JohnnyBD

I compliment you on being mobile enough at your age 85, and for being able to get up early enough to arrive at CW for 7:30 am. Most days I sleep until 10 am, but I stay up late at night. The only time I get up as early as you did is to watch the Super Bowl. When I was on marriage extensions, I used an agent purely for convenience. I had my own money in the bank. My wife and I showed up at CW about 10:00 am, met the agent, signed the papers, took our pics, and then left. It took about 15 to 20 mins. No waiting in line. We only made 1 trip to CW. The agent went back after 30 days for the final stamp. It was well worth the extra cost to me. Now, I'm on the 10-year LTR visa, so no more yearly extensions or 90-day reports for me.

I know someone who used TSL & Associates in Bangkok and was very satisfied. TSL is located across the street from the US embassy on Wireless Road. Trendy Building, 10/15 Soi 13 Sukhumvit Road, Khwaeng Khlongtoey Nuea, Khet Watthana, Bangkok 10110.

25k to 30k is pretty standard when using a law firm like Siam Legal or TSL & Associates. The freelance agent I used in Bangkok when I was on marriage extensions charged me 13k. He worked for one of the above law firms, but did freelance on the side, so I felt I could trust him.

Yes, agents can be helpful. I did my first 2 retirement extensions in Jomtien myself, but when I moved to Bangkok, I didn't want to deal with the long lines at CW, so I started using an agent. I also switched to marriage extensions and had the money in the bank, so all was legal. We showed up at CW, signed the papers, went into the IO's office for our pics, then left. No waiting in line. It took less than 30 mins total at CW. The agent went back to get the final stamp for me. I only made 1 trip to CW.

If your sister-in-law can't afford to leave 2,000 in her acct, then better for her to open an account at SCB or another bank that doesn't have a minimum balance requirement. As for your situation, Kasikorn would be a a great bank to use for your yearly extensions. I used them when I was on yearly extensions.

Kasikorn told me I was a Non-Resident, but that was when I was doing yearly extensions. I'm on a LTR visa now, but I'm good with my BBL accts. Kasikorn told me they only do in-bank conversions. sammieuk1, also confirmed above that Kasikorn doesn't allow online conversions. See Kasikorn Resident & Non-Resident qualifications below: Residents Non-Residents

Yes, BBL only requires a minimum balance of $250 to avoid the monthly fees. I keep $300 in my acct just to be safe. They send me a monthly notice in the mail showing my avg. monthly balance, with a warning not to go below $250. Same for both banks. Some smaller branches cannot open USD accts. Kasikorn has a list of branches on their website that can open USD accts. For example, I opened my BBL THB acct at the Sukhumvit 45 branch in Bangkok, but they couldn't open a USD acct. They gave me a list of branches that could open USD accts. I opened mine at the Phrom Phong Emporium mall branch. Something else to ask about. I was able to set up my accts using their web-based banking in 2024 when I opened my BBL accts, but when my wife opened her USD acct a few months ago, the staff told her they didn't allow new accts to be set up with web-based banking. So, she can only use her phone app to view & make USD conversions. That's ok for her, but I prefer to download my transaction history on my laptop to use for my FBAR reporting.

I had a Kasikorn THB acct before which I used for my yearly extensions. They had web-based & app-based banking. When I asked about a USD acct, the staff told me I had to come into the bank to convert from a USD acct to THB acct. Also, the minimum balance was $5,000 to avoid the monthly fees. Bangkok Bank was the only bank I found that had web-based & app-based banking which allows me to convert USD to THB online. I had Citibank TH from 2016 to 2024, and they were the best for converting USD to THB online 24/7, but they were bouight by UOB, and UOB doesn't allow online conversions. I never had a problem with Bangkok Bank so far, but I don't use them for yearly extensions. Incoming fees vary, but Bangkok Bank is the cheapest; min 200 baht to max 500 baht (USD x .0025) Just a tip: not all bank branches will open USD accts, they will have a list of the ones that do. See snippet below of Kasikorn USD FCD acct details.

I just recently closed my SCB USD acct. I could not do conversions with the app. I still had to go into the bank and get them to convert from my USD acct to my THB acct. I asked many times if they could set my USD acct up on the app, but they said it was not possible.There was a minimum balance requirement of $250 to avoid the monthly fee. I opened USD acct at Bangkok Bank. I can use the phone app to convert USD acct to my THB acct without going into the bank. They have a $250 minimum balance requirement also.

Just curious. Do you make cash counter withdrawals with a foreign bank credit card or foreign bank debit card? Does your foreign bank charge a transaction fee when you get cash on your credit card in Thailand? If not, which foreign bank do you use? The reason I ask, all my foreign bank credit cards from Capital One, Chase, Citibank, Bank of America & Barclays all charge transaction fees for cash advances. I never tried getting cash from a Thai bank counter, so I don't if my banks would charge any fees or not. I just thought cash counter withdrawals and cash advances were the same thing.

There is no fee for filing FBAR. I've done it yearly since 2016. You may owe a penalty for some reason. Look to see if there's a phone number you can call to ask them about it. Good luck.

Most bank-issued credit cards have cash advance fees. Some credit union-issued credit cards offer no cash advance fees, but they usually start charging interest when the cash advance is made. I just use my Chase Bank debit card to get cash. It has no transaction fees, and Chase reimburses the 250 baht ATM fee.

Just one more thing. If one files US tax returns as MFJ (married filing joint), the income tax savings can be pretty substantial depending on one's income. In my case, the MFJ tax brackets, the married standard deduction, and the married qualified dividend tax brackets allowed me to save about $10,000 in US taxes every year compared to if I had filed as single. I've been filing MFJ since 2017, so the tax savings were substantial.

The SMS you received refers to both FATCA & CRS. FATCA is for US citizens. CRS is for other countries (citizens) which includes Oz & Thailand. FATCA and CRS are international tax compliance standards requiring financial institutions to report customer account information to tax authorities to combat tax evasion. FATCA (U.S. law) focuses on identifying U.S. persons with foreign accounts, while CRS (global standard) covers residents of participating countries, allowing for automatic exchange of information The United States does not participate in the OECD's Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for the automatic exchange of financial account information. Instead, the U.S. relies on its own legal framework, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which requires foreign financial institutions to report data on U.S. persons directly to the IRS

Just so everyone knows, Citibank Thailand was bought by UOB, and all Citibank TH accounts (mine included) were transferred over to UOB Thailand on April 19, 2024.

I think they just changed the Free File Fillable Forms online filing, so if somone checks the box for "treating NRA spouse as US resident", one cannot use FFFF filing anymore. I decided to mail my return this time and submit another NRA spouse declaration even though it was not required. I have a small refund, so I included my bank information for direct deposit. My wife got her ITIN when we filed our first joint return in 2017 with our original NRA spouse declaration. We filed online successfully using the IRS FFFF program from 2020 to 2024. This is the first year that we had a problem filing with IRS FFFF program because they added the check box on the 1040 for "treating NRA spouse as US resident". It's not a problem for me. I already mailed my tax return in. I will try again next year, and if I cannot file with IRS FFFF program, I will use an online tax service. Thanks for the discussion...

No, we live in Thailand. I left the box blank "on living in US more than half the year" and I also tried by checking it, but the FFFF system didn't let me file in either case. I got the same rejection. I use my US mailing address on my tax return because that's where I want my mail to go. Did you check the box for treating your nonresident alien spouse as a US resident? According to the rules, once the NRA spouse declaration is made on the first joint tax filing, it doesn't have to be made again. I never had to submit another declaration from 2018 thru 2023 when filing online. They just messed up the FFFF for me. I just need to switch to another online tax filing service for next year.

Below is the rejection notice I received when trying to use the Free File Fillable Forms online.

Thanks. I see that you used "e-file.com" to file your tax return. I will give it a test try to see if it lets me file, and what it says about the NRA spouse check box. Below is the rejection notice I received when trying to use the Free File Fillable Forms online. Enough about taxes...

I agree. I have to file because all of my income is reported to the IRS with 1099s. When I first moved here, some Americans laughed at me for saying I still file US tax returns. They told me they didn't. I guess their income was below the income requirements for filing, or their income was from non-reported cash sources.

Are you using the IRS Free File or the IRS Free File Fillable Forms program? I use the Free File Fillable Forms. I can't use the IRS Free File. It sounds like you are not checking that new box on the 1040 for those filing joint with a nonresident alien spouse. When I checked the box, the FFFF told me to attach a NRA spouse declaration and file by mail. It appears the FFFF doesn't allow attachments anymore. Last year, when I checked the box, it let me attach my declaration. The NRA spouse check box first appeared on the 2024 1040 tax form. The box never appeared before 2024. This year, there is also a new box to check if you have lived in the US for more than half the year. See snippet I have been filing using the E-File online system for the past several years. My wife has an ITIN, and we use my US address.

I've been using thr IRS E-File online filing for the past several years, but this year the 1040 has a new check box for married filing joint with a nonresidrnt alien spouse and when the box is checked, the system requires one to attach a NRA spouse declaration to their tax return and the E-file online system would not accept any attachments, so we had to mail our tax return in. Last year, the system allowed us to attach our NRA spouse declaration, but not this year.

I believe the key point, if a foreigner pays the developer or landowner directly and the property is going into the wife's name, then a document needs to be signed and given to the land office. If the foreigner transfers the funds to the wife's bank acct, and the wife pays the developer or landowner from her bank acct, then no document is required. My wife recently purchased 2 condos in her name with funds I gave her, and the developer told us what I wrote above. So, i transferred the funds to my wife's bank acct, then she paid the developer from her bank acct. I didn't have to sign any forms. I was out of the picture.

Just to make a few points, US social security & military pensions are not taxable in Thailand when remitted as per the US/THA DTA. You can read more about Thai income taxes on this forum (see link below). As you probably know, US citizens are required to file US tax returns unless their income is less than the standard deductions even if they live overseas. If you wish to file as MFJ (married filing joint) to take advantage of the higher married standard deductions, you will need to attach W-7 form to your tax return to get an ITIN number for your wife, and you will need to attach a signed Declaration Statement stating that you and your wife elect to treat her (nonresident alien spouse) as a US resident for the purpose of filing joint US tax returns. We started filing joint tax returns in 2017. We had to mail in our first tax return, but we were able to file online after that. This year, the IRS Free File Fillable Forms system would not let us file online. We had to mail in our US tax return and include a newly signed Declaration Statement. There's a new check box on the 1040 tax form for nonresident alien spouses. It appears to me the IRS is tightening up on nonresident alien tax filings. Introduction to Personal Income Tax in Thailand - Page 44 - Jobs, Economy, Banking, Business, Investments - Thailand News and Discussion Forum | ASEANNOW

I guess I'm one of the lucky ones. I've never had a home visit. 3 years on retirement, 5 years on marriage and the last 2 years on LTR visa.