Misty

29 minutes ago, MartinBangkok said:

Can anyone confirm that the LTR-visa gives you 0 tax under this new announcement? I doubt this is the case...

This is from the LTR BOI website, privileges of the LTR visa:  https://ltr.boi.go.th/#pri

2 hours ago, Ben Zioner said:

BOI must be quite worried, since the Taxation of incoming monies would kill LTRWP, LTRWFTP as well as a large chunk of dependants. The whole LTR program would be dead. And I have little on the effect on Thailand Elite. 

It doesn't seem like the BoI would care one way or the other.

2 hours ago, CobyW said:

@Misty - I will be based in Phuket and ideally would like to find a trusted tax professional who knows a bit about the LTR visa and how to navigate the taxes, legally of course. Do you know of any that you can refer or are we capturing details in this forum that you know of that might direct me to a good tax agent?

Hi Coby, for a list of Thai tax professionals, take a look at this link from the AMCHAM directory:https://connect.amchamthailand.com/list/ql/accounting-tax-3

You might need to contact a couple of the firms to see which ones can help with your specific circumstances.

I have had to file Thai tax PND90/91 every year for decades and this didn't change with the LTR visa. However, I plan to reapply for a different type of LTR visa that will cut my Thai tax rate to a flat 17%, so I understand then I'll switch to filing a different form, maybe PND95? for my salary income when I get that new LTR visa.

On 9/17/2023 at 4:01 AM, thaibeachlovers said:

I don't think my country's traditions and moral standing are superior. I do think that they don't have to be observed, and for most people they are not, other than lip service. What woman actually means it when she promises to obey her husband in western marriages these days?

Live together till death do us part- LOL.

Likewise, when in Thailand I chose which traditions to uphold and which to only give lip service to, and which to ignore. Therefore I only gave sinsod I got back, the wai I gave her mother was the last one I ever gave in LOS, and I refused to uphold the tradition of farangs handing over lotasacash to Thai families just because I married one of them.

That my marriage ended was nothing to do with failing to uphold traditions, and all to do with her becoming an unpleasant person to live with.

Seriously do some western marriage vows still include women promising to obey their husbands?  I thought that was already changing about 150 years ago.  As a child, I still remember reading a book by Laura Ingalls Wilder in which that phrase was removed from her marriage vows to husband Almanzo - that was the year 1885.

On 9/15/2023 at 10:46 AM, Skipalongcassidy said:

You did not read or comprehend the article... "The parents asked the foreign man to give them 1 million baht as a dowry, half of which would go to his fiancée after the wedding ceremony and the other half would be kept by the parents for safekeeping"

Yes, as I said, it is wrong use of the word dowry.  If the foreign man is giving money to the bride and her family, it is called a bride price.  If the bride and her family are paying the foreign man, it is called a dowry.

On 9/13/2023 at 7:00 PM, snoop1130 said:

 

An American man asked netizens for advice on what to do after his Thai girlfriend’s family demanded a million baht dowry, known as sinsod in Thailand. He said he loved her very much but was not a foolish farang.

 

The American shared his story on the social media platform Reddit yesterday, September 12. The man began by explaining that he was dating a Thai university student from a province in the Isaan region of Thailand. He expected that his girlfriend did not make much money from her career after graduation but her parents are middle class and own a shipping company.

 

The parents asked the foreign man to give them 1 million baht as a dowry, half of which would go to his fiancée after the wedding ceremony and the other half would be kept by the parents for safekeeping.

 

The American added that the amount was not negotiable whereas his girlfriend believed that the amount was reasonable because they had to show the dowry during the wedding ceremony.

 

The foreign man concluded his post by stating that he would be departing Thailand in two weeks and might not return, leading him to decide to end the relationship.

 

The post garnered over 300 comments from Reddit users. Some individuals online suggested that the dowry served as a form of security for the woman, as her parents might have been concerned that a foreigner would eventually abandon her. Others believed that the parents simply wanted to ensure that the man could provide for their daughter.

 

Some advised the man to end the relationship, as he might end up having to provide even more for the woman and her family in the future. However, the majority of netizens recommended that he should approach his girlfriend and her parents honestly, informing them that he would not pay the dowry, rather than leaving without any explanation.

 

By Petch Petpailin

Captioon: Photo by Ben Stephenson via Flickr

 

Full Story: https://thethaiger.com/news/national/american-man-faces-dilemma-as-thai-girlfriends-parents-demand-1-million-baht-dowry

 

-- The Thaiger 2023-09-13

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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Since the man is being asked to pay the bride's family, the article is actually discussing a "bride price," not a "dowry."

Dowry = property or money brought by a bride to her husband on their marriage  https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=dowry+meaning

Bride Price = a sum of money or quantity of goods given to a bride's family by that of the groom.   https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-51264574

1 hour ago, bbi1 said:

What gets the best exchange rate for amounts five figure dollar amount? Changing the THB to your home country's currency while in Thailand, then taking the cash back home, or using DeeMoney or Skrill?

Traditionally Thai banks such as BBL or KBANK have been very competitive on THB to USD exchanges (or vice versa) for cross-border wire transfers, as compared to their foreign bank counterparts.  So from my observation it's always better to have a bank like BBL or KBANK do the THB-USD conversion.  I can't speak for Dee Money or Skrill's exchange rates, however.

5 hours ago, koolkarl said:

Remote work on a limited tourist visa?

Yup, misleading article.   It concludes: "All you need is a notebook or smartphone, and you can work hassle-free anywhere."  Makes no mention of legal requirements such as type of visa and work permit.   

2 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Good that they published these guidelines. And everybody with common sense will agree.

But obviously there are always some woke idiots who don't want to understand that we live in reality. If it would be up to them, this world could be perfect.

But the world is not perfect, men desire sexy women, and some men have their desires better under control than others. And if men who are already aroused, see a drunk girl in a sexy dress, then bad things might happen.

Should these bad things happen? Of course not. Should all men all the time behave? Yes, they should. But not all of them do this.

So, females in general, and female taxi customers, do you want any advice how to avoid problems? See above! And I might add: Don't drink too much.

You are welcome.

I definitely agree, although I'd say the guidelines could be for all passengers, rather than just women. Maybe include some that may not apply to women at all, like don't get into drunken fight with driver, he may have a machete, etc etc.

54 minutes ago, Red Phoenix said:

Thanks, I didn't realize that the quota was a maximum of 100 annually per country. 

It sounds crazy to apply the same quota for populous countries like India, China, USA and small countries.  

But the requirements for permanent residence are such that there are relatively little applications for that.  Do you know by any chance the number of permanent residences that were handed out during the last 5 years?

I'd be interested in seeing the actual PR numbers, although I'm not sure if they are public.

I've been told their might be around 20 US citizens a year who receive PR status. So no where near the 100 limit.  Of course more do qualify and try to apply, but may not be interested in paying the VIP service fees through an agent that are required just to get an application in the queue.  Compare that to around 8,000 Thais/year who get US green cards and it doesn't seem like a fair exchange.

6 hours ago, richchris said:

Anyone with assets route experience?

 

If your LTD companies hold your assets (in my case properties) + cash, will that be considered acceptable for the assets above $1m global route?

 

Cheers

I have assets route experience, and my Thai Ltd was included in my application (net value).  It could have been excluded however, as I had other assets.

My best guess is yes, if you own 100% of your Ltd and it has shareholders' equity or NAV greater than the amount needed, that could be acceptable.  Best source is always directly from the BoI so suggest giving them a call.. 

On 8/5/2023 at 5:52 PM, Misty said:

Does anyone know if Board of Investment personal income tax rates apply to more than just salary income?  For example, if I sell my condo at a profit, would the standard personal income tax rate scale apply to the gain, or would the lower flat BoI rate apply?

In case anyone else is searching for this answer at some point in the future, here's what I learned:

1) The BoI lower personal income tax rate applies only to wages and salary, not to sale of assets.  This is reported on a PND95 form.

2) Sale of a condo would be reported and taxed differently.

Cheers.

13 hours ago, jacob29 said:

California has the same rules. If you're a US citizen working remotely in California, you pay state taxes regardless of where the employer or servers are located.

Non US citizens too.  I know of cases of non US citizen, non green card holders having to pay US federal and state tax when working temporarily at one of their employer's US locations.

44 minutes ago, SiSePuede419 said:

No, my point was it doesn't matter to all the various Government taxing agencies where you are if you work in California, USA.  You pay taxes in California and USA.  Moving to Nevada or Thailand doesn't change that.  You still owe tax in California and USA.

 

I don't understand why Thailand thinks they have anything to do with this transaction.  Like I mentioned, the work is being done on a private network of servers in San Francisco.  OK, you might be sitting in a Co-working space in Chiang Mai to connect to that network, but you're not getting paid in Thailand in Baht by a Thai corporation, so in my humble opinion you're not working in Thailand, but Thailand is receiving the benefits by providing everything you need to do that work digitally on a world wide web connected to your employers computers. 

 

You're stimulating the local Thai economy. 

 

For example, I just bought a new car made in Thailand with money I saved from working in California. 

 

Does that benefit California or the USA?  No.  It benefits the people and country of Thailand. ✅

 

 

Nope. Moving to Thailand to work does change where you owe income taxes legally. Moving to Nevada would too. 

Works the same way in reverse.  Employees of Thai companies who go to work in a US location, say San Francisco, now owe taxes in California for the time they were working in California.  Doesn't matter they are paid by a Thai entity into a Thai bank account.

And do you think a "digital nomad" Thai citizen can fly to the US on some type of nonworking visa, start living and working in the US, and claim they don't owe tax?

Sure, it's great the Thai digital nomad is stimulating the CA economy. But completely immaterial to the tax issue.

Does anyone know if Board of Investment personal income tax rates apply to more than just salary income?  For example, if I sell my condo at a profit, would the standard personal income tax rate scale apply to the gain, or would the lower flat BoI rate apply?

1 hour ago, SiSePuede419 said:

If someone connects to a private network, let's say in San Francisco and works on that network using a server located in San Francisco they get paid by that company in San Francisco and they must pay income tax in San Francisco (if any), then they must pay California state income tax and then they must pay Federal income tax in America.

 

You'll notice that Thailand hasn't entered the financial picture yet.

 

Then the person who works in America/California/San Francisco takes money out of their account and spends it here in Thailand, just like any other tourist or retiree or Non-O visa holder.

 

How is that a bad thing?

 

Thailand signed a tax treaty with America and can't tax that income twice.  If they try, you get a refund of the tax collected.

 

At no time, was the income earned in Thailand by someone working in Thailand.

So the person is working in San Francisco then? And only traveling to Thailand as a tourist to spend the money, and then going back to San Francisco to work?

So that's not the case of a "digital nomad" who is living and working in Thailand, earning Thai-sourced income.

4 hours ago, Dan O said:

 

Hi Dan O I think you may have mistakenly attributed the second quotation to me. 

Again, if you are physically working in Thailand, any income you earn is considered to be "Thai-sourced" and therefore taxable.  It is not "foreign-sourced", not matter where the income is paid.  So a digital nomad working in Thailand is earning Thai-sourced and taxable income, no matter if he's being paid in another country.

That is what the Thai tax regulations say.  Enforcement may be another matter.

2 hours ago, n00dle said:

its been 15 years for me and not an issue. I have even been asked at immigration what my profession is and i have told them I am a writer. 

even if they wanted to kick up a stink i maintain a buffer of at least 1 years equivalent salary in the account i transfer from so I can show that the money i am bringing in to thailand was made at least a year previous and is therefore untaxable, 

Again, if you are physically in Thailand when you are earning income by writing, the tax code considers your income to be "Thai sourced" and your writing income is taxable. Waiting a year to bring the income into  Thailand doesn't change that.