Domicile and Tax Liability Attestation

[Birk]

We are a Danish couple residing in Thailand for 5 years. We do not own any domicile and we do not work in Thailand. Husband is a pilot flying in and out without a work permit as the company is Singapore based. We are now asked by the Danish authorities to provide a signed Domicile and Tax Liability Attestation from Thailand to show that Thailand has the tax right.

Anyone who can direct us to a lawyer who can help with this?

[Sophon]

I guess this tax residence certificate is what you need, at least that was what I had to supply when getting a refund on charged dividend tax. I had to get it from the regional head office of the revenue department, as the local office was unable/unwilling to supply the certificate.

 

You probably won't need a lawyer, as long as you speak Thai or have someone to help you that do.

 

Sophon

[Maestro]

Good information, Sophon.

 

If the OP has never yet filed an income tax return in Thailand, I guess that's the first thing he must do, for example for his and his wife's income from interest on bank deposits (savings accounts, time deposit accounts, etc). Is it the form PND.90 or PND.91? Where can the form be downloaded?

 

I am interested because at some future time I may want to set up my tax residence in Thailand, with successive one-year retirement extensions.

[Sophon]

I believe PND 91 is for people that only have income from employment, while PND 90 is for people that also (or only) has other types of income. This website has links to different tax forms.

 

I only have income from interest on fixed deposits, so we just go down to the local revenue office with our documents at the beginning of the new year, and a nice lady in the lobby enters the information for us. You can also file online yourself, but the system is only in thai, so it would be easy to make a mistake.

 

Sophon

[Maestro]

Thank you, Sophon.

[stud858]

Is it that you've been asked to show no income in thailand? I'm not completely familiar with your situation.

But if you are saying that your residence in Thailand is temporary and you have no income in Thailand then it would be unnecessary for you to file any tax documents in Thailand.

If that's the case it may be the Thai revenue won't supply you with such a document stating you are not paying tax unless you file to pay tax, which you could do.

But rather you yourself to Denmark authorities state you cannot file for any such documents and it's up to Denmark to check if you are registered for tax in Thailand. After all, you can't prove something that doesn't exist.

Sorry if I misunderstood your situation.

 

[Birk]

Thanks for all the valuable answers and info! As we do not pay tax in Thailand, as we have no income here, it seems this document is hard to provide. Don't really know how to solve the issue so still interested in a lawyer who may be able to help.

[ChouDoufu]

try your local tax office, apply for a tax identification number.

takes 5 minutes to get a small yellow card with your TIN.

needed to apply for tax refund if your fixed account interest is taxed.

no proof of income (at the office i went to) required. 

they asked why i wanted it;  i said i planned to apply for refund.

[Birk]

Thanks! Had no idea about this, will def do that!

[stud858]

17 minutes ago, Birk said:

Thanks! Had no idea about this, will def do that!

That's definitely one way to go but take a day to think it over. Once your registered there's no going back the other way.ie. to be unregistered.

[Birk]

Hmm good point!

[JackThompson]

6 hours ago, Birk said:

Thanks for all the valuable answers and info! As we do not pay tax in Thailand, as we have no income here, it seems this document is hard to provide. Don't really know how to solve the issue so still interested in a lawyer who may be able to help.

One question would be, where is the income from the job deposited?  Singapore?  And guessing no tax is due at where it is deposited?  If living here 180+ days/yr, but one's income is not brought into Thailand in the year it is earned, no tax is owed on it per Thai law. 

Maybe bring in a part of it in the year earned and/or have a deposit here earning interest, so that the Thai tax-system comes into the picture.

[Birk]

This last point is extremely useful! Could well be the solution as this is our case exactly. Amazed of how much info you're providing us with on this forum, thanks!

[julot]

If you need to talk to a lawyer, I would definitely look for someone back in Denmark (or a Danish national in Thailand) since you need to prove your non-tax residence to your passport country and every western countries have different and sometimes complex rules regarding tax liability.

 

To claim tax residence in Thailand, you need to be present in Thailand a minimum of 180 calendar days per year. Are you both eligible? 

[Birk]

We're both eligible yes, we live here full time! We're already covered in Denmark but just need this doc from the Danish tax authorities signed in Thailand to confirm our presence here.

[julot]

16 minutes ago, Birk said:

We're both eligible yes, we live here full time! We're already covered in Denmark but just need this doc from the Danish tax authorities signed in Thailand to confirm our presence here.

Great. Then it should be straightforward. Your local tax office is the place to go.