monkeycountry

I have one rule which i strictly follow. Never ever go into a bar used by Thais, no matter what, because there will be one for sure that has a knife or a gun and when a Thai gets drunk anything can happen.

Could not agree more, except you should specify it to "used by Thai men". Thai women rarely if ever bring guns and knives when going out.

0.000001% is too much. My mum scolded me when I was a kid for sitting on the sand at Hayling Island near Portsmouth and getting a spot of oil on my clothes.

Who wants to go to beach like the one above? Not for decades.

Based on the state of the few resorts on the tiny beach in question, I don't think there was alot of tourists on that beach to begin with.

People may be furious,

but I doubt they are willing to pay more at the pump to fix it.

and of course the PTB ask all affected not to sue PTT as PTT has already accepted responsibility, just negotiate with them for settlement to save time and effort.... in other words... lets just sweep this under the rug as quickly and quietly as possible, we wouldn't want the good people of LOS starting to know the truth or knowing they have rights to take action against the mighty PTT and Government for destroying the wonders of LOS, would we?

you will find that many if not all business owners (hotels, restaurants, fishermen etc.) will prefer negotiating. Not because it takes years to sue, but because in court they will have to provide proof of their potential income, which will obviously include proof of their past income and that will be difficult for the many who cheat the revenue department, which most smaller hotels, restaurants and fishermen do. Ie. If your tax records from last year shows no or very little revenue, then why should the court believe this years revenue to be 10 or 20 times higher?

Is there a source which documents all the foreign murder? If it was started today and we took a look back in a year's time, I'm sure it would already be quite a substantial compilation.. Of course the embassies and consulates of respected nations know this already, so why aren't they doing more to protect the citizens of their homelands?

Seems to be a lot of foreigners getting murdered by Thais but the other way round doesn't occur very often.

Because most foreigners have the ability to argue and/or fight without having to kill their opponent. Unfortunately many Thai men do not have that ability.

As has been said so many times before (by me :-), foreigners should stay away from nighttime entertainment venues frequented by Thai men.

Ah, we get the typical TiT bashing comments...

Now let me dig into my memory a bit and throw some spanners around:

Alaska...anyone?

Well, that's quite a long time ago...lets try this one: BP...Gulf of Mexico... Anyone?

Accidents like this happen. Everywhere in the world.. I dare say that the US of A seems to hold first spot on Cluster Xxxxx in this type of accidents....

Yes, it's a serious accident, but if you're only half way sincere, you'd not be driving a car and use public transport or maybe taxis to get around so less oil needs to be refined and less chance for an accident to occur...

Before anyone starts:

- I use taxi's or car-pool with my employees..

- Living oil free is impossible, but you can make a difference by using less..

Schuimpge, I salute you!!! The US of A holds first spot for a lot of other cluster xxxxxxx as well and is always first in pointing fingers as well.

If the photo with people in charge wearing life jackets, pointing at the sand, represents the way this major PTT f%*kup is investigated and punished, we will see one of the PTT directors getting a slap on the wrist along with a ridiculous 2 or 3m Baht fine and the case is closed, while private investors and resort owners along the coast will lose everything and will not get a single Baht in compensation.

Great would be a thailandwide boycott against PTT gas stations, but I fear this will just remain a dream...

Are you even aware who owns the majority of PTT? Somehow I do not think Thai's and Thailand wants to boycott PTT

http://ptt.listedcompany.com/shareholdings.html

Do you know something we don't?

Not sure if you are joking? If not, then look at your link and notice the main shareholder (51%). Why would Thai's and Thailand boycott their own finance ministry, and thereby directly damage themselves??

"This year, business operators aimed to draw 5.5 million tourists to visit the island"

"There are about 3,000 rooms available to serve 7,000-8,000 tourists at present."

Unless all the rooms are short time rooms (1 hour stay), then good luck fitting 5.5 million tourists into 3,000 rooms. Could it be Koh Samed is already gearing up for damage payment from PTTGC, by inflating all numbers?

Of course any damages paid to any tourism operators or fishermen should be based on their usual revenue/profits as reflected in their yearly tax returns. In case they do not file tax returns, or their tax returns show little or no revenue/profit, then obviously they should receive equally little or no damages payment from PTTGC. This should not be a problem for any hotels, restaurants or fishermen, as I am sure they all pay proper taxes, and in the unlikely event that they do cheat with their tax payments, and thereby cheat the public, then why should a government owned company such as PTTGC pay them any damages?

Ah, we get the typical TiT bashing comments...

Now let me dig into my memory a bit and throw some spanners around:

Alaska...anyone?

Well, that's quite a long time ago...lets try this one: BP...Gulf of Mexico... Anyone?

Accidents like this happen. Everywhere in the world.. I dare say that the US of A seems to hold first spot on Cluster Xxxxx in this type of accidents....

Yes, it's a serious accident, but if you're only half way sincere, you'd not be driving a car and use public transport or maybe taxis to get around so less oil needs to be refined and less chance for an accident to occur...

Before anyone starts:

- I use taxi's or car-pool with my employees..

- Living oil free is impossible, but you can make a difference by using less..

Schuimpge, I salute you!!! The US of A holds first spot for a lot of other cluster xxxxxxx as well and is always first in pointing fingers as well.

If the photo with people in charge wearing life jackets, pointing at the sand, represents the way this major PTT f%*kup is investigated and punished, we will see one of the PTT directors getting a slap on the wrist along with a ridiculous 2 or 3m Baht fine and the case is closed, while private investors and resort owners along the coast will lose everything and will not get a single Baht in compensation.

Great would be a thailandwide boycott against PTT gas stations, but I fear this will just remain a dream...

Are you even aware who owns the majority of PTT? Somehow I do not think Thai's and Thailand wants to boycott PTT

someone must have informed customs before hand, as i have never seen any type of customs or anything at samui airport..

Samui Airport has different arrival areas for international and domestic flights. The international part has a customs area, passport check etc.

Buying a can of soda. Which should I buy? Spent a few hours on the internet and have decided that coke or pepsi might be best. Coke is slightly more expensive, but seems to be what ppl prefer. Anyone know the resale value or how long they last? Being a major decision I have been thinking about this for months but I simply cannot make up my mind. I really do not want to buy the wrong one and regret it. Help pls.

The truck jumped the lane and caused the head on collision, not the bus. So, why focusing the article about bus safety and not about concrete blocks to be implemented to avoid the same fate in case of future drivers falling asleep ?

Agreed, but this article is not only about the recent truck/bus collission, but about general problems with buses and bus accidents, where often the bus and/or the bus driver is the cause of the accident.

They should install speed restrictors in every bus and minivan, if the companies tamper with them, hit them with massive fines.

And who is going to enforce the "hit them with massive fines"? You can fill the whole bus up with GPS, speed restrictors and other control equipment, but if noone is going to check it, then what is the point?

Ah Ah! Thai buses! They are a joke, like Thai police.

Look at buses in Malaysia. You will see a big difference: No super-high double deck shitty buses with poor interior and cramped seats but standard single deck with normal seats.

HEY THAILAND! Look at your more developed neighbors and copy them! (edit: copy with same quality or better...)

Edit2: And hire good drivers! Not childish ones who like to race with other bus drivers.

Perhaps you can inform me and the bus operators where the "office of good drivers" is? So I and others can go there and hire alot of good drivers. As long as one can pass a drivers license test blindfolded, and virtually no traffic laws are enforced, there will be no or very few "good drivers".

"...tend to use substandard materials and shun safety features to keep costs down..."

This could describe buses, highways, buildings, bridges...Just about anything built in Thailand where a payoff to an official can cut costs and put the general public in danger. If the Thai authorities had any interest in making this country safer, they would have done it already. As long as a large number of foreign tourists aren't affected there will be no incentive to change things.

"As long as a large number of foreign tourists aren't affected there will be no incentive to change things"

Are you suggesting that if the 19 dead had been foreigners, things would change?

We all know this. Big question is - where does this blatant disregard for people's safety and must make as much possible money at all costs mentality come from?

Just about every Thai in a government position.

Plus most Thais in non-government positions

The tax in Thailand is the same as the law. It is what they decide today. Beware of what can happen to you. You can forget about the percentages that have been quoted at the LDO as they don't count. I am told that corporate LDO taxes range between 5%-10% based on how they feel that day. The last time I sold land that was in the company name the LDO in Phuket charged 7%. At least this is what the accountant told me. I never saw the receipt. Not sure they ever give you a receipt that is stamped signed and legal. BLOODY AMAZING!

It has nothing to do with "how they feel that day". But the total percentage varies depending on the situation of the seller as descibed by Monty above. In other words, you may or may not have to pay certain taxes depending on how long you have owned the house etc. These rules apply to Thais as well. My guess is that people think the charges are random simply because they do not understand them. Further, there are no fees for which you cannot get an official receipt.

When the seller* and buyer visit the Lands Titles Office to effect the transfer the LTO officers will want to see quite a few company documents, to indicate / support the company as the legal entity selling the property, and to prove that the company records are up to date (in other words the company is a legal entity at the date of the property transfer).

You're probably aware that LTO offices (like many Thai govt. officers) have slightly different interpretations of the relevant laws and regulations, and I'm aware that at some LTO offices they will want to see that the land / house has at some time been properly added to the company records, as well as the company name being inserted onto the chanut document at the time you (your company) purchased the property.

Also, from my understanding the value (Baht amount) added to the company records for the house and land assets is used in some formula to calculate the tax payable at the transfer of the house (change of name on the chant) from your company name to the buyers name.

There are of course posted processing fees at the LTO in additional to any taxes.

At some LTO offices they are quite serious to see that there is official written building permission to build the house (from my understanding this means houses built after a certain year - but I don't know what year this is). On the other hand, from my understanding, some LTO offices are not so serious about this.

I am aware of one case where there was no written official building permit, so the LTO charged an extra fee of 30,000Baht to 'put it right'. Whether this was 'tea money' I'm not sure.

If you have sold the house through a professional real estate agent then the agent should be well aware of the above.

In any event your accountant should be even more aware of the company documents needed at the local LTO and should, on your request, prepare a set of the needed company documents.

There are various LTO fees involved, including a specific fees relating to the fact that it's a company selling / transferring the house rather than a person selling the house. As already said this depends a bit on which LTO office is involved.

You also need to take the Tabien Baan book for the property to the LTO office and hand it in.

And I guess you are probably well aware that many LTO offices charge an additional 'farang fee' at the transfer.

*Some people suggest that in this scenario it's better for the farang to stay outside the LTO office unseen. But the LTO staff can easily see, from the company documents that there is a farang in the picture.

As already stated by another member, by law the company should pay company tax on the sale of the asset (this is an entirely different matter / tax compared to the Lands Titles transactions on the day of transfer of the chanut), but this is done at the end of the next financial year or as part of the close down of the company if this is completed before the next December.

The buyer, seeing it's a Thai person, needs to take their own original Thai ID card and the current Tabien Baan book where their name is recorded to the LTO.

As a different point, you could think about advising a few property agents that you have a company shell that you now don't need, all up to date, perhaps they might have a farang client who wants to buy a property and needs a company name. In this scenario it could be a win/win for you and the guy who needs a company name, all that needs to be done is to transfer the shares to a new set of shareholders, and this can be done on-line within a few minutes,

The downside that some people see, in regard to buying / acquiring a company name through this method, is that the new shareholders take a risk that the company has outstanding trading debts, unpaid loans, unfulfilled liabilities to customers, etc. Case by case of course.

Good luck.

thank you for taking the time to post such a comprehensive answer

i think i will take the chanote and house book to the land office and see what they think the taxes/fees will be

Since the buyer is Thai, he/she most likely wants to keep the official purchase price as low as possible, to minimize transfer fees/taxes, which are all based on the official price, not the actual price. As this is also in the OP's interest, there should be no problem. Just keep the official transfer price as close to the official transfer price from when the OP bought the house as possible, and there will be no or very little profit from the sale, hence no taxes.

There is no "farang" tax/fee. However if the OP worries about this, just agree with the buyer to split all transfer taxes/fees 50/50 or similar. He/she being Thai will then make sure there are no farang issues, as that would then cost him/her as well.

Transfer taxes/fees are as posted by Monty above.

For those worrying about receipts, which the OP should as he needs to deduct them as expenses in his company, you will get receipts for all taxes and fees if you request them.

What's next? How about an "apprentice" style format where teenage wanna-be MPs compete to steal the most and tell the biggest lies.

The Palestinians had one (reality show) for aspiring politicians.

And look how well they are doing :-)

Is this a joke?

If not, is this really how Thailand's PM choose to spend her time, especially considering the many problems the country faces?

The worst part is, according to the article, this is her attempt at boosting her popularity, and considering the average intelligence and attention span of her average voter - it probably will boost her popularity

Obviously you are not allowed to pass through Le Meridien's property, without their permission, in order to get to the beach. Should you however find another way, such as sailing to the beach in front of their hotel, that would be perfectly legal. Further, since Le Meridien is an international chain, not some local mafia owned hotel, I am quite sure the management would not harass you if you somehow found your way to the beach (the security guard might though, as he does not know any better)

I've gone there a few times without any problem. Just dress nicely and walk right through. Bring your towel and swim suit in your bag. They had a nice pizza there years ago. But I haven't really checked it out lately. Other than to go to my Embassy's outreach program there once a year. But they do have a right to keep you out if you are accessing the beach by their land. No problem if by sea. The beach is public, but not necessarily a land access to it.

It sounds to me that we agree completely. I was not saying you cannot walk through Le Meridien's property, simply that they have the right to deny you permission - as you also state.

Dear Democrat spokesman Chawanon Intarakomalyasut, if you don't like a bill then you can bring up arguments against it during the debate and then vote against that bill. What, you cannot win the vote because you don't have a majority? Why didn't you win the majority? Because the majority of Thais don't like your party? Well bad luck for you but I am going to teach you a lesson for life: this is called Democracy, the majority wins, the minority looses!

Based on the name of your party we could expect you to know that, unless the name of your party is just another big lie! Other lesson: to make threats is not democratic either!

Oh my I am guessing you are fairly new to Thailand and Thai politics? Here is a lesson for your life: Thai politics has very little to do with democracy, no matter which party is in charge

I predict 0 people will go to jail as usual