EcureuilTenace

Yes, I didn't notice, sorry. In the meantime, from an idea there, I did get a resolution that I have posted there https://aseannow.com/topic/1349833-getting-uk-hmrc-to-recognise-my-uk-state-pension-as-not-receiving-the-yearly-increases/page/3/ Sorry I confused things.

I didn't see this chat and posted about the same subject in a new chat. Apologies. A member redirected me here. Seeing the postings here, I tried the webchat. After a few failures to talk to a human, I finally did. She had the same answer as last year (see the original post): "Hi I have read your message regarding your state pension, unfortunately we only go on information sent to us by the Department of Work and Pensions, you will need to contact them." I insisted: "Can I insist? Last year, it costed me DWP phone calls, waiting 6 weeks for their confirmation letter to get here by an unreliable Thai post (and I'm lucky it did) and courier costs to send it to HMRC. You know by my address that I live in Thailand, so have a frozen pension and you have confirmation from DWP from last year. You should be able to change it without all this hassle." She looked at my records and after some security questions corrected it. The whole thing took an hour but it is better than last year. I hope it helps someone.

The UK State Pension is frozen if you live in Thailand, and it is unlikely to change anytime soon. But this post is not about that sensitive subject. It is about HMRC making it worse, as if it wasn’t bad enough. Please have a read if you receive a State Pension from the UK and have a few minutes. Last year, HMRC overestimated my expected taxes by assuming my State Pension would increase. Of course, I had to react to being taxed by the UK government on money it doesn’t even give me. As far as I could see on the HMRC website, I could change the amount of income I predicted for the following year but not the amount of my State Pension. So, I called HMRC. They wouldn’t amend it over the phone and asked me to obtain confirmation from the DWP regarding the expected amount. Half an hour of waiting and a few pounds spent on the call. Amazingly, there is no communication between the DWP and HMRC in either direction. When I contacted the DWP, they said they would post a confirmation letter to me in Thailand. Another few pounds spent on the call and a long wait—between four and six weeks for mail to arrive where I live in Thailand, if it arrives at all. Once I received it, I sent the confirmation to HMRC, requesting that they keep a record of the situation so that I would not have to go through this every year. Another few pounds lost on the courier to the UK. Finally, my taxes were adjusted four months into the tax year, and I should have recouped the difference by the end of this tax year. Annoying but sorted. Until... You’ve guessed it—HMRC has done it again for the next tax year. And as far as I can see, it is still not possible to amend this on the HMRC website. Do UK pensioners in Thailand really have to go through all this hassle every year? I do not particularly need a yearly reminder that my State Pension is frozen. Is there something I should do differently this year? Something I’m not aware of?

Does anyone know what the position is if you reduce your “income-looking” bank transfers to Thailand by paying for Thai goods and services with a card/ account from your foreign bank? I can see issues arising though. Opening a new account in UK or Europe is nigh impossible and keeping an existing one is extremely precarious (some UK banks have already started forced closure of non-residents accounts). Also, you get very high exchange commission rates that way. Any views? Other issues? Another more pointed question if I may: “You must file a Thai tax return between 1 January and 31 March”. If I did one between this Jan and March 24, it would be to cover which period? Jan 23 to Dec 23? Thank you

Thank you for your comprehensive answer. I hope you don't mind me reacting and asking questions that your message raises. "I kept my official residence in Belgium (by officially moving to my parents address)". How do you manage that? Do you spend at least 6 months per year in Belgium, the only way I see you can be officially resident in Belgium? Same for the UK. As you are officially resident in Belgium, you have no problems with Belgian accounts, you can open or keep existing ones. If you are not resident in Belgium, my understanding is that it is impossible to open a new one in any banks and keeping an existing one depends on your bank's policy. Is that your understanding? It is the case in the UK. I have never heard of N26 before. I will have a look, thank you for the tip. Wise told me 2 days ago that (I quote)"We sadly do not offer the Wise card to customers in Thailand". You seem to be using one in Thailand. This apparent contradiction could be explained by a difference between getting a card and using it. In other words, you might get a card at your parents in Belgium and the card is working in Thailand. Is that the case? Pushing my luck with questions on Wise: What about a the Wise card? Has it got the 16 digits number used to purchase online? How is it visually logo-recognisably accepted like a Visa or Mastercard is? Or perhaps it doesn't matter now it is all digital and shopkeepers do not even look at a a card, just slot it in? And finally, a question Wise is not answering properly: which country do the money looks like coming from for the Thai banks (hence the Thai tax authorities). Tax wise, it doesn't matter using the card (that is spending) but it does when doing a bank transfer to a Thai account (that can be seen as a revenue). Kind regards to all

Hi, all You may be aware that losing their UK bank accounts has been a reality for some. It happened to me with my credit card account 4 years ago. But that wasn’t as consequential as losing my UK current account would be and that is a distinct threat now. I am a Belgian pensioner residing in Thailand, but British citizens are as much at risk than me. I worked in the UK for 40 years. My UK state and private pensions are paid in my UK bank account. I transfer money to a Thai bank account as and when needed using Wise (formerly Transferwise). For many various reasons, I do not like to have my pensions paid directly in Thailand. That would definitely be the most unsatisfactory solution for me if my UK account was to close. There is no chance that another UK bank will let me open a new account and it is the same story in Belgium (i.e. not resident). I looked at banks offering expats’ accounts and didn’t like what I saw. For example, the terms of one of them: - £5,000 to open an account. - £60/quarter charge if you go below (free for me at present and I have a £10,000 overdraft facility) - Not bearing interests (although not much, mine does) - £20 for any online transfer to another bank (free for me with my current bank) - 2.75% commission for visa debit card foreign exchange commission (I get less than 1% with my Wise transfers) I looked at other expats’ banks with varying levels of dismay - one wants a £100,000 deposit to open an account. If you are interested to look yourself, here is a link to a list of such banks: https://www.expertsforexpats.com/expat-resources/useful-sites/best-expat-bank-accounts/ I also thought of using Wise (formerly Tansferwise) which offers “accounts”, but their niche is foreign exchange, they are not really a bank. I get a very good service and rates for transfers to Thailand, but only limited amounts of money just pass through them, they do not hold it. Somehow, I’ am not comfortable with having them looking after my money as a bank. I do not have any experience of a Wise account but perhaps one of you see Wise as a solution or part of it? There is the option of using a family member account or getting them to create one for me but that has its own set of problems, some I am probably not even aware of yet. Trying not to complicate things unnecessarily, I must still mention the other threat on the horizon: Thailand taxing foreign income. Tax-agreements are a different complicated subject really, but if it came to being double-taxed, the ability to pay goods and services in Thailand with a non-Thai account/ card would become important – so the Thai authorities would not see an income, just spending. For the moment, they could consider regular transfers into my Thai bank account as income. My current bank is a problem regarding this last point: they will not post replacement card in Thailand, citing frequent fraud instances. I have to temporarily change my bank UK address to my son’s one and put it back when he has courier it back to me. My bank cancelling a card for suspicious activity is common in my circumstances, so I do not dare to use my card because of the hassle. Any views or experiences to tell on all this? Kind regards to all

Not really the right forum but the closest I could find. If you reside in Thailand, you will have missed a large increase in the UK State Pension and will soon miss another large one. If you are unaware, there is a petition on the UK government site to get the current rate and the future increases. It is open to resident of the UK and UK citizen (unfortunately not open for me, I'm Belgian) https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/642749 While I'm here. I suspect there is no way round that freeze apart from spending 6 months in the UK, correct? Kind regards to all

Hi all This must have been discussed before but I cannot find anywhere the latest position with regards to working online with a retirement visa. Can somebody shed some light on this? Kind regards Bernard