TAT latest: Elite card holders who buy a condo can stay "long term" and get work permit - but there's a catch

[Mavideol]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

TAT latest: Elite card holders who buy a condo can stay "long term" and get work permit - but there's a catch

why on any and all TAT's proposals there is always a catch, why the' brainless" can't propose some logical proposals without any hidden catch 22

[donnacha]

24 minutes ago, Eibot said:

Maybe. 

 

I'm legitimate taxable in Thailand and pay tax, but don't work in Thailand. It all depends on the taxation agreements Thailand has with the country you have your business in. I'm not going to pay a million Baht to get a WP to keep paying tax the way I have been doing. 

If you are a remote worker, or run an online business, you can get paid into a non-resident bank account in any country. You then, quite legally, transfer the money to your Thai account.

Any taxation agreement is only relevant if you come from some brutal, backward country that demands taxes from its citizens when they don't even live there, or if your home country has legitimate reasons to claim that they still own you, such as you owning a house there, or staying for more than X days per years.

The million baht investment is not you paying for a work permit. It is the Thai government, making sure that you own something substantial in Thailand, even if it is just a few apartments, so that you have at least some revenue coming in that is taxable by them - not because they care about that money, their taxes are quite low, but because they need you to have a realistic claim that Thailand is your financial center/home so that they cannot be accused of running a tax haven. The work permit, too, is for appearances.

 

[Neeranam]

2 minutes ago, owl sees all said:

Now, it's buying Thai gold; and lots of it. Get a receipt though. I like the blocks.

I like the blockchain.

 

There's a great investment opportunity in OmiseGo, a company recently bought by CP Group. 

The CEO worked in the World Bank for years and is related to Korn Chatikavanij, the former Minister of Finance. A combination that has huge potential. 

[NCC1701A]

 

https://bangkokjack.com/2020/09/19/places-pay-you-live-there/

[Pravda]

37 minutes ago, donnacha said:

Well, you don't get rich just throwing those 200 baht baby toys away!


 

 

So you will agree that you don't get rich by throwing 1 million dollars away.

[userabcd]

Probably some grand scheme in cohorts with property developers trying to sell those highly priced 30 to 170 million baht appts in buildings along sukhumvit and offering a work permit as an incentive.

 

One wonders who would spend 30 to 170 million baht for an appt along the noisy and pollution filled air of Sukhumvit.

[mickymouse1]

There is always a catch. 

This time isn't a  real surprise as it is always about the £&€$$$$.

Obviously there are always those who wants to launder their dosh!

[rupert the bear]

this is nuts,if you have that kindda money you can go live where u want ,in a place that treats you with some respect and rights.these people are self delusional,arrogant and plain stupid

[onekoolguy]

2 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Not sure why you doubt this. I know many rich people who live here.

Why do you live here? 

Its one thing to have a million plus and another to spend it on a condo?

I just sold my condo for about half of what I paid 4 years ago. Now I'm just getting to understand the market here! Prices of most real estate are dropping fast as there are no buyers and a huge over supply!

Plus it says you need to buy the 1 million baht visa!

[Raymonddiaz]

Another amazing idea.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

One of the ways for a foreigner to get long term stay and a work permit in Thailand would be to invest $1 million dollars in real estate, such as the condo market where non-Thais can invest legally. 

 

what kind of condo is a foreigner going to buy in Thailand valued at $1 million USD???

[Neeranam]

4 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

what kind of condo is a foreigner going to buy in Thailand valued at $1 million USD???

Not sure but for about $6 million -  https://www.hipflat.co.th/en/search/sale/condo_y/TH.BM_r1/any_r2/200000000,200000000_p/any_b/64,999_a/any_w/any_i/100.6244261045141,13.77183154691727_c/12_z/list_v

 

[Destiny1990]

What happened to their initial plan condo buyers getting long term visas?

[Guderian]

Blimey, I though a million Baht for the Elite Visa was already way too much, now they want a million DOLLARS to stay long-term? Whatever they're smoking, I want some!

[crazykopite]

Every government should do the same for all Thais who have properties around the world and give these elitists a taste of their own medicine 

[scorecard]

4 hours ago, JonnyF said:

A million dollar work permit? Sounds great.

 

There must be loads of multi-millionaires out there who dream of getting a job in Thailand.????

And not clear at all:  work permit for what work, and where, and is it still needed to have a contract of employment with a Thai employer, and does it also mean payment of a certain level of personal tax to the Thai revenue dept., every year, and at what age or date does the entitlement to a work permit ends, and does it mean membership of the Thai social security fund therefore access to the Thai 30Baht health scheme, and more... 

[Thaifly88]

4 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Doubt anyone with $1M to play with would want to live in Thailand, or even holiday here more than once.

I certainly wouldn't.

 

I'd like to ask TAT ...... why do you think rich foreigners would want to live in Thailand? (or even holiday here?)

I agree that rich Western people most likely wouldn’t want to live in Thailand (maybe an occasional 2 weeks at a luxury resort near Phuket , but that’s about it. However, Rich Asian people (Chinese, Hong Kong etc) may be more attracted by such an offer. 

[tjo o tjim]

Forma US Citizen, it could easily save you significant income taxes by actually having a work permit in Thailand. You eliminate your (former) state income tax, plus you exempt your first $100k in earned income from tax. If you make $150k per year, this could be worth about $30k in tax savings, more if you are creative.  
 

It is a bit of an odd way to structure the program, but there is a place for it. 

[86Tiger]

3 hours ago, donnacha said:

This is just a guess, but I think they are structuring things so that they can claim, with somewhat more validity then they currently can, that the Elite card holders / investors are legitimately tax-resident while not actually being properly resident.

A million is nothing, it's a building or a few condos. That is enough, however, for the Elite card holder to be generating income in Thailand and paying actual taxes on that. The work permit clears up any doubts about whether they are allowed to work their investment. 

So, the money generated in Thailand will allow them to claim, truthfully, that they do actually pay taxes in Thailand, even if most of their money, from their online job, ends up being untaxed.

The main thing Thailand wants to protect, as it ramps this up post-Covid, is their international reputation. They now need to be a tax haven, but they don't want to be called a tax haven.

 

Well, if they are striving for tax haven status there is some revision needed in the banking laws.  Haven't seen that announcement , yet.

[curious297]

4 hours ago, Misterwhisper said:

And Bill never came, let alone settled and invested here. Nor did Tiger Woods, another "Elite Card" laureate courtesy of the "Square Faced One". Bummer.

Oh he did come however, Thailand didn't like what he had to say:

 

 

[vandeventer]

       Where do they come up with these idea's? Did they legalized pot yet?

[Artisi]

3 hours ago, Captain Monday said:

Thailand should just adapt the Iceland model.

Which is? 

[onebir]

It seems like there is/was already an investment visa based on a THB10m investment:

https://freshbangkok.com/thailand-investment-visa-can-you-buy-a-condo-and-get-a-long-term-visa/

 

1/3 the investment, no need (to pay) for Thailand elite.

 

Isn't this proposed 'offer' a significant tightening of conditions, compared to that?

[DrTuner]

I got the elite. If I need work permit I'll get non-imm B. The entire suggestion is so far off anything even remotely viable they should put whoever thought of it in a cellar and throw away the key.

[donnacha]

13 minutes ago, 86Tiger said:

Well, if they are striving for tax haven status there is some revision needed in the banking laws.  Haven't seen that announcement , yet.

As I said, I'm not suggesting the sort of tax haven used by the super wealthy, such as the Bahamas. For the use I described, the Thai banks work just fine right now.

 

[Timwin]

These officials seem to have only two extreme attitudes about foreigners. Either they are dirty pests or there are unlimited number of very rich foreigners just waiting to get into Thailand and start spending madly! ????

[The Alien]

I wanted to shout my lungs out. Hey TAT, Stop dreaming and wake up! ???? You are driving us crazy!

[Mung]

There's always a catch 

[bbbbooboo]

Hmmm... Thailand govt living in a dream I suggest(as usual). TIT

[donnacha]

2 hours ago, Pravda said:

So you will agree that you don't get rich by throwing 1 million dollars away.

I would not generally choose to invest in Thailand but it is somewhat unfair to characterize an investment as throwing the money away or, as some here are saying, buying a work permit.

My understanding is that, unlike the similar schemes in the past, you are not restricted to, say, buying a brand new condo from specific, overpriced developers. You are free to invest your 31 million baht into any combination of property and/or business. You can start a business, you can buy an existing business. You can spend some of it on a condo and the rest on a restaurant. You can buy a small block of condos to rent out while you keep the top floor for yourself etc.

If the economy is as screwed as I suspect it is, and if there are business owners currently hanging on in the belief that they are going to have a high season, it means that there will be a lot of fire-sales next year. It is conceivable that your million could pick up some relative bargains.

Certainly, buying at what is likely to be a low-point means that you will probably end up eventually cashing out your investment for more than you paid.
 

Consider that we could see taxes rising to 60 or 70% in some EU countries. That means a massive chunk coming out of the wage packet high-earners who may now be working remotely anyway. That is going to feel deeply unfair. It would mean even more being taken from the owners of online businesses.

A million dollars sounds like a lot but it really isn't. I thought I would feel elated when I made my first million but I actually felt broke. Many of my friends felt the same sense of disappointment, because you realize just how far you have to go before you can feel that you have made it. In Europe, a million is just an okay house in a good area.

So, yeah, I think a lot of people are going to go for this. It could be a very good deal if you are in that not-quite-rich category. Although I seem to be the only one here to think so, the Thai government are really onto something. It is a lot smarter and more subtle than I would ever have expected from them.