chiang mai

Yes it causes problems with banking but also with companies making payment I imagine. Jersey and UAE are part of CRS, they both want to know your tax residency, has this not been an issue for you yet?

You can't be tax resident nowhere, you have to be tax resident somewhere, unless you don't have any income at all. You can live in a country for less than 180 days and then move on, or you can live in a low tax country. But at some point you will need to be paid income and invoke a tax treaty, which means having a country of tax residency.

Yes, number 1 is my error, I don't know what scenario I was trying to portray when I wrote that, obviously too early in the morning! Apologies. Number 4 is not tax assessable, as stated.

No, I did answer, you just didn't see it. Here it is again. "Yes, it became effective 1 January this year".

Do you agree with this? 1 - the person must be Thai tax resident 2 - the transaction must benefit the cardholder for personal income tax rules to apply (as opposed to any Gift Tax aspect). 3 - the merchant/payee must be based in Thailand, unless overseas goods or services are acquired that are shipped to or have their end point in Thailand. 4 - the funds used (to pay the bill) must be Thai assessable and not exempt Where the rules may diverge is if a credit card liability is converted to another form of loan. A credit card transaction is variable limit, revolving credit agreement whereas personal loans are fixed and for a specific purpose, typically of a fixed duration. But that aspect is downstream and not really part of the today discussion about credit card transactions. Also, I think the fact the purchase is made using revolving credit is a red herring. Subject to the above rules, the contract is formed in Thailand, there is offer, acceptance and consideration in Thailand, the merchant is paid here and the CC card holder receives delivery of their product or services here. This differs significantly from a foreign bank loan, to say purchase a condominium in Thailand where there is a fixed loan agreement and the purchase is for a specific item and there is a dedicated loan agreement. Some Examples A Thai tax resident uses his UK bank CC to buy a sports car which is then shipped to Thailand. Depending on the nature of the funds used to pay the CC bill, the funds used to make the purchase may be assessable to Thai tax. A Thai tax resident uses his foreign CC to pay his rent in Thailand every month. Depending on the nature of the etc etc etc (as above). A Thai tax resident uses his foreign CC to purchase an overseas package holiday, via a Thai based travel agent. Depending on.... (as above) Same as above but the travel agent is located in the UK. Those funds are never remitted to Thailand so cannot be regarded as Thai tax assessable. A Thai tax resident uses his foreign CC to purchase a Gift from overseas, for his Thai resident spouse. which is then shipped directly to his partner here. The present can be considered under Thai Gift Tax rules which means the partner has no potential tax liability. But the purchaser of the Gift still needs to consider the nature of the funds used to pay the CC bill. If they are Thai tax assessable, he is liable to tax on that purchase, in the same way that he would had he remitted assessable income to his spouse. Same as above but the overseas spouse is now just an overseas "anyone" and the gift, purchased overseas, is shipped directly to them overseas. Neither the gift nor any funds are remitted directly to Thailand plus there is no personal consideration, ergo, the cost of the gift is neither tax assessable in Thailand nor applicable under Thai Gift Tax rules.

Everyone is waiting for the release of the new tax forms and the associated instructions, I understand that is scheduled for November or December.

Actually I wasn't. I can do everything I need to for filing my return, from my PC at home, In fairness, my tax affairs here are not complicated but nevertheless, they don't get one piece of paper from me.

I've dealt with Immigration for over 20 years and watched that paper oile grow each year. But TRD seems to be the opposite, they have moved the majority in recent years, from paper based to online hence they are reducing the amount of paper. If they require additional documents from you, they will instruct you to upload them, rather than give them paper.

But the rule does mention the Gift being made in line with tradition or on special occasions, which must be self evident.

Yes, it became effective 1 January this year.

There is no new legislation, only the reinterpretation of an existing rule which was made effective last November.

Yeeeessss!

Thanks, I didn't know that, it seems like an odd arrangements since it could include country specific tax breaks that don't apply in Thailand. But hey, if that's what they want, it sure makes life easier. .

Why would it be necessary to show TRD your US tax return. TRD will either accept as fact, what you have written in your Thai tax return or they will query something and ask you for proof or further information. I don't think a tax return from another country constitutes proof, only statements or similar of the item being queried meet that requirement.

There's a section on Inheritance in the guide which is linked below, along with a couple of links.: INHERITANCE TAX 78) "Heirs are subject to the inheritance tax only on the value of a legacy that exceeds THB 100 million obtained from each testator together either once or on several occasions. The inheritance tax rate is 10%, except in the case of heirs who are ascendants or descendants of the testator, where the rate is 5%. Legacies received by the spouse of a testator are exempt from the tax". https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/thailand/individual/other-taxes https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/thailand/individual/other-taxes

Well I've been here over twenty years and I haven't been conditioned in the same way. In fact, if anything, I have learned over time to understand that Thailand is nowhere near as bad as many expats made out when I first moved here. Expats talk a lot and loudly about the frequent changes and lack of stability but in reality there are very few changes that negatively affect them personally. Most of the noise is usually people expressing a fear that something negative could happen but rarely does it ever materialise. I think this says more about the people making the noise than it does about the country.

That's a scenario that is beyond paranoia!

USD stronger today, GBP weaker but THB much stronger, I guess capital inflows pay a role.

It has always been understood that it is that way, the problem is that not everyone has been able to discern the difference in every case.

Last one first: The risk of detection issue applies to not just cc usage but to many aspects of PIT which is a totally separate exercise. Once everyone understands what the rules are, they can calculate their own exposure to risk, along with their own tolerance for risk, both of which may be unique to the individual. I have read a couple of reports about Thai taxation, written by the Asian Development Bank and the IMF but I can't recall the WB report which I doubt is that different. The things I have read suggest there is a structural issue with tax collection focussing on the some of the wrong areas, in order to preserve votes from incumbent governments. Giveaway and subsidies have been a massive feature of many governments over the past two decades, especially the Yingluk government. Indirect relief from tax by supplying subsidies and handouts, complement direct relief where personal income tax collection is not even targeted. That is now slowly changing as the TRD seeks to increase the tax net but it's a major cultural change also which needs to be taken slowly.

I think you missed both point: PIT is only a small percentage of a much larger tax collection picture. My guess is that TRD devotes its efforts to the more lucrative and more complex components of that picture but gets criticised for only collecting a small percentage of the smaller component. Business tax collection has historically been prioritised over PIT, perhaps in the hope that would be enough.. The credit card issue is a question of legality under TRD rules and what is and what isn't. I doubt that very many people today will want to declare those things but many will want to know if it is or isn't assessable....that's the debate.

I understand gold shops withhold 15% tax, not sure if applicable to all shops or not. https://www.forvismazars.com/th/en/insights/doing-business-in-thailand/tax/tax-incentives-for-the-sale-of-gold-bars

Some general tax collection news dated one day ago, basically the amounts collected are as forecast and on target for the year. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/2881788/state-revenue-collection-on-course-to-hit-target Reading the article made me realise that folks may need reminding that TRD does not only collect income tax from the population, they also collect a wide range of complex taxes from a variety of sources that bring in the vast majority of tax revenue......personal income tax collection is the small fry fish in this pond. So for those people who think that TRD is not capable of managing expat tax collection, you may want to revisit that thought, in the context of the bigger Revenue picture. From memory, PIT is around 350 bill baht whilst total tax revenue collection is 2.45 trillion Baht baht, after all refunds!

And people who wear socks and sandals, they have to go too. 🙂

Grammar and spelling nazi's are disallowed, perhaps morality nazi's should be also.