Hi all,  I have secured a job in Thailand,  I've been here 5 years,  no income from anywhere last 3.5 yr & lodge Aussie income tax returns stating this. I will be paying Thai income taxes monthly. 

Question.... What do I do regarding Aussie income tax returns?  Will they want money from me? 

I've been searching ato but it's a mine field.  Thanks for any help

I worked here for 11 years and had to declare my Thai income and deductions on my Aus tax return. They have some sort of tax treaty between the countries, too complex for me so I just sent a copy of my Thai tax return to my Aus Accountant.

By the sound of it the ATO would see you as a non resident of Australia and as you have no income sourced from Australia you should not have to lodge. If you google ATO Do I need to lodge a tax return Tool it'll take you to a tool that asks you a series of questions.  Some links take you to the Mygov site but there's one that takes you direct to the tool. 

If there's something tricky in your situation call the call centre and ask to be put through to someone who can help. There are people who's job is to just make that decision. But from what you said you should not need to lodge.

37 minutes ago, Fat is a type of crazy said:

By the sound of it the ATO would see you as a non resident of Australia and as you have no income sourced from Australia you should not have to lodge. If you google ATO Do I need to lodge a tax return Tool it'll take you to a tool that asks you a series of questions.  Some links take you to the Mygov site but there's one that takes you direct to the tool. 

If there's something tricky in your situation call the call centre and ask to be put through to someone who can help. There are people who's job is to just make that decision. But from what you said you should not need to lodge.

Thanks,  I'll keep it in mind

3 hours ago, EvetsKram said:

I've been searching ato but it's a mine field.  Thanks for any help

From my understanding and as @Fat is a type of crazy mentioned above, if you are a non resident for tax purposes, e.g. are living here full time are no longer tied down to Australia and do not earn an income from Australia, then you shouldn't pay any tax to Australia or have to lodge any tax returns.

Australian residents are generally taxed on all of their worldwide income. Non-residents are taxed only on income sourced in Australia.