JohnnyBD

I am in the process of purchasing a condo, and my contract shows two ways for me to pay for my condo as a foreigner. One option is, I wire the money directly to the Developer's account, and they will convert it to THB, and get the FET Foreign Exchange Transaction form from their bank and submit it to the Thai Land Office. The form is still known by some as Thor Tor 3 Form. Seond option is, I wire the money to my Thai bank USD account, then convert it to THB, then pay the Developer in THB. I am then reponsible for getting the FET form from my bank to give to the Developer to submit to the Thai Land Office. This part worries me, because the wire has to state that the money is for the purchase of "the exact name of my condo unit". You can check Siam Legal's website on "Ways to Transfer Money to Thailand for purchase of Condo". They have a pretty good write up. I'm not sure if I am allowed to provide the link.

I believe the TRD has stated that all pre-2024 income (ex., 2023 income remitted in 2024) is tax exempt. Any assessable income that was remitted in same year it was derived (ex., 2023 income remitted in 2023) was always taxable. Going forward, both the previous year's income (ex., 2024 income remitted in 2025) and the same year's income will be taxable.

If he did, it didn't have anything to do with taxes, but only to confirm that his income was legitimate.

I agree. No doubt here either. That's when I will start staying less than 180 days. I'm still waiting for my LTR to be approved, but I doubt that will save us.

Your point seems to be that we can determine whether we are remitting just the principal or capital gains, and I agree that we should be able to make that decision. I hope that's the case. I was just pointing out that if I did remit the principal & capital gains, I get to choose the cost basis method, not TRD.

There's about 6 acceptable cost basis methods in the US for stock sales as per the IRS. The average cost, lowest cost, highest cost, FIFO, LIFO and specified shares. I believe Fidelity uses the FIFO as default, but you can select the cost basis method you want as your default. I set my default as highest cost. But, I can still select the specific shares to sell when I place my sell order. My Fidelity tax forms show the capital gains based on which cost method I used, so that's what I would use to determine my assessable income if remitted.

Just to be clear. It's a 5-year Certificate of Deposit with a US bank. The monthly interest is paid directly to my US brokerage account, and then it's transferred to my US checking account the same day it posts each month. I spend the interest in the US and do not remit it to Thailand. So, when the CD matures in 2028, I will get back the original money I invested in 2023. Is the original money I get back considered pre-2024 money?

Yes, it's a 5-year Certificate of Deposit with a US bank. The monthly interest is paid directly to my US brokerage account and then it's transferred to my US checking account the same day it posts each month. I spend the interest in the US and do not remit it to Thailand. So, when the CD matures in 2028, I will get back the original money I invested in 2023. Is that original money I invested in 2023 still considered pre-2024 money if I remit it in 2028?

You make a good point. What if you sold a pre-2024 security in your home country in 2024, reported & paid taxes on any gains in your home country, then invested in another security. Then, in 2026, you sold that security, had no gains or a loss, and then remitted those monies to Thailand. Is it assessable income or not?

I have a real life question: I have a 5-year CD that I bought in the US in 2023. It pays interest monthly. The interest is transferred to my US checking account when it posts each month for use. I report and pay taxes on the interest each tax year. When the CD matures in 2028, under the current Thai tax rules, if I remit the CD money to Thailand, can I classify it as pre-2024? If you think the CD money becomes assessable income, do you have any TRD guidance to support your opinion?

I have a real life test question: I have a 5-year CD that I bought in 2023 in the US. It pays interest monthly. The interest is transferred to my US checking account when it posts each month for use. I report and pay taxes on the interest each tax year. When the CD matures in 2028, under the current Thai tax rules, if I remit the CD money to Thailand, can I classify it as pre-2024? If you think the CD money becomes assessable income, do you have any TRD guidance to support your opinion?

You really don't lose the flexibility of the $100k in bank. If you need to withdraw it, you can buy the insurance at that time. No need to pay for the insurance unless you decide to withdraw it.

I read where there is a minimum amount needed, it's called "substantial earnings" test to qualify for credits. And, I believe it increases every year, so you have to be above that amount to earn the credits. Can probably google it without calling SSA. Just a suggestion.

Some may do what you say, but many will just file and pay their taxes. I want to spend more time with my loved ones anyway, so I will just spend 5 mths in the US, 5 mths in Thailand and spend the rest of the time traveling with my wife outside of Thailand. It's not a problem for me. I know others who live here, but work outside of Thailand, and are here for less than 180 days, so it's not a problem for them either. I feel badly for those who don't have those options, it really sucks.

I just opened an acct with SCB about 10 days ago in Bangkok at the Phrom Phong branch. I'm an American. No problems.

I have Thai bank cards, but sometimes use my USA Chase Bank card to keep from using all of my THB here. The exchange rates are very good and Chase reimburses me for the 220B fee, so there's no downside to using it. It saves me from having to make SWIFT wire transfers which have incoming wire fees at my Thai banks.

BOI probably blocked you after you sent your second request.

I had Citibank TH accts since 2016. Citi didn't charge an incoming wire fee when I wired money from the US. I could also convert my USD in Citi to my THB acct online, day or night. UOB bought Citibank TH, and they converted all my accts to UOB in April. Now, when I wire money from the US, UOB charges me a 500B incoming wire fee, and I have to go into the bank to convert my USD to THB. It's very inconvenient now. I have to go into the bank, get a ticket and wait 30 min to an hour just to make a conversion. It was so easy before, watching the currency rates and then making a conversion online.

Thanks for the info. UOB said in the future, they may offer online conversions from their FCD accts to their THB accts, but they do not allow it now. I guess if I want the convenience of converting my USD to THB online, I will need to open new accounts with BBL, since it appears BBL is the only Thai bank that offers online conversions.

Can anyone with a Bangkok Bank USD FCD account, confirm whether you can convert USD in your FCD account to your THB account online? Or, do you have to go into the bank to convert? Citibank TH allowed me to convert online, but they were taken over by UOB, and UOB does not allow online conversations. I have to go into the bank. I have SCB & KBank accts, and they do not allow online conversations either.

I don't blame BOI for not answering. They probably don't know anymore than we do, because no legislation on that issue has been passed or even been introduced. Currently, unremitted overseas income is tax free. And, remitted income by a LTR-WP visa holder is tax free, as per BOI and Royal Decree 743. If anything changes, I'm sure we will all find out as soon as it happens.

If one can meet the requirements, the LTR visa could be less expensive for some. You could leave your 800k in your home country earning ~ 5% interest at current rates, which would more than cover the cost of the LTR required insurance. And, the 50k for 10 years would be less than the 1,900 extension + 3,800 MRE permit + 300 bank letter/certificates some are currently paying. You also have the beneifts of no 90-day reporting and no annual visits to IM if you leave the country at least once a year, because the 1-year reporting clock starts over. Then, there's the income tax on remittances benefits, which could be a very big deal. It's up to each person to decide what's best for themselves, it's that simple. Some like Leo, some like Singha. I like Sapporo, but my wife loves Guinness. 😉

My agent went transfer the stamps to my new passport recently and he said IM told him they haven't heard anything from TRD about the new tax rules. My guess is that Mario is just fearmongering to drum up some business for his IM lawyer.

Yes, BOI only accepts the $100k in a bank savings account to self-insure, that's why I bought the insurance this time. When I turn 70 in a few years, I plan to switch to the $100k in bank savings method. I like to keep a small amount of cash available just in case of emergency or in case something happens to me. My wife would have some money to spend while they are dividing up my estate.

No one said their cash was just sitting around earning nothing. I'm earning 5.40% in short-term CDs with my cash in Fidelity, and that $100k plus is a very small percentage of my total investment portfolio. I don't see the need to have every single dollar invested in stocks. I prefer to have a small amount of cash available just in case I need it. Like you said, to each his own. Good luck...