Retirement visa and being rich

[Janner1]

22 hours ago, Esso49 said:

Have you thought fo a second a person married to a Thai and having Thai school children would find it quite difficult to provide schooling to their children in the Caribbean ? 

With that kind of money he can take a team of teachers with him, so where are the educational problems?

 

With 100 million US I can tell you it will not be in bank, even George Soros would want to talk with him.

[VBF]

4 minutes ago, Janner1 said:

With that kind of money he can take a team of teachers with him, so where are the educational problems?

 

With 100 million US I can tell you it will not be in bank, even George Soros would want to talk with him.

And quite honestly, with USD 100 Mil, 800,000 Baht is just a drop in the ocean to lock away. Why cause yourself any grief? Just put the money in the bank and relax at visa extension time. Your time would be worth so much more than what would be, to you, a paltry sum.

 

I repeat..... I should be so lucky! ????

Edited October 24, 2018 by VBF

[huberthammer]

6 hours ago, smotherb said:

Why, is Thailand only for those who cannot afford to live elsewhere?

it seems because there are too many bitter and twisted people on TV.  I fully agree with you, cost of living alone would offer cheaper places than here and this is not the reason why many of us live here. 

[VBF]

14 minutes ago, huberthammer said:

it seems because there are too many bitter and twisted people on TV.  I fully agree with you, cost of living alone would offer cheaper places than here and this is not the reason why many of us live here. 

That (IMO) is different. If you've chosen to live in Thailand, then great - enjoy, enjoy.

 

The OP appears to be asking a very valid newbie question about "what-if".

My somewhat flippant responses above (#94, 96) don't pretend to cover all bases, "cos we is all different, innit?" 

 

For example, I could afford to live in Thailand if I wanted to, but don't, however I could not afford to live in Monaco, (but still don't.)

With USD 100 Mil, I could afford either but still wouldn't live in either place out of choice. Other options would enter the picture - more money just gives you more choice, that's all.

Edited October 24, 2018 by VBF

[dotpoom]

On 10/23/2018 at 12:54 PM, Sheryl said:

You are nto required to have a pension. The only requirements are age 50 and over, either 800,000 in the bank or 65,000 a month coming in, both from  overseas sources.  They do not in the least care whether pension, interest, savings etc. just the amount and that it is brought in from abroad.

I think it is wrong to say that the 800,000 Bt. has to come in from abroad.... You could sell a condo here and use that money...not the same as money having to come in from abroad to purchase property. 

[Peterw42]

3 hours ago, Anthony 777 said:

So do you pay tax in Thailand on the rental income?

 

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
 

 

No, Because its under the tax threshold of 150k a year before you start to pay tax.

[English Engineer]

Speaking to an immigration officer, I was told you need to show the 800k in the account at all times. I think this is a new requirement.

[CharlieH]

Off topic posts removed.

[elviajero]

4 hours ago, HappyAndRich said:

On 10/23/2018 at 6:45 AM, djdubuque said:

my question is if your wealth let's say you have an account with 100 million USD in it cause you won the lottery.  Do these requirements still apply?

Strange question. Why would you even bother with enough money? Do the smart choice. bring 20 million baht into the country. Get investment visa, and leave the other money invested in the western world. I mean, we are talking about smaller than 1% of the capital you are mentioning.

The smart choice would be to buy a 20 year membership of Thailand Elite. There is no better easier/better way.

[natway09]

If you are just soooooo rich, why bother asking ?

[elviajero]

1 hour ago, dotpoom said:

On 10/23/2018 at 6:54 AM, Sheryl said:

You are nto required to have a pension. The only requirements are age 50 and over, either 800,000 in the bank or 65,000 a month coming in, both from  overseas sources.  They do not in the least care whether pension, interest, savings etc. just the amount and that it is brought in from abroad.

I think it is wrong to say that the 800,000 Bt. has to come in from abroad.... You could sell a condo here and use that money...not the same as money having to come in from abroad to purchase property. 

It's not wrong. The 800K in the bank or the income should be from a foreign source. The money would have had to come from abroad to buy the condo, but whether or not immigration would accept that is another matter.

[elviajero]

1 hour ago, English Engineer said:

Speaking to an immigration officer, I was told you need to show the 800k in the account at all times. I think this is a new requirement.

That is wrong. The 800K is supposed to be the money you live on in lieu of an income. If your balance doesn't drop below 800K during the year they might ask for proof of the money you are living on when you go to renew.

 

The balance needs to be at least 800K for the 2/3 month seasoning period only.

[elviajero]

7 hours ago, Pedrogaz said:

I have one of my pensions paid into Bangkok bank......as luck would have it it is around 65K per month. I have other income and so do not spend this money but rather let it build up so there is always 800K in there for the visa extension each year. You have raised the issue of taxation and I read somewhere that the Thai government consider pensions paid here as taxable? Do you know anything about this? If the Thai government want to tax it I will stop having it paid here.

Yes, you might have a tax liability in Thailand. You should consult an accountant.

[HAKAPALITA]

11 minutes ago, elviajero said:

That is wrong. The 800K is supposed to be the money you live on in lieu of an income. If your balance doesn't drop below 800K during the year they might ask for proof of the money you are living on when you go to renew.

 

The balance needs to be at least 800K for the 2/3 month seasoning period only.

They funny, if its been in long time, we were told show a transaction. Why ? Wife asked as its updated with todays BKK Letter. Nice I.O. "Dont Know "Boss says so". Next time You Do. I keep well away just smile.. We never use it. There for Rainy Day

[elviajero]

5 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Thats not the case at the moment, its just income, there is no definitive statements saying income must be from overseas etc. The declaration I make to immigration each year says "I have an income of X" no mention of what account or even if its income into thailand. 

The income is meant to be from a foreign source. It may not specifically say so anywhere, but as you are a foreigner applying for a temporary stay that's required to get the income certified by your embassy, it's obvious.

[elviajero]

5 hours ago, robertson468 said:

On 10/23/2018 at 6:54 AM, Sheryl said:

You are nto required to have a pension. The only requirements are age 50 and over, either 800,000 in the bank or 65,000 a month coming in, both from  overseas sources.  They do not in the least care whether pension, interest, savings etc. just the amount and that it is brought in from abroad.

The law does not say coming in from overseas sources.

The law doesn't say anything about the 800K!

 

The law gives the authority to immigration to decide who gets an extension of stay and under what criteria. If you want to apply for a visa/extension of stay in Thailand you have to prove the 800K came from abroad.

[andux]

9 hours ago, wgdanson said:

Which a) they cannot own and b) must have a 51% Thai partner. If you had USD 100M, why would the distance between other destinations to 'live the high life' matter. You would probably have your own jet, and also live in one of the high life places.

 

A foreigner can own condos, and also 100% of branches of foreign companies. 

 

By the way, a jet capable of traveling long distances can cost up to 60M USD, and this doesn't  include maintenance costs, pilots, etc., so no, you probably wouldn't have your own jet if you had 100M USD, unless you were trying to make the 100M USD disappear as fast as possible.

 

That's another one of the reasons why I said that rich people are usually rich because they worked for that money. Lottery winners usually blow the money, just like you are suggesting.

 

In any case, assuming infinite money, it's still a matter of choice. A rich person in Canada may also be asked "why are you still here in Vancouver with us, and not living the high life in Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur?".

Edited October 24, 2018 by andux

[wgdanson]

4 minutes ago, andux said:

A rich person in Canada may also be asked "why are you still here in Vancouver with us, and not living the high life in Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur?".

Because I can now get a decent smoke in Vancouver and live the HIGH life, but not in Bkk or KL !

Edited October 24, 2018 by wgdanson

[Peterw42]

1 hour ago, elviajero said:

The income is meant to be from a foreign source. It may not specifically say so anywhere, but as you are a foreigner applying for a temporary stay that's required to get the income certified by your embassy, it's obvious.

If it doesnt say it anywhere, why is it "obvious".

If it was a requirement I am sure immigration would have it in their police orders etc. The whole point of income is showing you have the means to support yourself, 

I know 2-3 people that own business here, have investments in the Thai stock exchange, have rental properties and live off the proceeds, 65k a month. Are they illegal ? These people who live off Thai income still do income declarations with their consulates, as that is the "only" thing Thai immigration accepts.

As far as I know, Thai immigration has never asked anyone to show the source of their income or knocked back an extension because the income didn't come from outside thailand.

In the scheme of things, I think The Thai government would welcome people to retire here, set-up or buy businesses, employ Thais, create jobs ,pay tax, etc and live off the proceeds. Probably part of the idea behind retire visa's. I cant see that the Thai Gov would then insist these people have an income from outside thailand.

Until Thai immigration states that income must be foreign, why would people think otherwise.

 

Edited October 24, 2018 by Peterw42

[elviajero]

2 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

If it doesnt say it anywhere, why is it "obvious".

If it was a requirement I am sure immigration would have it in their police orders etc. The whole point of income is showing you have the means to support yourself, 

You can’t rely on the police orders alone. E.g. Where in the police orders does it say the proof of income must be certified by your embassy, and is the only method accepted?

 

It is obvious because you are a foreigner, and they want the foreigners embassy to confirm the income. An income that should be from pension or investment income.

 

When you apply for an extension of stay you are supposed to, according to the police orders, get a letter from the bank certifying the 800K came from abroad. A “deposit certificate”. That criteria is only enforced when applying for a non immigrant visa as the prerequisite to an extension of stay.

 

Given you need to confirm funds for abroad, as above, why do you think the same shouldn’t apply to income?

 

I’m sure you’ve been around long enough to know that laws, regulations and rules are often selectively enforced. And just because something isn’t enforced doesn’t mean it should/could be. And we are not privy to every order immigration work to.

Edited October 24, 2018 by elviajero

[Ctkong]

On 10/23/2018 at 4:57 PM, Peterw42 said:

some immigration offices may question if you dont spend any of the 800k each year as they presume you must be working in thailand

But then you may have more than one bank account to draw from. 

[StevieAus]

On 10/23/2018 at 4:40 PM, ubonjoe said:

Not really a problem. Many people leave it in a fixed deposit account to get a better interest rate.

If asked about it you could show other money coming into the country to show what you live on.  

Joe please could you confirm if the 65K per month has to be brought in monthly or it can be brought in at various times as long as the total annual amount is at least 800,000k.

I bring in more than the 800,000k in total but in installments usually every 3 months

Todate there has been no problem as I have a letter from my pension fund  stating the annual amount plus use the Declaration from the Aus Consulate

If they stop providing that service like the UK and US I wonder if I will have a problem

Thanks

 

[ubonjoe]

5 minutes ago, StevieAus said:

oe please could you confirm if the 65K per month has to be brought in monthly or it can be brought in at various times as long as the total annual amount is at least 800,000k.

I cannot confirm anything at this time. But if it is every few months and totals to 780k or more for a year it should be accepted.

[StevieAus]

 

4 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

I cannot confirm anything at this time. But if it is every few months and totals to 780k or more for a year it should be accepted.

Thanks for your prompt response I will watch this space