Double tax agreements - Thai income tax

[desertphantom]

Hi all

 

I'll be leaving Thailand and my job this summer which means I won't be paid Thai income for the full year and should mean I'm owed some tax back at the end of the year (my monthly deductions from my employer are currently based on me earning the same monthly salary for a full year). There are a few of us in this situation and we've been contacted by an accountant who claims that they can get all the tax we've paid over the period of the contract (24 months) back and that they've done this for countless individuals before. 

 

To me none of this sounds right, but I'm wondering if anyone has any personal experience with this? Legally they state that this is due to Thailand's double tax agreements with the UK and that if you were resident there (or in any other countries with which Thailand has an agreement) two years before then you're entitled to all the Thai income tax you've paid back... My understanding is that double tax agreements are there to avoid people paying income tax in two countries in cases where they may be classed as dual resident rather than as a way to claim all tax back and can't understand why the Thai revenue department would ever agree to such a system - but if I'm wrong please correct me!

 

They charge a small upfront fee and then a whack of any of the claimed refund.

 

Thoughts?

[topt]

15 hours ago, desertphantom said:

Thoughts?

Presumably you applied to be non resident for tax to HMRC before/after you left UK?

If not theoretically you could be liable to tax on income earned both in UK and Thailand..........

 

Ignoring that if you have been working in Thailand then my understanding is you would pay tax here based on normal tax rates/allowances etc so you may well be due a refund of some tax for this year. Last year should already have been sorted?

 

DTA - have a look at the digest here -

 https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/710099/DT_Digest_April_2018.pdf

Page 34 - basically no DTA on normal income so not sure what the accountant is referring to but doubt it has anything to do with a DTA with the UK.

 

Those are my thoughts but happy for someone else to give a different view if they think I am in error.