Is it mandatory to register VAT on a company for the purposes of me getting a WP?

[davidst01]

Last yr we visited an accountant with a view to forming a company in order for me to get a WP for our business. The accountant talked us out of it saying VAT is a bit of a nightmare. Im sure he told me that we would have to have our company registered for VAT in order to satisfy the requirements to get a WP. Does anyone know if this is correct or B.S??

 

thanks

[robblok]

I would say every company has to file VAT not sure why its a nightmare but it depends a bit on what kind of business and what kind of receipts.

 

But seems to me that the accountant is a bit crazy. I would worry more about the amount of Thai people that you need to employ to get the WP unless that is not a problem for you.

[davidst01]

6 minutes ago, robblok said:

I would say every company has to file VAT not sure why its a nightmare but it depends a bit on what kind of business and what kind of receipts.

 

But seems to me that the accountant is a bit crazy. I would worry more about the amount of Thai people that you need to employ to get the WP unless that is not a problem for you.

we have 4 staff on Social security already. Its not an issue. 

 

Do you have a company yourself to substantiate these comments? 

 

Ive heard from a few guys that VAT is a nightmare as far as the record keeping requirements are concerned. 

 

But the purpose of this thread is to ascertain if its mandatory or not

[robblok]

Just now, davidst01 said:

we have 4 staff on Social security already. Its not an issue. 

 

Do you have a company yourself to substantiate these comments? 

 

Ive heard from a few guys that VAT is a nightmare as far as the record keeping requirements are concerned. 

 

But the purpose of this thread is to ascertain if its mandatory or not

Of course its mandatory for a company. (that is what I have heard and that is why not many have a real company). What business are you in then I can tell you more. I am an accountant by trade (not for Thailand) so i know a thing or two about record keeping.

[davidst01]

2 minutes ago, robblok said:

Of course its mandatory for a company. (that is what I have heard and that is why not many have a real company). What business are you in then I can tell you more. I am an accountant by trade (not for Thailand) so i know a thing or two about record keeping.

No thanks. I would prefer to only have replies from members who have specific knowledge about this. I can tell that you dont have this knowledge based on the fact that one only HAS to register for VAT when your sales are 2.4 million baht.

[BestB]

Being registered for VAT has no impact on your work permit, most accountant advise against registering for VAT as it does create more work for them and for you and means monthly payments to revenue 

[BestB]

8 minutes ago, davidst01 said:

we have 4 staff on Social security already. Its not an issue. 

 

Do you have a company yourself to substantiate these comments? 

 

Ive heard from a few guys that VAT is a nightmare as far as the record keeping requirements are concerned. 

 

But the purpose of this thread is to ascertain if its mandatory or not

No it’s not. As I posted above has no impact on WP at all.

[ThomasThBKK]

https://www.rd.go.th/publish/6043.0.html

 

It's 1.8 mio THB in turnover. over that you need to charge VAT to your customers, no clue why it's a nightmare tho... it's just standard business practice and in Europe and co small businesses are also exempt till the treshold is reached.

 

I would get a new accountant if he makes misleading statements or just do it yourself..

[Genmai]

I think your accountant is referring to the process of becoming eligible to claim the 7% VAT back from taxation department at the end of the year on services and products sold/purchased within the country. I help my gf run our small biz (which we started for the purpose of getting my WP) but leave this kind of detailed stuff to her and the accountant. All I know is yes, it is supposedly a nightmare to arrange, and no, you don't need it for obtaining a work permit or operating your company.

 

A lot of the time when you ask a Thai person if they have this or that thing they will say "mai mee" or "mai dai" just because they're stupid/lazy/ill informed and would rather give you incorrect information rather than lose face. Accountants and lawyers are no exception. Shop around until you find someone with experience.

[robblok]

1 hour ago, davidst01 said:

No thanks. I would prefer to only have replies from members who have specific knowledge about this. I can tell that you dont have this knowledge based on the fact that one only HAS to register for VAT when your sales are 2.4 million baht.

I just reply what i told you but I do know about accounting as I am an accountant and that was why i asked. Because cash businesses give a lot more headache then ones that are not cash businesses. I prefer to do the accounting for businesses that don't have many cash transactions. And 2.4 million baht is not a lot of turnover (depending on your business and your margin). 

[robblok]

1 hour ago, ThomasThBKK said:

https://www.rd.go.th/publish/6043.0.html

 

It's 1.8 mio THB in turnover. over that you need to charge VAT to your customers, no clue why it's a nightmare tho... it's just standard business practice and in Europe and co small businesses are also exempt till the treshold is reached.

 

I would get a new accountant if he makes misleading statements or just do it yourself..

Its a headache if its a cash based business, if its just invoices and most things are paid by bank its relatively easy.