Despite giving away my Tv, microwave, DVD player, monitors, Xbox, books, DVDs, crockery, cutlery etc... I still manage to accumulate a lot of stuff during 7 years living in Singapore so either needed a base to keep it or put it in long term storage.

So I have clothes in Singapore, more clothes & my personal stuff in KL & return to one of these for 1-2 weeks in between trips, but I don't pay rent in either of these places so it's easy for me to do.

However, when I'm traveling I will book somewhere for 3-4 weeks & take a mini-holiday during this, e.g. Recently back from Cebu where I rented a condo on AirBnB & took a side trip to Bohol for 5 days in the middle where I had to pay for a hotel as well, but that's how I like to travel (have always done this, even on a 2 week holiday to Florida, I would take a mini-break to Miami/Keys etc) & as long as I stick within budget I'm not too worried about it.

Point to the OP is during the 1st year of living in Asia he may find himself wanting to explore the region rather than settle in one place so long term visas might not be a problem (Except for the 10mins it took to get an E-Visa for Australia, I've not had to get a visa in advance or needed to extend a VOA/Exempt), but if he's moving over here to live he will need to manage his possessions, can't take them all with you from place to place.

... Snip...

never really understood the need to have to stay in thailand that long without any sort of break.

i think it must be folks who have family here, long term leases or cant do without a "guide" for a couple weeks.

thats not the case here for a newbie. as a single fellow dropping in a short stint to a neighboring country at least once a year is almost a given, especially if he dont need to work. simply get a new visa, even a single entry is going to get three months more time possible.

Agree, especially when you 1st "Retire", I left my job in Singapore end of Jan/Singapore itself end of Feb & since then haven't spent more than 4-6 weeks in any one country before moving on to the next.

You do need a "Base" to operate from though, I'm lucky in that I have good mates in KL & Singapore that have spare bedrooms so use these (mainly KL) as my base, but if I didn't then I'd either look at some form of easy access/long term storage or rent somewhere in Thailand & take the hit that it would be empty some of the time (in my case it would have only been used 2 months out of the 9 1/2 so quite a hit to take).

[before anybody calls me a sponger, these are mates that I put up in my Condo for 3 & 6 months when they 1st moved to Asia so insist on returning the favour until I pick a base of my own].

re air b n b dont do it esp long term. they weed out negative reviews and you can really get trapped if you start booking long term monthly places to save money. search several listings and no negative reviews anywhere. people getting friends or hiring to let a day or two then leave a bunch of positive teviews. its personal not like a hotel.

I've had 3 experiences of AirBnB, 2 very positive ones in Philippines (1 in Manilla & 1 in Cebu) & 1 negative one (funny enough) in Bangkok where the Condo (Trendy on Soi13) was to noisy and unlike a hotel it's difficult to complain/get moved to another room.

On balance I would (& did) use AirBnB again but only for a few week stay, if I wanted to stay longer than this then I'd either do a deal with the owner or use the time to find another unit there, IMHO AirBnB is a good way to scope out places/condos that you might want to stay in longer term, but not for booking somewhere for long term (you can only book a maximum of 30 nights online).

SUGGESTION!

Relist those questions still unresolved.

Hi fang37, here you go mate:

1 - Yes there's still uk CGT to pay, but it will be lower than if sold while still resident in uk.

2 - I'll have uk, offshore and thai accounts, all for various reasons.

3 - Going for the METV. Just not sure about the return flight proof yet.

4 - Hopefully will be resolved when over there. At the moment i rely on Booking.com and others to find places, but word of mouth always seems to get better deals - is this what people find? Is anyone successfully using airbnb? I've seen some crappy reviews with places on there, not sure how trustworthy it is.

5 - I'm really not going to know until i've found out for myself as everyones expectations are different, haha.

6 - Not sure about this as i won't be working or earning. Waiting for pro's (paid for) advice.

7 - Have to stay out for 5 yrs, only allowed back into uk for 16 days a year. I'm wondering if i can get back to back METV's every 6 months, would that work?

Good to read all the stuff on here, cheers for the advice all

7) Should be able to get (almost) 9 months out of your METV by exiting/re-entering Thailand just before the "Enter Before" date on the visa then extending this last (60 day) stamp by 30 days at immigration in-country, couple this with an SETV from a neighboring country & you're covered for a year.

Keep in mind that once you're no longer employed/ have sold your business, you'll no longer be able to meet the proof of employment requirement for an METV so (as things stand) would be limited to SETVs.

Hello everyone,

I'm about to move to Thailand early next year for 5 years and have a lot of questions, hopefully it's ok to post them here and get some answers from you experienced expats. If I'm posting in the wrong place then please tell me where to go :

• I'm selling a business and have some rental properties in the uk. The properties are all being sold after April 2016 so i'm not liable for Capital Gains Tax, as long as i'm out the UK for 5 years, is this correct? I'm paying for professional tax advice at the moment but i'm interested if anyone here has some similar recent experience.
• How is it best to handle bank accounts when moving to another country? At the moment i've got a few uk accounts, is it best to keep these open and open another account in a Thai bank? Or use an offshore bank? If offshore, which currency is best to use?
• I'm about to apply for a Thai visa. I'm a bit confused as to which visa i should be applying for, is it a Tourist Visa valid for 60 days, then keep renewing it every 90 days? I'm 43 yrs old if it makes a difference.
• I've been to Thailand 6 times for short (2-3 week) holidays, but i've never rented an apartment on a long term basis. Is there things i should be watching out for? And how do i know it's a reasonable price? Where do i find places for long term rental?
• How does living in an apartment in Thailand compare the uk? I mean whats the differences i should be aware of, like kitchen appliances (oven, washing machine, etc), how to get uk tv channels, washing clothes and laundry, cooking, etc? Do i need any essentials to bring with me?
• I plan on moving around the country, and visiting other countries, maybe even going around the world at some point. In order to maintain my tax status as a Thai resident, how many days must i be resident in the country so the uk gov is satisfied concerning Capital Gains Tax (It could be a fxxxing big mistake if i get this wrong).
• How many days are you allowed back to visit friends and family in the UK for each year?

Sorry for all the questions. I'm excited about the move and also a bit nervous about how unprepared i feel! Any pointers regarding anything i've mentioned above would be really helpful!

Cheers

If you're non-UK resident for Tax, since April 2015, you're liable for CGT on your primary property so I can't see you not being liable for rental/secondary properties.

Good news is it's only gains made since April 2015 on your primary property (suspect it's usual CGT rules on the others) so might also be worth getting a valuation from an estate agent asap so you know how much gains you've made when it comes to selling.

Much more to CGT than can be covered here so best to get advice from a UK Tax advisor, but do note that it's complete Tax years so assuming you move before April 6th 2016, it will be April 6th 2021 before your 5 complete years is up, move on or after April 6th & it will be April 6th 2022.

Don't worry about the length of time spent in Thailand, It's the Length of time you've spent outside the UK that is relevant for Tax purposes, Google UK Residency Test to determine the exact rules that apply to you (e.g. In my case I've been non-tax resident for more than 3 years so would need to spend at least 46 days in the uk to be tax resident again), I believe that technically you can live outside of the UK for 349 days of the year & still be considered Tax resident.

Edit: Re bank accounts, I had no problem with Barclays & even changed my address with them to my address in Singapore, but best to try to keep at least 1 credit card with a UK address for use with Amazon/Apple store etc...

Also worth opening Forex transfer accounts in UK before you move if you're going to be sending money over on a regular basis (I would suggest opening a Bangkok Bank account in London & one in Thailand to make it even easier but I think somebody mentioned that BB in London is commercial banking only, am sure somebody will correct me if I'm wrong).

Wow, you learn something new everyday...

Thanks for that [emoji106]

It doesn't matter if you are a UK resident or not - if you have income from UK you will pay UK tax on it. I have two pensions, both of which are taxed at UK rate in UK before transfer to my account here.

Please do not quote as gospel but if you are a resident of the UK you can earn 10.8k income without any tax and, i believe, a further 5k savings interest without paying tax. Depending on circumstances maybe worth considering before declaring non residency.

I think the 5k you mention is the new dividend allowance coming in on 6th April next year.

All interest from bank accounts is added to your other income & if over the £10,600 personal allowance limit will be taxed.

I accidently booked a flight already so w.e Im gonna lose a few dollars but I'll just get a more expensive return flight, im a noob lol

No reason why you couldn't get the bus back (you'll have your Visa by then so no problems at the land border)

Me neither, I even went back to the UK to renew my passport (same day service in Liverpool) rather than apply via post & be without a passport for 4 weeks (was living in Singapore at the time).

I'm no longer considered a resident of the UK and can't get residency here, so where am I resident?

Tax residency has nothing to do with having Thai permanent residency. Thai PR is to do with immigration.

You become tax resident in Thailand simply by living here for more than half the year, or by having taxable income here. As a (tax) resident in Thailand you should complete a Thai tax return.

Even if it's a nil return?

I believe that you are supposed to, yes.

I do one anyway to reclaim my withholding tax.

I use to have to do a tax return/ tax document before being allowed to leave Thailand ( 80's) if I had been here 6 months, if my memory serves me correctly.They withdrew that requirement.

Still have it in the Philippines...

Well you could exit los and park yourself in say singapore. (No entry stamp or visa required) . Then post it to a mate in your home country then he could onpost it to consulate with return envolope then the mate could post it to you. The other requirements might reqire creative thinking.

Or we could wait until they change this silly requirement. Your plane ticket from your country to los will need to be refundable. Most have cancellation fee. With deception there are always hurdles. Geezuz hope for those on setv that the playing field doesnt change. Overstay not my prefered option, but relatively cheap.

Unless you're a Citizen, PR or Employment pass holder, your passport will be stamped in (& out) of Singapore.

Hong Kong, you get a "Stamp" in a little piece of paper so no evidence in your passport.

Yeah, would only do that as long as it took to sell the property without having to pay any CGT & was joking (saber rattling) about claiming JSA, have never claimed a penny in benefits as I'm from the old school that would only claim them because they needed them, not because they can.

You have to pay CGT on a house for any periods that you have not occupied it as your main residence for the time you have owned it. There is a calculation that allows you to eliminate a portion of the capital gains tax due for any periods that you have rented it, which is complex to say the least.

If you are renting then you have told the tax authorities that you are renting and therefore they already know it cannot be your main residence and that you have not been occupying it, so it will be impossible to try to claim that it was your residence when selling, and get full CGT exemption.

In summary, even if you only own one house and you go back to live in it, you owe CGT on the gains pro rated for any periods that you were not living in it, with a reduction in tax owed (not elimination of tax owed) for periods that it was let to tenants. Added: working abroad would excuse you from the CGT for the period you were working as long as the house wasn't let.

Just a heads up, as I too wasn't aware of this until recently.

EDIT: here's a link to start you off on working out how much CGT you would be liable for

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/aug/21/capital-gains-tax-on-let-property

Thanks, for some reason I had it in my head that I just needed to live in the property for 6 months to re-establish primary residency, which (IMHO) is fair as it's never been rented out to provide income but is rented out so I don't have to pay all of the utilities/council tax bills whilst living 9,000 miles away (I'm Lucky if I'm breaking even on all of the bills I paid whilst it was empty for 3 years... Final straw was with the council tax guys who told me that I had to pay as I wasn't actively looking to rent the house out, couldn't claim the single persons allowance as I'd admitted my gf stayed there a few nights a week & couldn't claim single allowance as she's the only person living there because everything is in my name).

To the poster who asked why would you declare yourself non-UK resident, in my case it was a no brainier, I could either pay 40% tax (plus 11% NI) or pay approx 11% tax (Singapore).

What's interesting (to me) is that now I've retired & left Singapore I'm not a tax resident anywhere (have been a non-digital nomad since end of Jan) so I'm assuming that by default, I'm tax resident in the UK, but I fail the UK residency test so surely can't be.