Klonko

I have some disagreements with Mike e.g, on gift tax, but he set up a comprehensive information source as basis for my tax planning. Moreover, I sympathise with him leaving this thread looking at the often repetitive and less constructive posts.

Maximum allowances for age 65+, pension deductible,, health insurance, spouse and support for wife's parents. Withholding tax on Thai bank interest.

Observations from filing taxes in Thailand for the first time: Preparing and filing taxes is easier than for my home country Switzerland, which already has a comparably tax payer friendly system. Total time spent was 1-2 hours using the online filing. Admittedly, having my stepdaughter doing the entries was helpful. Though entitled, I do not use transfers with DTA credits as long as I would have to rely on refunds. Living from savings and THB 760k transfers from pension, my net Thai tax bill is less than THB 2k. Paying taxes in Thailand, I can partially recover withholding tax on my foreign investment income. I love Thailand. P.s. Thank you Mike.

Thanks for the reference.

I have been diagnosed with epiretinal membrane (in German Epiretinale Fibroplasie) in my home country during my vacation and been advised to contemplate surgery, in particular when my eye sight is disturbed. I have also been advised to carefully select an eye clinic and my doctor would have recommended just one or two places in my home country. Bangkok Hospital Pattaya treated cataract and retinal detachment of both my eyes and they did a good job. However, for the upcoming more delicate treatment, I am looking for the best place to go. Bumrungrad is a prime address for health issues but I do not know their expertise for my case and there may be a better eye clinic, presumably also in Bangkok. Any recommendations for an eye clinic experienced in epiretinal membranes? Costs are irrelevant.

TRD will kindly ask tax residents to prove that remittances are not assessable income or subject to DTA. TRD can request certified translation from languages other than English. Lucky if copies of bank statements and tax invoices suffice and are self explanatory, less lucky if documents are not in English or specific signatures are required (cf. foreign health insurance). If TRD is not happy with a tax resident's explanation, they can qualify the remittances as tax assessable and declare respective taxes due. The bottle neck will be resources. I would not be surprised if annual remittances below THB 1-2m will remain under the radar for the time being even if TRD is serious about more tax revenues.

This is a very good idea. The challenge is to find an accountant who is (1) familiar with your home country and respective DTA, (2) understands foreign language (possibly not English) documents, and (3) has a good relationship with your local TRD office, which may be difficult to find if you do not reside in Bangkok.

Good explanations. One correction: there is an inheritance tax in Thailand. Filing capital gains on remittances from a complex foreign investment portfolio with withholding taxes in non-English speaking jurisdiction is only practical if the custodian provides Thai tax compliant reporting and foreign non-English tax certificates do not need to be translated. Applying the current processes to global income would be nightmare, also because relevant information may not available by April.

It is correct that post-nuptial contracts are not valid, but I question that a mortgage loan from pre-marital assets qualifies as post-nuptial contract. Otherwise, no business contract (excluding marital assets) may be valid between spouses. My question is also if a foreigner can grant a loan secured by property owned by a Thai.

Is it possible to grant a (non-interest bearing) mortgage to the spouse from pre-marital funds with a lien on the land and house for financing the purchase of the house in the spouse's name?

Is the certificate of residence available in Thai only or also in English? I tried to open a foreign bank account and was asked to provide a a certificate of residence (embassy confirmation did not suffice)?

As said, the Pink ID includes the TIN, which I need to recover or avoid withholding interest on my Thai bank accounts. Sooner or later my foreign banks will request a Thai TIN anyway. Further, AFAIK, I will not have to carry my passport with me, which I currently do when travelling within Thailand.

Unfortunately the <180 day or half year rule is not a generally accepted principle. E.g. my home country applies the concept of main residence irrespective of time spent, and I think Germany starts taxing > 3 months (consecutive?) stays.

My tax rate in my home country, where I have a secondary domicile, would be 5% lower and capital gains are not taxed. But the even bigger issues for me are (1) documenting my Thai tax return would be a nightmare because the relevant documents are not in English , (2) it is technically impossible for me to file until March 31 because I have to wait for some tax relevant reports until mid-year, and (3) I could reclaim tax credits only two years in arrears when my foreign taxes will be officially assessed. However, I am quite relaxed because it will take Thailand many years to establish a working global tax system going along with rescinding the 180 days rule and I do not expect Thailand to become tax hell compared with some attractive western countries.

Upgraded from a Ora GoodCat 500 to a Tesla Model 3 AWD. 580 km real range (629 km WTP) from Isaan to Sattahip via Bangkok (450 km, partially motorway), keeping A/C on during two stops. One charging stop would suffice from Sattahip to Chiang Rai. The longer range of the Tesla is convenient but not a necessity at least on weekdays. The Ora GoodCat's range is 400 km at 90 km/h but only 280 km at 120 km/h. The Tesla is more comfortable and has better software, but the Ora is still good value and we will keep it.