SamSpade

Interesting, mine was issued in 2014 (Liverpool same day service) and had IPS.... Even though the Government switched to HMPO from 13/05/13 :s https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/identity-and-passport-service#:~:text=The%20Minister%20of%20State%20for,of%20Her%20Majesty's%20Passport%20Office.

Interestingly, ExpatThailand are saying that they met with TRD 7 times and confirmed that income from any year (Including this year) is not tax assessable from the date you get your LTR, they mention this several times during the video but skip to 29:24 for the specific question/answer... https://zoom.us/rec/play/pxokkYDWbfUEy_gMYghkZXNtpdGa0DN32iLr10jlA01XLsfFmXIdDMS4tcSxdw4aJALzENLnrMR0KbXS.3jmxICDffdp4Xdky?eagerLoadZvaPages=sidemenu.billing.plan_management&accessLevel=meeting&hasValidToken=false&canPlayFromShare=true&from=share_recording_detail&continueMode=true&componentName=rec-play&originRequestUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fzoom.us%2Frec%2Fshare%2FARe4dgA2wHFGkLmX4HwLtDFm8m4YfJQC1U6Qk8jcwoHMZFlW1D8ml-911LiyPefG.BoqBdypocHM7I48F [Appologies you might need to register to watch this, can use throw away email addresses and phone numbers]. I know members have said that they've recieved emails from BOI saying it has to be previous year's income but this would seem to contradict this and I would think that EPT have more of an incentive to say that it has to be previous year's only than confirm any year's income is ok.

UK Passport has an "Issuing" Authority, HMPO (Her/His Majesty's Passport office) for Black/Blue ones, IPS (Identity & Passport Service) for the older EU style ones but no indication of Town of issue or anything to indicate place of residence anywhere in the Passport.

Try another Branch, as mentioned I opened a Fixed Deposit account with them in Jan 26 using Passport & copy of lease with owners Chanote in there. I do already have a normal account with them which i opened 2-3 years ago with Passport, CoR & lease (no Chanote).

I didn’t need a UK address when I opened my Fixed Deposit account (already had a normal account with them). Will be switching to this, hopefully for my next extension (August) but if not, definitely for the one after

It does feel like a re-hash of the stories from 2024 but it seems the Cabinet had a meeting on 10th Feb where they acknowledged/endorsed the progress made since 2024 and confirmed they were going ahead with the plans for "Longer Term" measures, though no details behind what these are... https://visasnews.com/en/thailand-government-consolidates-its-visa-policy-and-considers-adjustments/

Ko Lipe.... From KL Head to Langkawi (If slow travellling go via Penang, Georgetown is awesome for food) and then get the ferry across to Ko Lipe. After Ko Lipe get the ferry to Pak Bara Pier and from there you can get transport to Phuket / Krabi etc...

I can't drag my Ms for a walk after 8am & before 6pm even if the air is perfect... We live at Wongamat beach so <8am and >6PM it's a very pleasant walk, but in the between hours it's often hot as hell... Of course on Holidays (We're just back from Maldives & now in Penang for 4 weeks... Trying to do less than 180 days in Thailand for Tax reasons)... I drag her out walking at lunch time and the Noel Coward ditty... Mad Dogs & Englishmen go out in the midday sun always springs to mind... Well, I am an English Man and the Ms does turn into a Mad Dog when dragged out in afternoon heat so I guess he was right :) In Bangkok at 12 O'Clock they foam at the mouth and run... But Mad Dogs and English Men go out in the mid day sun...

I agree with you, though my FD account wasn't frozen when applying for my extension in July, it was only frozen when I tried to move money to my savings account and once I provided additional address verification it was immediately unfrozen, and as I've posted before, it p1ssed me off so much that I'm switching to using KBank for my extensions going forward. But the OP wasn't complaining about that (They had no money in the account to freeze), they were complaing about BBL no longer taking part in the "Agent Assisted Financing" route to extensions which I find a bit rich to be complaing about if I'm honest.

In fairness to BBL (And I'm no fan of theirs after the dramas I had moving money from my FD account to my Savings account), the "Rogue Action" that the OP is complaining about is they no longer participate in what is at best the "Grey Area" of "Agent Assisted Financing" which feels a bit risable if I'm being honest. Granted for some BBL's freezing of Retirement funds for 4 months & their inability to provide 12 month statements immedietly on demand can cause problems, but these aren't relevant in the OP's case as they don't have the money in the bank to begin with.

That's standard when using an Agent to do the Conversion. Feb last year it cost <30K but now I believe it's 35K+ as the banking side of things is much more difficult. As other's have said, best to get the Non-IMM O outside of Thailand then even if you do use an Agent to do your 12 month extension / provide the financials, you're looking at approx 15K (Last I heard Maneerat were charging 13.5K but it may have gone up since).

He mentioned being paid by the company he's working for to a Thai Bank account (Wouldn't recommend this personally) which he'll struggle to get/keep on a DTV visa but that aside, I would have thought that the beneficial tax rates of the LTR "Highly Skilled Professionals" visa would be better for him assuming he & the company he's working for meet the criteria. Income: Minimum personal income of USD 80,000/year in the past two years. Note: Can be lowered to USD 40,000/year if holding a Master’s degree+ or specialized expertise. Expertise & Industry: Must work in targeted industries (e.g., tech, biotech, automotive, etc.), research centers, or government agencies. Employment: Contracted by a Thai or foreign company. Health Insurance: Minimum USD 50,000 coverage, social security, or $100k deposit.

Legally you cannot work on the Elite, or Retirement visas & the DTV one can be restrictive so if you qualify for the LTR then that is the way to go. I’d sack your lawyer as you can open a bank account on a retirement (Non-IMM O or OA) & no need to leave the country ever. Sounds like they are mixing it up with the DTV where you cannot open a bank account & need to leave the country every 180 days (though you can extend once so can stretch to 360 days).

One thing to be aware of when applying for the Non-IMM O in the UK is the option you need to choose is "Retirement (Pensioner aged 50 or above with State Pension who wishes to stay in Thailand for no longer than 90 Days)" This can cause concern for people who aren't recieving the State Pension, but you don't need to be, you just need to have the 800K THB equivalent in a Bank Account.

No it's not illegal if the company is an active company, it is illegal if it's a shell company set-up with the sole purpose of purchasing property/land. Again, the Land is owned by the Condo Juristic and the foreigner owns a propertion of the land based on the size of their condo (this is included on their title deed).

The Land is jointly owned by all Condo Owners as "Common Property" through the Condo Juristic Management in proportion to the size of your Condo's area. Yes you cannot point to your particular piece of Land & stick a stake in it, nor can you sell it without selling the Condo BUT you do own that proportion of the overall land that the Condo is on. Similar to how Nominee Companies work where the Company owns the land and you own part of the company but a lot less "Grey" in terms of legality. Edit: This sums it up better than I can... Key Points on Condo Land Ownership Common Property Status: The land, foundation, exterior walls, lobby, pool, and hallways are considered common property shared by all co-owners. Juristic Person Management: The land is legally held under the condominium’s juristic person, which is managed collectively by the unit owners. Proportional Ownership: Your share of the land is calculated based on the ratio of your unit's area to the total area of all units. Title Deed (Or Chor 2): The condo title deed, known as Or Chor 2, records both the private unit ownership and the corresponding percentage of shared common property. Foreigner Rights: Foreigners can own condo units freehold (up to 49% of project area), which includes this joint stake in the land. In summary: No single person owns the land; all unit owners own it together via the juristic entity.

Yep, took < 5 minutes and they owed me approx. 2,500 THB from Withheld interest which I never bother to claim back. Are you able to share this information?

FD (Fixed Deposit) accounts are covered by the 1Million THB Deposit Protection act, it's Foreign Currency Accounts that are not... Protected Deposits Thai Baht Deposits only i.e. Current Deposits, Savings Deposits, Fixed Deposits, Certificates of Deposit, and Deposit Receipts https://www.bangkokbank.com/en/personal/Grow-Club/Save-and-Invest/Practical-advice-on-deposit-protection

I have used BBL accounts to support my extension for the past 10 years, the 1st 5 years I used a normal Savings account then I opened an FD account, topped it up to >800K and ran it in parallel with >800K in the savings account for a year then switched to using the FD account at immigration and have at times let my savings account go below the minimum 400K, no problems in switching and no need to tell Immigration about having another account. However, this year I went to move some money from my FD account to my Savings account and had problems with BBL wanting additional proof of address with the threat of closure (Of the FD account only!) if I couldn't provide it... https://aseannow.com/topic/1383721-more-fun-games-with-bangkok-bank/ This could have left me in a difficult position with Immigration so despite sorting it out with BBL I decided to open an FD account with Kasikorn (Already have a normal account with them) and will be topping this up to 800K before my next extension, running it in parrallel with my BBL FD account but hopefully using it for my next extension. Originally 3 months after my next extension, I was planning on closing the BBL FD account but I also like to take a belt and braces approach to things that are important to me so will probably just leave them both at >800K (I've never kept <2.5 Million THB in-country anway as I like to keep money here for emergencies, even though I have Health Insurance) ,I accept the poor investment return in exchange for peace of mind. If you do decide to have a 2nd account with >800K, highly recommend not opening it with BBL, definately go for a Krungsri or Kasikorn account for the extra flexibility/piece of mind.

Suggest you research your Visa Options 1st as unless you plan on working & then going down the PR route (Almost impossible if your're > 50) then you'll need to look at the Global Investor Programme - https://www.edb.gov.sg/en/incentives-and-programmes/global-investor-programme.html FWIW I lived there for 12 years and loved the place but it is so small that after a few years I found myself travelling elsewhere most weekends (rented a Condo in Bangkok so used to visit it every other weekend) Re: costs, it's much cheaper than the UK if you're working as the savings from only paying 12-15% tax (IIRC UK is 45% + 11% NI) more than offset things like additional housing costs. Great place to visit, not a great place to retire to unless you are seriously rich.

LTR-WP has an exemption (by Royal Decree) that means previous year’s income is not taxable. FWIW I plan on buying a Condo > $250K, nothing to do with potential financial gains/losses, I just like to have my own place to live and security in the fact that my landlord can’t jack the rent up or kick me out. Edit: Also, the “30+30 leases” don’t come into it, you own the Condo freehold so no lease involved.

Also used these guys, IIRC it was 12K all in for the jumbo passport.

My Meatloaf Playlist...

Riviera Wongamat... But you need to stay for at least 1 month. Staying shorter, I enjoyed staying at the Vision Pratumnak (Booked 5 nights on AirBnB). Enjoy your holiday Georgie :)

No, it's just a link to an Expat Thai Tax company who have made many videos covering this subject so take it as you like (I am certainly not associated with them). But again I would ask how CGT was calculated before the change to rules because they didn't change anything in relation to that.