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aussienam

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  1. RIP poor old bugger (not so old). We don't all get to die surrounded by care. If we choose/forced to live alone then there are good odds we will die and not be found for a day or more. This isn't a 'Thai' thing either, to those having another dig at Thai people and perceived heartlessness. My previous employment, I attended plenty of deceased person jobs, where they were in advanced stages of decomposition. It is a very lonely and isolated world for many people - everywhere. We never reported these matters to the media. So the public really have little idea of the scale.
  2. If this all gets implemented then it is truly and utterly f****d. Privately funded pension in Australia - do not get taxed in Oz. I don't have a government pension. My assets exceed the threshold (I don't own a primary residence in Oz) to eventually be eligible for an old age pension too at 67 yrs (and Oz you need to go back for 2 years to be eligible). I have been slowly pushing my investments into my Superannuation fund over the years. Contribution amounts allowed into the fund are capped yearly, so a slow process. My goal was to maximize my allowable contribution balance limit into Super to generate a reasonably comfortable tax-free pension until I die and no more BS with tax and tax returns. All my investments have been from a lifetime of taxed income, taxed investments and profits, and a disability compensation lumpsum, supposedly to last me about 10-15 years of salary. Now, my strategy to enjoy my retirement years with a fuss-free pension now looks like my money put into it, will be yet again be subjected to tax - in Thailand. WTF. I already paid a sh*t ton of taxes in Oz before this money has been/will be pushed into a pension fund. My property, I aim to sell in a few years. There will be expected capital gains. My idea was to use the proceeds of the sale, with its gains, to eventually buy a nice condominium or a company titled house/villa somewhere in Thailand. But, there is no F*****G way I am paying 35% tax in Thailand to buy a property over 5 M Baht. Even if it was 10% tax. That's an instant equivalent capital loss and a huge increase in what we pay as a foreigner compared to a Thai or a wealthy person possessing a LTR visa. You would have to have rocks in your head to accept that sort of exorbitant tax to just buy a property! I also thought maybe one day buying a nice car in Thailand off the proceeds of my sale. Nope. No F*****G way. If I have to pay a stupidly excessive income tax on a vehicle purchase, then forget it. Not worth it. Two things just there that instantly reduce quality of life expectations. I'm hardly bringing any money into Thailand this year. Why the hell risk it? The cost of living here has just ramped up if this goes ahead. Yeah .... generous tax exemptions as a consolation. What a joke. Pensioners and other self funded retirees came here to escape high costs of living and relax after a life of paying taxes. Even with DTA, it doesn't remove the history of taxes already paid on incomes and investments that have been pushed into retirement funds that pay tax-free pensions, if those pensions aren't exempt. What benefits would Thailand provide to a foreigner tax-paying resident? I pay VAT, I pay taxes on road registration already. I get fees deducted from the bank. I spend all my remitted money when here. Phillipines I suppose. Hoping they don't pull the same thing there. But so far doesn't seem the case. I'm sitting on my hands for now. Not committing anything beyond essential living costs in Thailand. See how this tax year pans out. See if the Thai RD want to actively enforce this. Spending a few months abroad too to reduce time in Thailand. 99% of expats in Thailand will be doing just that - wait and see. Not actively going to the RD and asking for a Tax ID number. If RD want to rope every 179 + day expat in, they'll do it with visa renewals. Simple. Or, RD will not want to cause an exodus and leave it as it has been for decades. Being out of Thailand during the Thai tax lodgement period as well complicates things.
  3. I am sure you'll find a similar checkpoint alert on an app somewhere for Phuket for English speaking foreigners too. Pattaya - there is a LINE app to alert checkpoints. Probably one in every major city.
  4. I have insurance but not to pay for meds. Covers for hospital in-patient. Pre-existing conditions not covered.
  5. People mentioning in this post the usual, why no mention of Thais not being caught. First, there may well have been Thais pulled over but not included in the tally as data requested for foreign nationals. And I have seen (over in my part of the world in Pattaya) police pulling over Thais many times, searching them etc. Yes, of course there is more leniency granted to them for traffic matters but you put yourself into this country. Their system. Second, if it was indeed a targeting of foreign nationals then consider this: if you are riding unlicensed/without a valid international driving permit, you are not covered by insurance. Any insurance policy will void a claim if you use a vehicle without a license. What is the end result? Idiots laid up in hospital, often in ICU with family begging for money on Go Fund Me as they don't have the money (or don't want to sell their assets back home to fund it). Why should the Thai government and Thai tax payers have to foot the bill? Well, they don't. And this is a deterrent/preventative measure - whether by detaining, fine, etc. Media exposure is a 'force multiplier', to spread the message of enforcement and hopefully make some foreigners think again about jumping on a bike here and riding around illegally. And FFS, it's not hard to get an international driving permit before you leave. If you don't have a motorcycle license in your own country then bad luck you don't qualify and shouldn't be riding anyway.
  6. This Chinese man Mr 'Tian' 38 living abroad in a luxury villa illegally overstaying. What shady business/es have you been up to? Scams? Other online frauds? Laundering? Drugs? Something criminal I speculate. Why would I think that? Getting cynical
  7. Maybe 'Stresam'? I was prescribed that at a hospital in lieu of diazepam. And an antidepressant. Cost over 4000 baht for one month. I almost fell backwards. In Oz, my specialist prescribes diazepam. The hospital specialist wouldn't. Price gauging galore.
  8. So, this appears to be a blitz in Phuket as a knee-jerk response to the Swiss idiot who kicked the Thai doctor. Fair assumption? Since the multiple crackdowns on farangs there lately. Now punishment will be ten-fold against farang to serve as lesson to not harm Thais. I am not disputing that there are farangs doing the wrong thing. And there are some bad actors living in LOS who shouldn't be. Diazepam is dispensed at so many clinics. People with anxiety disorder, depression, chronic tinnitus and other inner ear disorders, alcohol withdrawal, chronic insomnia - can benefit from being on this medication. Of course it can be abused, which is the issue. Many clinics dispense them at 15 to 20 baht each. Hospitals charge consultation and then hospital prices which are exorbitant and almost criminal in how much they charge, albeit the apparent correct way. You go to a certified clinic to speak about suffering with a diagnosed disorder and you are provided with Diazepam and you are meant to know this is apparently not legal as you were not provided a script, rather a clinic resealable bag with a number of tablets, no receipt. Publishing an arrest for 1 x diazepam tablet, and prosecuting him for it. Wow! The man apparently 'looked suspicious' and searched. Looking suspicious? How? Nervous? Shaking in fear? Trying to conceal something? Or just by the 'look' of his face? Or just an excuse made up to target foreigners. I wonder which one. Phuket police are known for some questionable methods. Technically the medication is illegal yes, if not prescribed. But then why not crackdown on the thousands of clinics and pharmacies dispensing them to clueless foreigners.
  9. Should not touch either. How many delicate corals that take decades to form are destroyed by apathetic tourists who trample on, break off with their hands, knock their fins into things, and some trying to acquire souvenirs or 'show and tell' at the surface. Fan coral, one of the most delicate corals that takes decades to form, I have seen videos of clumsy and intentional foreign tourists breaking pieces off. Touching and holding onto fish/reef sharks etc, can remove important protective mucous lining on their scales/skin, leading to infection.
  10. It's not evidence, it's a 'scenario'. And I included words to the effect I hoped it (that scenario) wasn't what happened/close to the truth. Which is why I hope there is more to the story than what was reported.
  11. I've met a few expats who have invested into a bar and their partner manages it. They just sit and build rapport with customers to generate repeat business. So technically not working but just drinking and customers buying them drinks plus the bar staff. I've been told they need to be very careful to never lift a finger to help, in case they are deemed working. Answering the phone to acknowledge a room is available, picking up a dirty ashtray to give it to staff, anything that a bar staff employee could do. But recommending a drink is deemed working? I hope there is more to the story than that as this sounds truly lame. Imagine you are sitting in a bar you invested in that your wife runs. A regular comes in and says, "Mate, what do you recommend for something new to drink, I'm sick of beer?" "Mate, how about a Sangsom and coke?" Thai undercover police swoop in. Evidence of working! No way.
  12. Maybe Putin is sourcing more funds for his Ukraine invasion! (Just a wild theory). Russian hackers are notorious for hitting large institutions. Micro debits multiplied by few million can make a decent fraud scam very profitable.
  13. Unfortunate third world mob leech scamming mindsets of a segment of the population- regardless if you are a good Samaritan, you may be seen as a source of funds to fix one of their own. They know we most often have insurance, and assumptions we can source the money, even if it bleeds us dry of all our funds and forces us into destitution. But it's a dog eat dog world with Thais lying against other Thais as well. I know of two separate road deaths of Thai people where blame was cast to the victims, hit and run scenario and very questionable investigation (virtually none, maybe brown envelope scenario and/or total disinterest). Families then ruthlessly scramble for assets left over with no morals or scruples. I'd have stopped as well, like many people. Perhaps it's always wise to have dash cam and phone footage on outside the car to cover yourself and upload footage to a cloud server before authorities arrive for your own backup.
  14. I worked in a unit in Australia, years ago, tasked with enforcing compliance of pawnbrokers and second-hand dealers. All serial numbers, engravings, descriptions, valid IDs were all uploaded to a national database for potential matches to stolen property. Most owners unfortunately never bothered recording their serial numbers etc. So often it was just doing a lot of standard investigation work to link property to thefts, robberies, break and enters, shoplifting, fraud, etc. It became obvious after a few years of auditing the shops, that the vast majority of property pawned and sold were stolen. The sheer quantity of stolen goods made it impossible to investigate every item. Pawnbrokers and second-hand dealers are straight up licensed receivers of stolen goods. I am sure Thailand is likely the same and that their auditing and compliance requirements are not stringent.
  15. The property sale overseas scenario is still an uncertain issue for me. I purchased the property 2017. I will sell it in the future with expected capital gains. Can it be confirmed that my capital used to purchase my property in 2017, is tax-free if remitted to Thailand after the property sale? Australia has a Capital Gains tax. But has an exemption on investment properties held by Australian tax residents, in that if the property was held for over 12 months, there is a 50% CGT-free component. So only 50% of the capital gains are taxed. I am assuming therefore that the 50% untaxed capital gains is taxable if remitted into Thailand. I receive rental income that goes straight into my account and ready to transfer to Thailand when I need funds. That rental income is pre-tax. Our tax returns in Australia are not lodged until after 1 July each year and can be delayed up to May 15 the following year. Many tax documents take months to receive anyway. This means, remitting income from rent, dividends, savings interest, managed funds, etc, that has not yet been tax assessed in your own country, it can be taxed at the full tax rate in Thailand (not including the part or full tax exemptions that may or may not apply). It seems that this income needs to be hoarded away until it has been tax assessed in your country and any taxes owing have been deducted. In my case this means if I earned income on 1 Jan 2024, I potentially cannot remit that income into Thailand until after May 2025 when my tax deductions are finally processed (likely June/July 2025). So 18-20 months potentially holding my income in Australia from being remitted into Thailand, to avoid being taxed on pre-tax income streams. Problem of course as well is that income received is re-invested back into investment pools during the year and coming in and out. Creating a nightmare landscape of now having to identify sources of funds and whether or not they have or have not been taxed. Until clarity is made, I would consider remitting any large sum of money into Thailand, to buy a Thai property, car, putting into Savings here, post Jan 2024 as open to a potentially huge tax loss and unless you have money to burn, don't do it. Eventually the majority of people will not have pre-2024 savings, capital to rely on as tax-free component. Interestingly, something I have noticed is Facebook postings for Thai properties for sale. Any mention posted in their comments about the Thai taxes potentially adding significant costs to a property purchase in Thailand, are being deleted. I would say property agents here, know about the issues and are getting nervous about the repercussions, wanting to stop consumers from being aware of the taxes.
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