JB300

Will your pension run out before you die... https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/pension-run-die-153543733.html

A bit of a lightweight article but interesting point from ONS about nearly 1 in 5 living till they're 100 (QE2 is going to be writing a lot of birthday cards!) & so there's a need to invest for growth as well as income to make sure your pension/income doesn't run out before you die.

Personally I do not care if Portugal is the <deleted> of the rottenness nation on earth I just want out of Thailand.

At times I wonder "am I as stupid as that" or" is this the dumbest thing on the planet" " No hab" after waiting an hour and being told yesterday they "hab" Those bloody bikes with the bolt on carts trundling back and forth at a steady 10mph Christ they are all over the place

Learned a bit of Thai language,but realised the only Thais you would want to possibly relate to speaking Thai were the ones if you were stuck in a jungle wanting to know the way out

Sounds like it might be time for a change (out of curiosity, how long have you lived in Thailand?)

Have you considered South America (Panama, Ecuador etc...), I've never been but from what I've read it seems a retirement paradise...

http://www.valuepenguin.com/2015/07/safest-countries-world

Very interesting and looks quite real safety survey by country. One question is on Spain being 5th safest. Is it due to crime non-reporting or it is for real?

Do not see Portugal in the list ,...supposed its all lumped into Iberian Peninsular

I couldn't see the UK on the list, though am in Australia at the moment so it might be redacted after the ashes

They better hurry up and rework the whole visa system.

The econony is tanking big time.

Another nail in the coffin was the announcement today by Virgin that they are no longer flying to Phuket.

I often fly Phuket/Jakarta with Air Asia and yesterday I checked on ticket prices. Although it has not been announced, AA has also cut all flights to Phuket from Jakarta.

Virgin is no longer flying to Bali either. The economies of many countries are 'tanking big time' Vietnam for instance is touting one year visas for americans to boost their tourism. Having said all that, the junta aren't helping, the weakening baht, might.

Was in Bali for a few weeks in May & talking to the hotel/bar staff & drivers it seems a lot of Australians (by far the main visitors to Kuta) stopped traveling there after the 2 Australian "Bali-9" guys were executed so it could be that Virgin stopped the route for simple economic reasons.

Shame really as the Death Sentences had nothing to do with Bali but came down from the (newish) hardline government in Jakarta & the only reason they're called the Bali-9 is that's where they were arrested, in the case of these 2 guys, could have just as easily been called the Aussie-2 as they could have been arrested before they left Australia.

Sorry... Strayed well off-topic there, just a thought/opinion on why Virgin has cut its Bali flights...

Hi JB,

You are fiscally resident in the UK unless you advise the revenue that you are leaving the country. I did this through my accountants many years ago and received confirmation from HMRC of my non-resident status.

As a non-resident, you need to be very careful not to exceed a stay of (I think) 30 days in any fiscal year in the UK. The rules on this change regularly. And not in your favour!

Hi Medina21,

Yes, I did this about 7 years ago when I went to work in Singapore & am very careful not to exceed 28 days (it counts where you're at at midnight) in any one tax year.

However, now I've retired & living off savings, income from UK property & dividends from UK stocks & shares, the advantages of being a non-Tax resident aren't the same as they were when I was paying 11% income tax Vs 45% so if they do away with the non-Tax Dom perks on dividends then all's that's left is CGT which can be offset by being able to contribute to an ISA again (on which you won't have to pay any of the new dividend tax) & as none of the assets I own (apart from property which is same as a resident or non-resident) would be liable for CGT my gut feel is that I'd be better off being a UK Tax Resident again & not having to count how many days a year I spend there.

Cheers

JB

Edit: I should mention that I'm a bit of a Nomad so it's no problem for me to base myself in any country where I can get some form of legitimate residency status.

EU is great for us EU citizens (though our American cousins don't seem to have too many problems moving there) so I think this topic is well timed as more & more people start to question whether Thailand is the right place for them to spend their sunset years.

I honestly believe that if it wasn't for the women (either availability for the single guys or Thai wives for the married ones), even more people would look at (the sunnier) countries in Europe.

Loppylugs1,

Your facts on Spain are wrong.

Income tax is considerably higher than in the UK. I know, because I've paid it. Also, they have a wealth tax.

Income tax is also much higher in Portugal. In addition Portugal has a 'solidarity tax' -in addition to income tax- of 3.5% on income over 6790 euros, and interest from accounts in the Channel Islands, Gibraltar and the Isle of Man is taxed at 35%. The fact that The Channel Islands and the IOM report your account to the Portuguese every year, doesn't stop the Portuguese revenue treating you like a criminal.

It's important to know the facts before taking up tax residency in another country, particularly the bankrupt ones of the Med. I guarantee you that the tax you pay will increase in Portugal and Spain after the elections later this year. I'd love to be wrong, but when you look at the debt profile of these countries, the politicos will do what they always do. They'll raid our pockets again. I think I'm correct in saying that private and public debt in Portugal is 350% of GDP. Makes Greece look like a good pupil

Spain is completely over-governed with layer upon layer of administration: central, regional, sub regional, sub-sub regional, and town halls. This is a monstrous waste of money. Taxpayer's money. It's also got a serious corruption problem. The PP is up to its ears in corruption, as is the Junta de Andalusia (PSOE). There are many other cases too. Mallorca has always been run like a family biz by the party in power.

These are wonderful places to live, but the sangria,sardines and sunshine comes at a price. For me, moving to Spain would more than double the percentage of gross income lost to tax ( 14.69% in the UK against 33% in España).

Que mierda, death and taxes

Not fortunate enough to have money piled into offshore,but if you could answer this, I hold shares ,quite a few too which obv pay dividends (know they will be taxed) but the whole amount of my holding would that be taxable?

Any answer Thanks

As a non-UK Resident for Tax purposes, you wouldn't have had to pay any tax on your UK Dividend over & above the withholding Tax (which is a notional Tax that you don't actually pay, hence can't claim back) irrespective of how much dividend you earn.

However, this is all changing from April 6th 2016 when you'll get a £5,000 pa Dividend allowance after which you'll pay 7.5%, 32.5% or 38.1% depending on your other UK income, but it's unclear how it affects non-UK Tax residents so I started a new thread earlier to see if anybody had more information (apologies for plugging it here, but I think it's relevant).

Im curious loppylugs1, if you do move to Spain, will you declare yourself as non-UK resident (don't necessarily need to become Spanish resident if you take frequent trips to other countries in the region), or maintain being UK domiciled?

Genuine question, I've never looked into the pros & cons either way in Europe & if this new Dividend rule means I pay the same either way, I'll be making myself UK Domiciled as I think you only have to visit for 31 days a year to qualify nowadays.

Cheers

JB

I got sidestepped here,I know the thread is Spain,but I'm looking at Portugal,(Algarve) and as one informed poster quoted the tax regime there is off its head,...worldwide assets all swept into one,and I intend living there permanently

I have got to live somewhere,just want out of Thailand,...and the thought of Nakon Nowhere gives me the shivers,dare not go to bed now,nightmares await

I think you're much better off (Tax wise) in Portugal, plus the golf is much better on the Algarve [emoji106]

Loppylugs1,

Your facts on Spain are wrong.

Income tax is considerably higher than in the UK. I know, because I've paid it. Also, they have a wealth tax.

Income tax is also much higher in Portugal. In addition Portugal has a 'solidarity tax' -in addition to income tax- of 3.5% on income over 6790 euros, and interest from accounts in the Channel Islands, Gibraltar and the Isle of Man is taxed at 35%. The fact that The Channel Islands and the IOM report your account to the Portuguese every year, doesn't stop the Portuguese revenue treating you like a criminal.

It's important to know the facts before taking up tax residency in another country, particularly the bankrupt ones of the Med. I guarantee you that the tax you pay will increase in Portugal and Spain after the elections later this year. I'd love to be wrong, but when you look at the debt profile of these countries, the politicos will do what they always do. They'll raid our pockets again. I think I'm correct in saying that private and public debt in Portugal is 350% of GDP. Makes Greece look like a good pupil

Spain is completely over-governed with layer upon layer of administration: central, regional, sub regional, sub-sub regional, and town halls. This is a monstrous waste of money. Taxpayer's money. It's also got a serious corruption problem. The PP is up to its ears in corruption, as is the Junta de Andalusia (PSOE). There are many other cases too. Mallorca has always been run like a family biz by the party in power.

These are wonderful places to live, but the sangria,sardines and sunshine comes at a price. For me, moving to Spain would more than double the percentage of gross income lost to tax ( 14.69% in the UK against 33% in España).

Que mierda, death and taxes

Not fortunate enough to have money piled into offshore,but if you could answer this, I hold shares ,quite a few too which obv pay dividends (know they will be taxed) but the whole amount of my holding would that be taxable?

Any answer Thanks

As a non-UK Resident for Tax purposes, you wouldn't have had to pay any tax on your UK Dividend over & above the withholding Tax (which is a notional Tax that you don't actually pay, hence can't claim back) irrespective of how much dividend you earn.

However, this is all changing from April 6th 2016 when you'll get a £5,000 pa Dividend allowance after which you'll pay 7.5%, 32.5% or 38.1% depending on your other UK income, but it's unclear how it affects non-UK Tax residents so I started a new thread earlier to see if anybody had more information (apologies for plugging it here, but I think it's relevant).

Im curious loppylugs1, if you do move to Spain, will you declare yourself as non-UK resident (don't necessarily need to become Spanish resident if you take frequent trips to other countries in the region), or maintain being UK domiciled?

Genuine question, I've never looked into the pros & cons either way in Europe & if this new Dividend rule means I pay the same either way, I'll be making myself UK Domiciled as I think you only have to visit for 31 days a year to qualify nowadays.

Cheers

JB

Apologies if this has been asked/answered before, I did do a search of the "Home Country Forum" & couldn't find anything covering it.

From April 6th 2016, the way Tax is calculated on UK dividends is changing from the notional Tax credit of 10% to a Tax Free Allowance of £5,000 & then 7.5% for Basic Tax Rate payers, 32.5% for Higher Tax Rate payers (currently pay 25%) & 38.1% for the Additional Tax rate payers (currently pay 30.56%), essentially meaning that after the 1st £5,000 everybody is 7.5% worse off.

I've tried searching for more information but cannot find anymore than mentioned above so was hoping somebody might have more information on:-

- Will the removal of the notional Tax credit mean that companies can pay more dividends (If I remember correctly from when I payed myself dividends from my LTD company, this is a notional amount that isn't paid by the Company or the person receiving the Dividends so I'm guessing the answer is no)

- Will the exemption from further tax on dividends for non-UK Tax residents still apply (I've seen no mention of this anywhere so am assuming/hoping we'll just need to pay the 7.5%... ... ... For now)

- Will Scrip dividends be treated any differently or will these now come with a Tax Bill (I suspect the latter as I know I had to pay additional tax on my SDs when I was a higher rate UK Tax payer).

- Does anybody have any more info or links to decent sites/pages so I can read up on it.

Thanks

JB

I seriously doubt a 6 month multi entry tourist visa is going to help. Most genuine tourists have a set time here & certainly do not plan to go in & out of the country over a period of 6 months. There is so much they could do with changing visa rules, especially long term ones for people who live here, support families & spend money all year round. Money which feeds into the grass roots economy, unlike all the Chinese tourists who's money only benefits a select few.

Actually it would - if you talk to many of the tourists coming to Thailand they are no longer just coming to see Thailand. With so many other countries in the region, they are simply using Thailand as a base for exploring the region. With it's excellent transport links and superior road infrastructure and flight schedules compared to most neighboring countries, Thailand is a natural base for transiting the rest of the region. Someone might land in Bangkok, head to Siem Reap 3 days later, do Cambodia, then head over to Nam, cross into Laos, back to Thailand, spend a month or so here, then Myanmar, then Thailand again, then Malaysia. Although it is possible to do that now using a visa waiver, first of all, some nationals only get 15 days visa free which may not be enough and secondly, there is less scrutiny applied to visitors in possession of valid visas (of any type) than visa free visitors so this visa will likely eliminate the whole visa run fiasco that started last year.

A multi-entry visa also helps retirees and other long-term tourists who might want to spend 3-6 months in the country (usually during their colder months back home) without having to apply for permits, visa extensions or even new visas altogether. It's also flexible in that they can still go to see say Angkor Wat, without going through the whole re-entry permit business, even if they're not difficult to apply for, but they can be a nuisance especially for older people not so well versed in these things and who prefer to lead a more streamlined, less stressful life, especially when they're on holiday.

" without going through the whole re-entry permit business "

where did you read under this proposed new Visa that it will no longer be necessary to purchase a re-entry permit each time you leave the country?

I always get a triple entry visa and there is no re-entry permit necessary.

Unless you want to leave/re-enter Thailand more than 3 times, or shortly after one of your entries want to visit another country but don't want to lose the remaining x days of the current entry.

I'd go to Singapore. Reasonable climate, good health care, not too far from angeles, bangkok, ho chi min when I want some fun.

A great example of why US$5M is not "Enough", unless you made the money from a company that you owned with a turnover of at least s$30M pa (& then you're going to have to invest s$2.5M/US$2M in an approved business/start-up for at least 5 years) you'll need s$20M in net personal assets of which at least s$10m has to be lodged & managed by an improved investment firm (for at least 5 years) to get an investment visa (no such thing as a retirement visa).

So US$5M buys you a (reasonably luxurious) life of Visa Runs in Singapore.

But I do agree, Singapore is a great place to live (struggling to find a better place since I left there at the end of Jan) & I wish I'd bothered to get my PR when they were practically asking me if I wanted one [emoji17]

In a "Social Pot" type scheme there are always going to be inequalities in what people pay in Vs what they get out, looking at the number of years contributions is one factor there's also the total amount contributed.

E.g Fred may have paid in "X" for 40 years vs Joe's "2X" for 20, should they get the same pension? What if Joe had paid his "2X" for 30 years (& so contributed 50% more than Fred), is it fair that he gets less pension?

The problem in going down this route is that you end up with a pension like Singapore where everybody has their own pot based on their contributions, fabulous for an above average earning person, but obviously not so for people on lower/no wage & you see "Aunties & Uncles" working into their 70/80s because they don't have a liveable Pension (though part of this is a generation thing with the trend away from the traditional Chinese filial type support over the past 30 or so years... Talk about getting screwed over on your "Pension"!!!)

At the end of the day, we can have it one of 2 ways... "Social Pot" where we have to accept the fact that it's not always going to be "Fair" or "Individual Pot" where even more people are going to be struggling into their old age.

No excuse for compounding the inequality by Freezing some peoples pensions & not others though...

The couple of times that I've flown Cebu Pacific one-way & used an alternate airline for the next leg (was flying on to somewhere else) they've asked me for a Visa or details of my onward journey so I'm pretty certain you'll need something.

Happy to be proven wrong (whilst continuing to pay 0% CGT/Tax on income from my UK Property & only 10% withholding Tax on my UK Dividends).

Re not paying tax on income from UK property - Can I ask how you manage that presuming it is not "evading" the issue? Other than if it is either below the allowance threshold (if you claim it) or you have enough "expenses" to reduce it. Otherwise I would be interested to learn

After expenses it's below the personal taxation level & aside from an insignificant amount of Interest paid by the bank (which I get back as I need to complete Tax Returns) the only other income I draw from the UK is Dividends which have the withholding 10% Tax baked in.

Edit: As I had my own ltd company before I left the UK, my accountant completes my Tax Returns (costs me £400 to get back a few quid in Tax, I have to gather all of the information & check its correct but I don't mind paying it as he stays on top of any changes that might impact me) and one of the things I didn't know the 1st year was that on top of actual expenses, you can claim a percentage for "Wear & Tear", I can't remember how much this is but they're due to send me my completed 2014/15 Return any day now so will check when I get that.

OK thanks.

By the way I presume your place is rented out furnished? If so my understanding is you can claim 10% Wear and Tear (on the rental payments) or use the Renewals basis - IE where something breaks/wears out you replace it and charge that cost. My understanding is you have to select one or the other and cannot change it around to suit your expenses. If the property is not furnished you cannot claim Wear and Tear. This is on-going and not just for the first year.

Just found this - http://taxaid.org.uk/guides/information/rental-income-savings-income-and-pensioner-issues/property-owner/furnishings

Thanks for confirming, I had it in the back of my mind that it was 10% but wasn't sure.

Yes I rent it out fully furnished & go down the "10% Wear & Tear" route, but each year spend money maintaining the house on things like having the back trees pruned, redoing the driveway/patio, full repaint/treatment of the external wood, replace the boiler etc..., which you can claim for in addition to the "Wear & Tear".

Happy to be proven wrong (whilst continuing to pay 0% CGT/Tax on income from my UK Property & only 10% withholding Tax on my UK Dividends).

Re not paying tax on income from UK property - Can I ask how you manage that presuming it is not "evading" the issue? Other than if it is either below the allowance threshold (if you claim it) or you have enough "expenses" to reduce it. Otherwise I would be interested to learn

After expenses it's below the personal taxation level & aside from an insignificant amount of Interest paid by the bank (which I get back as I need to complete Tax Returns) the only other income I draw from the UK is Dividends which have the withholding 10% Tax baked in.

Edit: As I had my own ltd company before I left the UK, my accountant completes my Tax Returns (costs me £400 to get back a few quid in Tax, I have to gather all of the information & check its correct but I don't mind paying it as he stays on top of any changes that might impact me) and one of the things I didn't know the 1st year was that on top of actual expenses, you can claim a percentage for "Wear & Tear", I can't remember how much this is but they're due to send me my completed 2014/15 Return any day now so will check when I get that.

For somebody with such a "Big Tax" bill, you sure have an avid interest in a subject (Frozen State Pension) that would be (to people with a "reasonable" tax bill) a "rounding error" in their monthly finances.

For me, any (UK) Tax Bill that would make me "wince" would include elements where it would be of benefit to be a non-UK resident for Tax purposes (which you clearly could be/are?), so either you're fiddling yourself out of money or I doubt I'd be impressed at the "size of yours" (Tax Bill that is).

Happy to be proven wrong (whilst continuing to pay 0% CGT/Tax on income from my UK Property & only 10% withholding Tax on my UK Dividends).

never be a non-resident for tax purposes pensions derive from the UK.,thought you would have known that

Well we get all sorts of commentators,,just like Mr offshore with all his property in the UK,....and yes all have to pay tax (well no not really,especially when you are offshore,this thread will not concern you ,pay nothing in,get nothing out most importantly I do not like getting shafted,,especially when i pay it and getting stuffed at the other end when trying for something back

,

A bit of good news though,yes I think one AN Other would have taken note,superannuation was extracted wrongly for those in uniform going to cost the tax payer over half a billion,another good reason why the state pension will never change,not in the foreseeable future anyway

Obviously still working,get to the pension stage,or getting thrown off the Offshore element will make a difference

Are you having a laugh? I'm a non-UK resident for Tax purposes from my days working in Singapore where I paid approx 11-13% on my salary (vs approx 45-50% including NI & this before the 50% tax bracket), & there is no way I'm paying 35+% tax on my UK Dividends so I can save my £2,200pa state pension from being frozen (I contracted out of SERPS in 1988) so I'll be in the "Never" camp thanks.

When (if) you get to the position where your tax bill makes people "wince", you'll understand there are a lot more income streams than pensions/UK property & when you look up, you'll see that there are very few truly wealthy people (I am certainly not one of them) who #choose# to be UK-Resident for Tax Purposes.

No ,it makes me wince,not interested in how others react ps but yes I renewed my driving licence here

As long as you sleep well at night...

Of course you need to get all your ducks in a row with the same addresses etc, and never have anything to do with the embassy, certainly not registering or getting income verification letters from them for extensions. If you do that the only way I can see them locating you is if they ask Thai immigration, and even then if you have an extension there is nothing that says you cannot be in the EU for the required time to get your pension increase.

Registering at the Thai immigration means nothing,just easy access to the country when you arrive,likewise income letters,it would take some doing to track movements,but then is it worth it? no.

Always cheaper flying into hub airport on continent,saved a packet BKK Oslo Barc then Ryanair to favourite airport.

Just get on with it obviously jealousy on this thread would get a notice or two,but my tax bill would make anyone wince at the size of it,

For somebody with such a "Big Tax" bill, you sure have an avid interest in a subject (Frozen State Pension) that would be (to people with a "reasonable" tax bill) a "rounding error" in their monthly finances.

For me, any (UK) Tax Bill that would make me "wince" would include elements where it would be of benefit to be a non-UK resident for Tax purposes (which you clearly could be/are?), so either you're fiddling yourself out of money or I doubt I'd be impressed at the "size of yours" (Tax Bill that is).

Happy to be proven wrong (whilst continuing to pay 0% CGT/Tax on income from my UK Property & only 10% withholding Tax on my UK Dividends).

never be a non-resident for tax purposes pensions derive from the UK.,thought you would have known that

Well we get all sorts of commentators,,just like Mr offshore with all his property in the UK,....and yes all have to pay tax (well no not really,especially when you are offshore,this thread will not concern you ,pay nothing in,get nothing out most importantly I do not like getting shafted,,especially when i pay it and getting stuffed at the other end when trying for something back

,

A bit of good news though,yes I think one AN Other would have taken note,superannuation was extracted wrongly for those in uniform going to cost the tax payer over half a billion,another good reason why the state pension will never change,not in the foreseeable future anyway

Obviously still working,get to the pension stage,or getting thrown off the Offshore element will make a difference

Are you having a laugh? I'm a non-UK resident for Tax purposes from my days working in Singapore where I paid approx 11-13% on my salary (vs approx 45-50% including NI & this before the 50% tax bracket), & there is no way I'm paying 35+% tax on my UK Dividends so I can save my £2,200pa state pension from being frozen (I contracted out of SERPS in 1988) so I'll be in the "Never" camp thanks.

When (if) you get to the position where your tax bill makes people "wince", you'll understand there are a lot more income streams than pensions/UK property & when you look up, you'll see that there are very few truly wealthy people (I am certainly not one of them) who #choose# to be UK-Resident for Tax Purposes.

Of course you need to get all your ducks in a row with the same addresses etc, and never have anything to do with the embassy, certainly not registering or getting income verification letters from them for extensions. If you do that the only way I can see them locating you is if they ask Thai immigration, and even then if you have an extension there is nothing that says you cannot be in the EU for the required time to get your pension increase.

Registering at the Thai immigration means nothing,just easy access to the country when you arrive,likewise income letters,it would take some doing to track movements,but then is it worth it? no.

Always cheaper flying into hub airport on continent,saved a packet BKK Oslo Barc then Ryanair to favourite airport.

Just get on with it obviously jealousy on this thread would get a notice or two,but my tax bill would make anyone wince at the size of it,

For somebody with such a "Big Tax" bill, you sure have an avid interest in a subject (Frozen State Pension) that would be (to people with a "reasonable" tax bill) a "rounding error" in their monthly finances.

For me, any (UK) Tax Bill that would make me "wince" would include elements where it would be of benefit to be a non-UK resident for Tax purposes (which you clearly could be/are?), so either you're fiddling yourself out of money or I doubt I'd be impressed at the "size of yours" (Tax Bill that is).

Happy to be proven wrong (whilst continuing to pay 0% CGT/Tax on income from my UK Property & only 10% withholding Tax on my UK Dividends).

Thank you to whoever suggested the sleep music on YouTube.

I couldn't get to sleep for hours last night as I kept thinking/imagining I could hear a sound but couldn't work out what it was, so fired up YouTube on my IPad, turned it so the screen was facing away from me & managed to fall asleep after 15mins or so (I think the little bit of ambient light from the iPad helped).

Somebody also mentioned focusing on your breathing when trying to get to sleep, haven't seen it specifically mentioned so here's the "4-7-8 Technique" that might help some people http://www.medicaldaily.com/life-hack-sleep-4-7-8-breathing-exercise-will-supposedly-put-you-sleep-just-60-332122

I know this is an old thread but would be interested to hear if the OP made the move to Penang & how it's going for him.

Rubbish. as I already pointed out, I had a friend of 30 years went psychotic from too much MJ and another that I "thought" was a real friend of 20 years that turned out to be a backstabber. Not everything is "my" fault.

As you get older you have more and more questions about the actual nature of identity. Hobbes said that unchecked thoughts are mainly madness, and if people knew the vain thoughts that fly through your mind they would know that you were mad. Hume thought that learning to see yourself as a single person is learned behaviour. It's only familiarity that means you know yourself better than you know other people. You'd have to be pretty strange (or unobservant) not to have caught yourself doing something and then later thinking of a good reason why you did it, which is plausible, but which you weren't conscious of at the time. Everyone's weirder than you think they are, and so are you

If you're interested specifically in the notion of friendship you should read what Aristotle has to say in the Nicomachean Ethics. If you accept his account hardly anyone has any friends. Friends are people who admire one another's good qualities. It's got nothing to do with passing the time, enjoying their company, being useful or anything else.

As you head into the grave you begin to realise that you're on your own, and then you realise that maybe you were never a "you" at all!

Wow that was deep [emoji106]

And mildly depressing [emoji17]

Ah, but then once that happens you realise that there isn't a specific you, there is only "thinking going on". You're part of universal thought. You're the universe aware of itself in thought. If you can hold that understanding in your mind a lightsaber strike will pass right through you

You're scaring me now! Because as Nietzsche said...

"If you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you"!

Rubbish. as I already pointed out, I had a friend of 30 years went psychotic from too much MJ and another that I "thought" was a real friend of 20 years that turned out to be a backstabber. Not everything is "my" fault.

As you get older you have more and more questions about the actual nature of identity. Hobbes said that unchecked thoughts are mainly madness, and if people knew the vain thoughts that fly through your mind they would know that you were mad. Hume thought that learning to see yourself as a single person is learned behaviour. It's only familiarity that means you know yourself better than you know other people. You'd have to be pretty strange (or unobservant) not to have caught yourself doing something and then later thinking of a good reason why you did it, which is plausible, but which you weren't conscious of at the time. Everyone's weirder than you think they are, and so are you

If you're interested specifically in the notion of friendship you should read what Aristotle has to say in the Nicomachean Ethics. If you accept his account hardly anyone has any friends. Friends are people who admire one another's good qualities. It's got nothing to do with passing the time, enjoying their company, being useful or anything else.

As you head into the grave you begin to realise that you're on your own, and then you realise that maybe you were never a "you" at all!

Wow that was deep [emoji106]

And mildly depressing [emoji17]

Please can somebody watch Marvelous & tell me they enjoyed it as much as I did...

Failing that Columbiana is a great film, connection being I was on a visit to parents in the UK & both films were on at the same time, recorded Columbiana (seen it before) & thoroughly enjoyed Marvelous...

I've always wanted to be happy... So I decided to be...

The 5000gbp dividend allowance starts next April and the Personal Tax allowance goes up to 11,000GBP (up 400 ) the following year 2017 it is go up by a further 200GBP to 11200 GBP.

Good article in the Moneymail.co.uk today, there might be other things that apply to you, buy to let landlords etc.

Interesting as about the only benefit I see of being a non-working non-UK resident is that I wouldn't have to pay additional tax on dividends if I went above the higher tax rate, if this allowance is a sign of things to come then I'm tempted to declare myself as a UK resident (for tax purposes) as I can only see this helping in terms of future changes to frozen pensions/access to NHS etc...

Anything I'm missing here???

NB I'm ignoring capital gains tax as all of my assets were either purchased more than 5 (complete tax) years ago or have been purchased whilst I've been a non-resident.

Watched Marvelous last night "part biopic, part musical, part fantasy' and story of Neil 'Nello' Baldwin". (https://storify.com/KeeleUniversity/marvellous-neil-baldwin-s-story)

And it was... Marvelous ...

May be of more interest to the Brits (especially us Northerners), but I would urge everybody to give it a try... [emoji106]