Thai gov. to tax (remitted) income from abroad for tax residents starting 2024 - Part II

[stat]

8 hours ago, redwood1 said:

 

I think you are correct......I think the barrel that was full of  (it was all a big misunderstanding )  must be getting awful low these days.......

 

The Thais are having a good laugh....

 

A single short remark by Mr. Smiley almost a year ago and the farangs go completely mad with endless  posts about what ifs and maybes...And the frarangs here even went to great lengths to organize and chart all the what ifs and maybes.........lol

 

100s of pages of nonsense.....And from the best I could tell no one but western farang cared enough to give this tax  madness even the slightest attention....  

Apparently you are not potentially losing half a million USD or Euros a year and so you do not care... Each to their own

Edited August 15 by stat

[sometimewoodworker]

17 hours ago, OJAS said:

There is nothing in the UK/TH DTA corresponding to the wording of Article 18(1) of its AU/TH counterpart. Indeed not a dicky-bird mention of pensions at all in the whole DTA  beyond the reference to Governmental occupational pensions in Article 19.  Despite this, some of my fellow Brits still seem to believe that relief from double taxation is somehow possible in the case of the State and company pensions! 

Pensions in the U.K. are classed and taxed as income. (I suspect they are similarly taxed in AU)

Since income tax is one of the classes which are protected from double taxation in article 2 in both agreements Q.E.D. ALL U.K. pensions are protected from double taxation with the exception under.

 

Article 19 exempts pensions for government services from being assessed (unless paid to a Thai national in Thailand )

 

So @OJAS your fellow Brits are clearly correct in knowing that their pensions are protected from double taxation. So the  is on you isn’t it?

[OJAS]

6 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Since income tax is one of the classes which are protected from double taxation in article 2 in both agreements Q.E.D. ALL U.K. pensions are protected from double taxation with the exception under.

 

In that case, kindly explain to me what "Also, no relief for State Pension or ‘trivial commutation lump sum’" in Note 4 in the Thailand section on page 34 of HMRC's Digest Of Double Taxation Treaties* is supposed to mean. If not no relief from income tax, then no relief from what tax, then?

 

I truly look forward to receiving your answer to this fundamental question with bated breath, Mr Clever Clogs!

 

* https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5b05425fed915d1317445ed2/DT_Digest_April_2018.pdf

[OJAS]

17 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

Article 18 is subject to the "provisions" of Article 19, and Article 19 sets out government occupational pensions.  Eg.  military pension.   

 

Yep, I'm referring to 3 distinct pension types:

(1) Australian Age Pension (Article 18)

(2) Company occupational pensions (also Article 18), and

(3) Government occupational pensions (Article 19).

 

[sometimewoodworker]

4 hours ago, OJAS said:

 

In that case, kindly explain to me what "Also, no relief for State Pension or ‘trivial commutation lump sum’" in Note 4 in the Thailand section on page 34 of HMRC's Digest Of Double Taxation Treaties* is supposed to mean. If not no relief from income tax, then no relief from what tax, then?

 

I truly look forward to receiving your answer to this fundamental question with bated breath, Mr Clever Clogs!

 

* https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5b05425fed915d1317445ed2/DT_Digest_April_2018.pdf

Please actually read the actual UK/THAILAND DOUBLE TAXATION CONVENTION SIGNED 18 FEBRUARY 1981 

and base your assumptions and presumptions on the actual convention, the digest is not authoritative the DTC is 

 

do try to stop talking out of an orifice designed for solid waste elimination 

 

Article 2 specifies the U.K. and Thai taxes covered

Article 19 specifies the exclusion of pensions for government services from Thai assessment

Article 23 specifies the Elimination of Double Taxation  

The table includes the main sources of UK income for which relief from UK Income Tax may be available.

 

you are reading a document designed for use in the U.K. specifically related to U.K. taxation. It is not related to tax relief in Thailand 

 

Do please find anything that specifically states that tax paid in the U.K. is not allowed to be offset against Thai tax due. Certainly U.K. tax paid on government service pensions are excluded (article 19)

Do try to understand that the subject is tax payable in Thailand not in the U.K. and relief from double taxation in Thailand from tax paid in the U.K. 

 

 

I Can Explain It To You But I Cant Understand It For You

Edited August 16 by sometimewoodworker

[chiang mai]

Just as an aside, it would be really good if people could discuss/explain these things without the need for constant puts downs and barbs, they don't add anything positive to the discussion and are not necessary at all..

[KhunHeineken]

6 hours ago, OJAS said:

 

Yep, I'm referring to 3 distinct pension types:

(1) Australian Age Pension (Article 18)

(2) Company occupational pensions (also Article 18), and

(3) Government occupational pensions (Article 19).

 

Nope. 

 

You still don't get it. 

 

Article 18 relies on the provisions of Article 19, and Article 19 does not cater for Centerlink age pensions.  

 

Watch 18 minutes to 19 minutes.  It confirms what many already know, but many refuse to accept.  "Government services - civil service pensions."  That's not a Centerlink age pension just because the government pays it. 

 

 

 

[Phulublub]

On 8/15/2024 at 2:40 PM, OJAS said:

Contrast this with the plight of Brits who are in receipt of the UK State Pension and/or company pensions. There is nothing in the UK/TH DTA corresponding to the wording of Article 18(1) of its AU/TH counterpart. Indeed not a dicky-bird mention of pensions at all in the whole DTA  beyond the reference to Governmental occupational pensions in Article 19.  Despite this, some of my fellow Brits still seem to believe that relief from double taxation is somehow possible in the case of the State and company pensions! 

The UK State pension is not taxable in the UK if they are non-resident:

 

https://www.gov.uk/tax-uk-income-live-abroad

 

When tax is not due or is already deducted

Non-residents do not usually pay UK tax on:

• the State Pension
• interest from UK government securities (‘gilts’)

 

[4myr]

i want to share this video with you. The question and answer starting at 1.52.30 is telling.

 

The American advisor having offices in SE Asia said that it can take years before Thai RD have put in place the working procedures in place to make it happen. Earlier in this video he told that his Bangkok office is discussing with Thai RD about one tax credit case for a client for 15 months and the case is still not resolved. On the other hand in his answer he said that the clearest regulations are the double tax treaties, because Thai RD have to adhere to these. Can you imagine - 15 months about a tax credit from a DTA, which is supposed to be the clearest regulation. 

[OJAS]

11 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

do try to stop talking out of an orifice designed for solid waste elimination 

 

Got no time for people like you who obviously get a thrill out of insulting others with demeaning comments like this. Welcome to my Ignore list.

[OJAS]

9 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

Nope. 

 

You still don't get it. 

 

Article 18 relies on the provisions of Article 19, and Article 19 does not cater for Centerlink age pensions.  

 

Watch 18 minutes to 19 minutes.  It confirms what many already know, but many refuse to accept.  "Government services - civil service pensions."  That's not a Centerlink age pension just because the government pays it. 

 

 

 

 

Couldn't care less personally as I ain't an Aussie.

 

[OJAS]

9 hours ago, Phulublub said:

The UK State pension is not taxable in the UK if they are non-resident:

 

It is if your personal tax-free allowance is already (more than) spoken for by your other UK pension, etc income - which it is in my case as a UK tax non-resident.

 

[Ricardo]

10 hours ago, Phulublub said:

The UK State pension is not taxable in the UK if they are non-resident:

 

https://www.gov.uk/tax-uk-income-live-abroad

 

When tax is not due or is already deducted

Non-residents do not usually pay UK tax on:

• the State Pension
• interest from UK government securities (‘gilts’)

 

 

Thanks for posting that link, I'm reading it but still don't believe it, as it goes completely against what I've always believed to be true !  Yet it is clearly a UK-government source !  🤔

 

I wonder whether they really mean Old-Age-Allowance (aka State Pension) is not even assessable, or whether it's just non-taxable itself, because they don't want to bother to try to collect the tax due on it, due to the paperwork involved for the DWP, who actually make the payments ?

 

Hence they charge the tax on any other sources of UK-arising income, such as annuities or private-pensions, which take total income-arising past the £12,570 Personal-Allowance, and which method is administratively-easier for HMRC/DWP ?

 

I'd also view the word  "usually"  with some suspicion, I wonder what the exceptions are, that they don't spell out ?  

[Phulublub]

2 hours ago, OJAS said:

 

It is if your personal tax-free allowance is already (more than) spoken for by your other UK pension, etc income - which it is in my case as a UK tax non-resident.

 

So you can confirm from personal experience that the State Pension is not taxed?

 

It is a semantic point that, if the PA is already used the State Pension is not taxed, but if the PA is not used then the State Pension uses (some of)  that alowance so is not taxed.  In either case, the UK State Pension is classed as Assessable Income here and is thus included in your Thai tax calculations.

 

PH

[chiang mai]

45 minutes ago, Phulublub said:

So you can confirm from personal experience that the State Pension is not taxed?

 

It is a semantic point that, if the PA is already used the State Pension is not taxed, but if the PA is not used then the State Pension uses (some of)  that alowance so is not taxed.  In either case, the UK State Pension is classed as Assessable Income here and is thus included in your Thai tax calculations.

 

PH

I can. The maximum UK State Pension this year is 221 Pounds per week which is less than the 12,570 Personal Allowance. After it is increased this year, it has been said that pensioners with other income (excluding pension credits) will be taxed but I have not heard it said that the State Pension would be. Politically, that would be an own goal if that ever happened.

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, Ricardo said:

I wonder whether they really mean Old-Age-Allowance (aka State Pension) is not even assessable, or whether it's just non-taxable itself, because they don't want to bother to try to collect the tax due on it, due to the paperwork involved for the DWP, who actually make the payments ?

The U.K.  pensions are all usually taxable. This is the U.K. term. They maybe ONLY taxable in the U.K. for example a pension for government service. For other pensions they maybe both taxable in the U.K. and assessable in Thailand. The DWP isn’t concerned with taxation, that is the responsibility of HMRC. Some pensions are not taxable in the U.K. because the recipient is not receiving the pension in the U.K.. However that doesn’t affect the assessabelity in Thailand. 
 

However just because the pension is both taxable (U.K.) and assessable (Thailand) does not mean that any tax is due, it maybe under the limits. 

[oldcpu]

On 8/4/2024 at 1:19 PM, Presnock said:

 

Well, My pension is from the US Government and is a pension paid for the 40 years of government employment during which the monies I receive were paid by me and my fellow employees.  The LTR to which I paid for certain 10-year benefits says I do not have to pay taxes on foreign income and in addition, the DTA between the US and Thailand says that my pension can only be taxed by the US government. 

 

 

I've been puzzling over the legal tax wording between 'assessable' income and 'exempt income'.

 

While I am not a US citizen, I do get pension from Canada, Germany, and a European Government organisation.  I also have an LTR visa.  Both Canada and Germany have DTA with Thailand.

 

My understanding from reading the DTA is that the pension income is still assessible income but it is tax exempt in some cases under the DTA with Thailand.  That wording (assessible income or exempt income) makes a difference not interms of tax not being paid but rather could be in terms of "is an income tax return required" ?

 

I have tried (unsuccessfully thus far - and I am in NO hurry) to obtain a Thai tax ID.  My wife applied online for a Thai tax ID for me.  That goes to the Bangkok Tax office, and they in turn passed it to the Phuket tax office.  My wife then received a phone call from a Phuket Revenue Department (RD) branch official asking why did I want a Thai tax ID?  The specifically asked:

(1) what was my source of income? and

(2) was I bringing my income into Thailand?

 

My wife noted I have a Thai Pink-ID, and if I were to be given a Thai tax-ID, would it be the same # as my Pink ID?  The Phuket RD official noted it might be, but it would need to be activated first and it was NOT activated.  (My wife asked this question as a couple of Canadian financial institutions (who discovered I live in Thailand) have asked for my Thai tax ID # ).

 

My wife advised the RD official that my income was from pensions abroad, and that I was not (at this time) bringing my pension income into Thailand.  The Phuket RD official told my wife if I was not bringing my pension income into Thailand I did not need a tax ID as I would have no taxation in Thailand.

 

My wife then noted I receive interest income from Thai banks and from Thai savings bonds (where there is a withholding tax already deducted by Thailand). At what amount of money would I have to submit a Thai tax return on that ?  The official advised they would have to check the regulations and they would call my wife back.

 

My wife then noted I am on an LTR visa and asked if my being on that LTR visa (and given BoI notes foreign income brought into Thailand is tax exempt) would I need to file a tax return to report that exempt income when I bring the income into Thailand?  The Phuket RD official noted they NEVER HEARD of an LTR visa.  They advised my wife that they would have to check the regulations and also call my wife back on that.

 

That, I believe, was over a month ago.  I wonder if the Thai RD still has not come to a conclusion here?  My wife still has yet to receive a phone call back.  Frankly I am in no hurry to get an answer.  I simply gave the Canadian financial institutions my Thai Pink-ID # with a note that the Tax ID number is not yet activated.

 

I can not help but think that the information on any changes to tax interpretations are slow in being thought through, and slow in getting to the various Thai regions. 

 

Further I can't help but think that the Thai RD is in no hurry to assign foreigners tax IDs.

Edited August 17 by oldcpu

[chiang mai]

2 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

The U.K.  pensions are all usually taxable. This is the U.K. term. They maybe ONLY taxable in the U.K. for example a pension for government service. For other pensions they maybe both taxable in the U.K. and assessable in Thailand. The DWP isn’t concerned with taxation, that is the responsibility of HMRC. Some pensions are not taxable in the U.K. because the recipient is not receiving the pension in the U.K.. However that doesn’t affect the assessabelity in Thailand. 
 

However just because the pension is both taxable (U.K.) and assessable (Thailand) does not mean that any tax is due, it maybe under the limits. 

Perhaps you've already had the debate and I didn't see it but I believe UK government pension are exempt by treaty, eg civil service, armed forces etc.

[Presnock]

2 minutes ago, oldcpu said:

 

I've been puzzling over the legal tax wording between 'assessable' income and 'exempt income'.

 

While I am not a US citizen, I do get pension from Canada, Germany, and a European Government organisation.  I also have an LTR visa.  Both Canada and Germany have DTA with Thailand.

 

My understanding from reading the DTA is that the pension income is still assessible income but it is tax exempt in some cases under the DTA with Thailand.  That wording (assessible income or exempt income) makes a difference not interms of tax not being paid but rather could be in terms of "is an income tax return required" ?

 

I have tried (unsuccessfully thus far - and I am in NO hurry) to obtain a Thai tax ID.  My wife applied online for a Thai tax ID.  That goes to the Bangkok Tax office, and they in turn passed it to the Phuket tax office.  My wife then received a phone call from a Phuket Revenue Department (RD) branch official asking why did I want a Thai tax ID?  The specifically asked:

(1) what was my source of income? and

(2) was I bringing my income into Thailand?

 

My wife noted I have a Thai Pink-ID, and if I were to be given a Thai tax-ID, would it be the same # as my Pink ID?  The Phuket RD official noted it might be, but it would need to be activated first and it was NOT activated.  (My wife asked this question as a couple of Canadian financial institutions (who discovered I live in Thailand) have asked for my Thai tax ID # ).

 

My wife advised the RD official that my income was from pensions abroad, and that I was not (at this time) bringing my pension income into Thailand.  The Phuket RD official told my wife if I was not bringing my pension income into Thailand I did not need a tax ID as I would have no taxation in Thailand.

 

My wife then noted I receive interest income from Thai banks and from Thai savings bonds (where there is a withholding tax already deducted by Thailand). At what amount of money would I have to submit a Thai tax return on that ?  The official advised they would have to check the regulations and they would call my wife back.

 

My wife then noted I am on an LTR visa and asked if my being on that LTR visa (and given BoI notes foreign income brought into Thailand is tax exempt) would I need to file a tax return to report that exempt income when I bring the income into Thailand?  The Phuket RD official noted the NEVER HEARD of an LTR visa.  They advised my wife that they would have to check the regulations and also call my wife back on that.

 

That, I believe, was over a month ago.  I wonder if the Thai RD still has not come to a conclusion here?  My wife still has yet to receive a phone call back.  Frankly I am in no hurry to get an answer.  I simply gave the Canadian financial institutions my Thai Pink-ID # with a note that the Tax ID number is not yet activated.

 

I can not help but think that the information on any changes to tax interpretations are slow in being thought through, and slow in getting to the various Thai regions. 

 

Further I can't help but think that the Thai RD is in no hurry to assign foreigners tax IDs.

I too have any LTR - my pension can't be taxwed by Thailand, the LTR too indicates that I cannot be taxed on any foreign monies remitted into Thailand.  Therefore I do not have any assessable income so am not required to get a tax ID by definition of when to do so nor will I have to file any tax forms.  Since you do have interest income, just check with the Thai revenue dept or one of the charts on this forum that provides  the amount needed to meet assessable income level after deductions etc. Unless you are getting a lot of money on the interest then I wouldn't worry about it at all.  If your want to get that interest money back from the bank or whatever then you would need to file.  The requirements for getting a Thai Tax ID number (yeah it will be the same as your pink ID number) then you can google the revenue dept and check their website.  They have a chart there with the laws in Thai and next to each type, there is an English translation.  Best of luck.  boi ltr also gives you the benefits - no tax on foreign funds and the revenue dept also has the royal decree with the exemption of the foreign money remitted by LTR holders.

[sometimewoodworker]

8 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

I can. The maximum UK State Pension this year is 221 Pounds per week which is less than the 12,570 Personal Allowance. After it is increased this year, it has been said that pensioners with other income (excluding pension credits) will be taxed but I have not heard it said that the State Pension would be. Politically, that would be an own goal if that ever happened.

Nothing to do with own goals if your total income is over £12,570 you will be taxed, the state pension is taxable.

Of course no politician is going to point out that fact. For income (pensions are income) it is the total that is taxed. The first part of that total will be under the personal threshold and the standard pension is under the threshold.

[chiang mai]

5 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Nothing to do with own goals if your total income is over £12,570 you will be taxed, the state pension is taxable.

Of course no politician is going to point out that fact. For income (pensions are income) it is the total that is taxed. The first part of that total will be under the personal threshold and the standard pension is under the threshold.

What I said, if you read carefully or it isn't completely clear, is that it would be a political own goal if ever the state pension were increased and pensioners were taxed on that alone.

[oldcpu]

15 minutes ago, Presnock said:

I too have any LTR - my pension can't be taxwed by Thailand, the LTR too indicates that I cannot be taxed on any foreign monies remitted into Thailand.  Therefore I do not have any assessable income so am not required to get a tax ID by definition of when to do so nor will I have to file any tax forms.  ....  The requirements for getting a Thai Tax ID number (yeah it will be the same as your pink ID number) then you can google the revenue dept and check their website. 

 

The main 'driver' for me asking for a Thai Tax-ID was one of the Canadian financial institutions (where I have a SUBSTANTIAL amount of money), when they discovered from Revenue Canada that I was now in Thailand, froze my account.  One of the things I had to do to unfreeze the account was provide them a Thai tax-ID.  So obtaining an official from the Thai RD state a Thai tax-ID for me could be my pink-ID if and when it was activated (and it was not yet active) was important to me.  I could then pass that information to that one Canadian financial institution.

 

Further, I was also opening an account with a second Canadian financial institution, and they also REQUIRED my Thai tax-ID - so again, I passed them my pink-ID # with the caveat that the tax ID was not yet activated.  I could also truthfully state in that application that I applied for such ID to be activated.

 

I am happy to be on the LTR visa - but I note that the wording (translations) in the Royal Decree documents on the LTR visa note foreign income for 'Wealthy Pensioners' is "EXEMPT".  The wording "NOT ACCESSIBLE INCOME" is NOT used in the Royal Decree on the LTR.   Further, the Thai tax returns require accessible income is to be reported, and that income can then subsequently be deducted as being tax exempt (and there is a form for exempt income - which I note at present has no mention of income exempt by the LTR).

 

That is why I believe the questions in regards to "is an income tax return required" was important, and it was a reason for the questions being asked to the Thai RD official (which they could not answer).  And if the Thai tax officials can not answer the questions, how confident can we be of our answers?

Edited August 17 by oldcpu

[sometimewoodworker]

11 minutes ago, oldcpu said:

My wife then noted I receive interest income from Thai banks and from Thai savings bonds (where there is a withholding tax already deducted by Thailand). At what amount of money would I have to submit a Thai tax return on that ?  The official advised they would have to check the regulations and they would call my wife back.

The totality of your questions are to complex to answer without much more detail and knowledge however as your foreign income is exempt if you don’t work in Thailand you have no tax to pay.

 

If you have had withholding tax taken you can claim all of it back (I got a 300baht refund a few years ago)

But unless you have had tens of thousands deducted the time and trouble taken will cost more than you will get back. That is why I only ever claimed once.

[oldcpu]

5 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

But unless you have had tens of thousands deducted the time and trouble taken will cost more than you will get back. That is why I only ever claimed once.

 

Financial savings/bond interest of some number well over 100,000 but not yet over 200,000 THB. Currently Thai withholding tax deductions are 15%.   Again - it all boiled down to the Canadian financial institutions wanting a Thai Tax-ID and my being happy I can prove I did 'due diligence' to follow regulations in Thailand to that regard (and also give them a possible Thai Tax-ID # that they were happy to put in their computer forms).

Edited August 17 by oldcpu

[sometimewoodworker]

26 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Perhaps you've already had the debate and I didn't see it but I believe UK government pension are exempt by treaty, eg civil service, armed forces etc.

They are exempt from Thai taxation, they are not exempt from U.K.taxation

 

13 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

What I said, if you read carefully or it isn't completely clear, is that it would be a political own goal if ever the state pension were increased and pensioners were taxed on that alone.

 I now understand that, that was your meaning and I completely agree that politically the tax exemption must at least match the basic pension.

[Phulublub]

29 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Perhaps you've already had the debate and I didn't see it but I believe UK government pension are exempt by treaty, eg civil service, armed forces etc.

UK Goverment Pensions (earned by employment by many, but not all, Government departments) are totally separate and distinct from the UK State Pension which is NOT a Government Pension in this context.

 

PH

[sometimewoodworker]

3 minutes ago, oldcpu said:

 

Financial savings/bond interest of some number well over 100,000 but not yet over 200,000 THB. Currently Thai withholding tax deductions are 15%.   Again - it all boiled down to the Canadian financial institutions wanting a Thai Tax-ID and my being happy I can prove I did 'due diligence' to follow regulations in Thailand to that regard (and also give them a possible Thai Tax-ID # that they were happy to put in their computer forms).

You certainly can reclaim the 15,000 to 30,000 tax withheld.

 

if you want to bother, on a matter of principle I would, you should strongly encourage or even insist that the TRD  activate your tax ID

 

it is borderline as the the economic benefit 

[chiang mai]

33 minutes ago, oldcpu said:

 

I've been puzzling over the legal tax wording between 'assessable' income and 'exempt income'.

 

While I am not a US citizen, I do get pension from Canada, Germany, and a European Government organisation.  I also have an LTR visa.  Both Canada and Germany have DTA with Thailand.

 

My understanding from reading the DTA is that the pension income is still assessible income but it is tax exempt in some cases under the DTA with Thailand.  That wording (assessible income or exempt income) makes a difference not interms of tax not being paid but rather could be in terms of "is an income tax return required" ?

 

I have tried (unsuccessfully thus far - and I am in NO hurry) to obtain a Thai tax ID.  My wife applied online for a Thai tax ID for me.  That goes to the Bangkok Tax office, and they in turn passed it to the Phuket tax office.  My wife then received a phone call from a Phuket Revenue Department (RD) branch official asking why did I want a Thai tax ID?  The specifically asked:

(1) what was my source of income? and

(2) was I bringing my income into Thailand?

 

My wife noted I have a Thai Pink-ID, and if I were to be given a Thai tax-ID, would it be the same # as my Pink ID?  The Phuket RD official noted it might be, but it would need to be activated first and it was NOT activated.  (My wife asked this question as a couple of Canadian financial institutions (who discovered I live in Thailand) have asked for my Thai tax ID # ).

 

My wife advised the RD official that my income was from pensions abroad, and that I was not (at this time) bringing my pension income into Thailand.  The Phuket RD official told my wife if I was not bringing my pension income into Thailand I did not need a tax ID as I would have no taxation in Thailand.

 

My wife then noted I receive interest income from Thai banks and from Thai savings bonds (where there is a withholding tax already deducted by Thailand). At what amount of money would I have to submit a Thai tax return on that ?  The official advised they would have to check the regulations and they would call my wife back.

 

My wife then noted I am on an LTR visa and asked if my being on that LTR visa (and given BoI notes foreign income brought into Thailand is tax exempt) would I need to file a tax return to report that exempt income when I bring the income into Thailand?  The Phuket RD official noted they NEVER HEARD of an LTR visa.  They advised my wife that they would have to check the regulations and also call my wife back on that.

 

That, I believe, was over a month ago.  I wonder if the Thai RD still has not come to a conclusion here?  My wife still has yet to receive a phone call back.  Frankly I am in no hurry to get an answer.  I simply gave the Canadian financial institutions my Thai Pink-ID # with a note that the Tax ID number is not yet activated.

 

I can not help but think that the information on any changes to tax interpretations are slow in being thought through, and slow in getting to the various Thai regions. 

 

Further I can't help but think that the Thai RD is in no hurry to assign foreigners tax IDs.

Assessable income is that which must be considered for tax whereas exempt income is not. As already discussed, some pension income is assessable and some is exempt and this is largely determined by the DTA.  Just because something is assessable, does not mean it is taxable since exemptions and allowances (TEDA)  may cause it not to be taxable.

 

The 15% with holding tax on savings can often be reclaimed without having a TIN, the TRD officers will often do this for you without asking for a TIN. You must however have the letter or statement from the bank, confirming the amount of interest paid and tax with held. I did things this was for many years before I finally acquired a TIN but others mileage may vary based on location. The TRD system will identify and confirm the tax withheld from their systems using your name and account number at the bank (data supplied to the TRD by the banks).

 

 

 

 

 

 

[chiang mai]

8 minutes ago, Phulublub said:

UK Goverment Pensions (earned by employment by many, but not all, Government departments) are totally separate and distinct from the UK State Pension which is NOT a Government Pension in this context.

 

PH

Yes, I know!

[oldcpu]

2 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Assessable income is that which must be considered for tax whereas exempt income is not.

 

 

IF so - then why as part of the Thai tax forms is there one where exempt income is to be listed?