Tax Etc.

[ercorn]

I posted this in the Real Estate forum but got no answer so I will try in the general forum.

I was wondering if anyone could help me?I am thinking of selling my condo in Bangkok that I have owned for 6 years and was wondering after paying the change of ownership fees which is about 2.5 % I believe ,do I have to pay any other tax or fees on top of this?

Any help appeciated

regrds Ercorn

[lanny]

You don't say what country you are from. However, if you are American, you may owe a tax to the IRS.

[ercorn]

Kiwi and no I dont owe anyone any tax.........

So anyone is the change of ownership all I have to pay?

[Bill97]

Transfer of property at a land office requires the payment of at least two fees. One is for the change of ownership, the other is tax. They are calculated differently and the tax is often the largest. Most people talk about these fees as one cost since they are paid at one office. You might be wise to check with a lawyer to be sure your transaction is handled in your best interests. There may be income taxes involved too but I do not know the details.

[chiang mai]

I sold my condo in Chiang Mai earlier this year and must confess I did not pay great attention to the way the taxes are calculated but there were three separate taxes involved. My total tax bill was 176,000 baht on a DECLARED sale value of 2.4 mill. The true sale value was actually 6.5 mill but somehow the sales intermediary had agreed prior to the transaction that only 2.4 mill would be declared. I've read on this forum that the Land Office in some parts of the country has a register stating the value of each property and that figure is used regardless of the actual sale amount. From what I understand in the case of the Chiang Mai office it is simply important to make sure that the declared figure is no lower than the amount used for that property during the previous transaction.

But the important thing to note here is that your bank will want proof of the amount declared and tax paid on the proceeds you try to remit overseas. In my case I tried to send the entire 6.5 mill overseas (via HSBC) but had only proof of taxes paid on 2.4 mill. All of this despite the fact that I had the certificate showing that 6.5 mill was brought in from overseas originally. It seems that the banks act as an agent for BOT in this respect. Should you get into that situation the solution is not difficult to remedy and has already been widely discussed on this forum recently.

[ercorn]

O.k Thanks Bill and Chang mai for the help answers.

[quiksilva]

A search of the real estate forum would also have got you all the answers you need.

[ercorn]

A search of the real estate forum would also have got you all the answers you need.

Noted but I could not find anything specific to me as I do not work in Thailand or have any other investments here other than my Condo,all matters I searched for were related to people that also have income in Thailand.

[mellow1]

Why wouldn't you be able to send out 6.5 million which you brought in and has been here for a considerable time.

note:in the US. you do not have to pay income tax on your primary residence(home) if the profit is $200,000 or less.You can do this every 5 years or more.

[lanny]

Why wouldn't you be able to send out 6.5 million which you brought in and has been here for a considerable time.

note:in the US. you do not have to pay income tax on your primary residence(home) if the profit is $200,000 or less.You can do this every 5 years or more.

Correct, except that the limit is $250,000 ($500,000 if you file a joint return) and you can do this every two years. The requirements are that you own and live in the home for at least 2 out of the last 5 years. You don't have to wait 5 years, once you have lived in the house for 2 years, you can sell and take the exclusion.

Edited July 27, 2007 by lanny

[chiang mai]

Why wouldn't you be able to send out 6.5 million which you brought in and has been here for a considerable time.

note:in the US. you do not have to pay income tax on your primary residence(home) if the profit is $200,000 or less.You can do this every 5 years or more.

It's a popular myth that money that is brought into Thailand can be taken out unrestricted, even if you have the certificate from the bank showing that you brought the money in from overseas. As stated earlier, AND as stated far too many times already in this forum, you have to pay tax on your real estate sale and your real estate sale amount has to reconcile to the money you brought in in the first place, else you can't take it out, legally.

Unfortunately, er actually strike that, this is not the US.

Edited July 27, 2007 by chiang mai

[mellow1]

Thanks for the replies.Didn't know it was increased to 250 from 200 which I believe it was when I still lived in the US.

Not looking for schemes to avoid taxes,but you could of kept your money under your mattress and have recently decided to invest it back home.