Mike Lister

The reason the Thai tax tables are stepped is to give the poor a tax break before they begin to pay tax. By raising VAT you effectively eat into that tax break and force them to pay more tax. The first 150k of earnings are tax free for that same reason, to benefit the poor in society and you think it's a good idea to take that tax break away from them, just because they don't buy much....really, I can't believe you or anyone else said that! The fact that Thailand's VAT rate is lower than average is no justification to increase it.

If you raise VAT you increase the tax burden on the poor, the segment of society least able to afford it. With an average monthly income of circa 15k baht per month, any increase in VAT would impact those people the most.

I'm not sure what point you're trying to argue here. I wrote that the National Parks are financed out of tax receipts which are paid for by Thai's. You've said that argument doesn't hold water! Direct taxation from employment is only one small part of the tax revenue picture. Total tax revenue in 2022 was 2,147,023.6 million baht which comprised 50% direct and 50% indirect taxes. Virtually all the direct taxes were paid for by Thai's, one third of the indirect taxes comprised VAT that everyone paid for. (see page 58 of the budget linked below). The parks system is paid for out of that revenue, along with income from entrance fees, a majority of which is paid by foreigners and is effectively a tourist tax. Now, tell me what it is that doesn't hold water. https://dmcrth.dmcr.go.th/attachment/dw/download.php?WP=rUqjMT04qmqZG22DM7y04TyerPMjBT01qmIZAJ1CM5O0hJatrTDo7o3Q

Outstanding....PM to follow.

I don't know what the new way of handling this will be but in the past the RD didn't appear to actively pursue people who brought money in, regardless of when it was earned. My guess is that if the money was declared in the UK, you/me should be free and clear to import those funds and that will be the end of it. It gets to be too complicated trying to figure out is that 500 Pounds in rent that you just transferred to Thailand was earned when and if it was taxed. There's no mileage in the RD deploying staff to check things at this level, it's not productive. My guess again is that if you filed a UK tax return that showed you declared rental income, that's enough to prevent further questions.

They are very misleading, there are many tests for cancer, it depends which one you're looking for. https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/tumor-marker-tests/

I was in transit from Hong Kong to London and forgot to leave.

Anyone who thinks the RD will tax foreign funds destined for the housing or financial markets, probably needs their head examined! The SET and the Bond market depend on capital inflows, the housing market in places such as Phuket depend on foreign buyers, there is just no way those inbound funds will be taxed, period.

That is incorrect. The workforce is about 32 million people, the rest are old, very young, in prison, in hospital etc etc. Only 6% of the workforce pays taxes via PAYE equivalent, that doesn't mean the rest don't pay taxes or file a return, they do. Most people work as self employed or as a limited company, my wife works as self employed, for example. She runs a business that turns over in excess of 1 million baht every year and she files a tax return and pays taxes on her profits just as everyone else in a similar situation does.

Which is fine except most people are not able to understand the results. Oh sure, the lab will tell you if a test result is out of range but that's only one part of reading test results. The other parts are about the relationship between two test results, for example ALT and AST, which are very important. The other part is the trend of any particular result over time. A result can be in range but if it's falling or rising, that can mean something very serious, which in the case of falling TSH means I need to have my cancerous thyroid removed! Sooo, paying the extra few hundred baht to have decent GP interpret the results, is a good investment.

There is a new Sriphat building that has been in place for a few years, it is completely unlike the old Sriphat building. There are no queues and there is no waiting. Dr Ampica does not have her own clinic as far as I know, she is semi retired, her details and hours are here: https://sriphat.med.cmu.ac.th/en/doctor/detail/124 The new building is located here: https://sriphat.med.cmu.ac.th/en/contact It is a multi floor high rise and Dr Ampica is on the 2nd floor. The building is located some distance West of the old one and is signposted as Sriphat OPD..

My experience is that family doctors here are fine for the routine stuff and the first look at anything that doesn't appear serious but after that, go see a specialist and cut the GP out of your loop. If you have thyroid related concerns, my advice is to go to Sriphat and see Ass. Prof Dr Ampica who consults on Tuesday and Sunday for a few hours each day. She is widely regarded as the foremost endocrinologist in the North and is a lovely lady. A consultation will set you back 700 baht and will be worth every satang. I suggest that TSH at that point in the range, may need an expert opinion.

As you say, the FBS is a quick and inexpensive test that can be a pointer towards needing to do the A1C, if it comes in very high or very low. If an FBS test comes in at 130 after fasting for nine hours, that's a pretty good indicator of the need to do an A1C, quickly. But if it comes in at say 105 in the morning, that's not conclusive of anything. I'm getting ready to have my thyroid removed in ten days time so I can confirm thyroid tests are an important part of any blood test series. It is important to monitor TSH levels and also free T4 to make sure they are in range. But it's equally as important to monitor those results over time and watch whether they rise or fall because that can be an indicator. My TSH levels were falling which is a sign of an enlarged thyroid which can be indicative of follicular tumors which may or may not be benign. Even though the result is still in range, the fact the numbers are falling is a red flag. Fortunately, most thyroid cancers are slow growing so there is time to react, but only if you test and track.

The chap with the tester and those thin surgical gloves doesn't seem to understand electricity that well.

I'm not sure what you mean by taxable income vs income, can you say more? All income received is potentially taxable, until it is assessed and ruled in or out, for whatever reason. For example, I have several income sources. My US Social Security payments are income but they are not taxable in Thailand hence they are ruled out for Thai tax purposes. My UK State pension payments are taxable in Thailand so they must go into the pot labelled, assessable income in Thailand, unless we discover that the mere existence of a DTA between the two countries, means Thailand wont seek to tax that money (at present this is taxable income here). My UK rental income is taxable in Thailand but only if I bring that money into Thailand. If I leave it in the UK it becomes savings. If I then try to import that money to Thailand, potentially it is taxable here.

That's true of the West but not here where a majority of the tax burden is borne by business and VAT, only 6% of people pay tax via a PAYE equivalent.

The FBS gives a single measurement reading at the time the test was taken and that's all, blood sugar spikes and drops throughout the day and night so no two readings are likely to be the same. The Dawn Phenomenon is where blood sugar readings spike first thing in the morning, before a person has eaten, that spike doesn't mean the person is diabetic necessarily. It is not even remotely likely that a single FBS reading can confirm or rule out diabetes, it just isn't possible. The HbA1c test measures glycated red blood cells that have a life of 90 days. Sugar in the blood attaches to the blood cells hence measuring the volume of them determines blood sugar levels over 90 days, not just the one second the blood sample was taken. You need to do some more reading, the FBS is not what you think it is.

If you spend 90pc of your time in Thailand you are tax resident here, regardless of where else you think you may be tax resident also. I pay tax in three countries but I'm only tax resident because it's where I spend 90pc ofy time. My UK pension and rental income is taxed in the UK but I am not resident for tax there, that means they can't tax me on income I receive from the USA or Thailand.

The issue is availability of funds of pensioners in Thailand to trade, no the limited skill levels required to do it. Expat pensioners who have lived in Thailand for 10, 15 or 20 years already, on fixed incomes and with frozen pensions, tend not to do 400k baht trades!

Not for the "average expat pensioner", it isn't!

A1C is a blood test.

The standard of medical care I've received in Thailand has always been first class. I've had one minor operation, a couple of procedures and one heart op., all were first class. There are some top rated doctors here.

I did this for three years but not out of choice, my work just made it that way. I got sick of hotels, planes and not having a base, it sounds glamorous but it's hard work.

Oh come on now, the PI is ideal, unless you like good food, safety, decent roads and a good standard of health care. Oh yes, the hurricane season can be interesting too.

It's often listed as HbA1c. A1C shows the number of glycated red blood cells which have a life span of about 90 days, therefore, the test shows your sugar levels over that same period and is the gold standard test for blood sugar.