Thai tax tangle: Expats warned of new rules on overseas income

[JimGant]

1 hour ago, Keep Right said:

No way am I going to inform the U.S. of my bank in Thailand.

You tell 'em. First, let's assume you're an honest US Citizen, so you declare your Thai interest from your Thai bank account on your annual US tax filing. Let's say your average amount in the bank is $25000 (850k bt). Based on what Bangkok Bank paid me last year on my savings account interest (.40%) -- that would be $100 in annual interest income to report on my US 1040 tax return. So, that's what you report on Schedule B of the 1040. Or, you don't, 'cause you have no taxable income (standard deduction greater than gross income). Or you don't, 'cause you're dishonest. In any of these situations, it won't matter that Uncle Sam knows you have a Thai bank account, because under FATCA, there's no reporting on aggregated accounts under $50000 at year end ($75000 any time during the year), so in my example, nothing about your account will be forwarded to the US.

 

But, of course, if you have well over $50000 in Thai bank accounts, and you don't report the interest on these on your US tax filing -- that's why FATCA came about. So, yeah, if you're a tax evader, best not give your SSN to the Thai bank. But, if honest, what's the big deal....?

 

 

[KhunHeineken]

2 hours ago, Keep Right said:

I will transfer money to my wife's account online and just get the money from her.

Have you considered the Thailand tax implications for her with your strategy?

 

2 hours ago, Keep Right said:

No way am I going to inform the U.S. of my bank in Thailand.

They already know about it anyway. 

[Jingthing]

On 1/29/2025 at 9:12 PM, JimGant said:

Actually, per Por 162 they are not assessable income, since their funding and reinvested earnings are all pre 2023 income (except for any reinvested income post 2023). But, this premise is not in stone, since some folks maintain Por 162 exempted income only applied to liquid bank holdings on 12/31/23. But some folks are wrong.

Hello.

 

I will now ask you to refer to the expat tax thailand webinar where this issue was clearly and directly asked and answered by Khun Pattharaphon Penjham, Senior Legal Officer at the Thailand Revenue Department.

 

I know your opinion but based on this information, unfortunately your opinion is not correct and should best be adjusted based on this new information.

 

As far as the exemption of funds on December 31, 2023:

 

"ONLY CAPITAL FOR BANK ACCOUNTS OR CASH ACCOUNTS" 

"YOU CAN NOT APPLY THIS FOR INVESTMENTS OR PENSIONS"

 

As noted many times, IRA accounts are classed as accessable pensions by Thailand.

 

This is as settled as this is going to get. Sorted. End of story.

 

There may indeed be a number of grey areas that remain on these Thai taxation matters. This is NOT one of them. 

[NoDisplayName]

3 hours ago, Keep Right said:

No way am I going to inform the U.S. of my bank in Thailand.

 You no FBAR?

[Jingthing]

Obviously no need to file FBAR unless you are required to do so under the specific rules of that. Basically 10K USD in a composite of all foreign accounts for even one minute in the previous year.

[NoDisplayName]

2 hours ago, potless said:

At 17.40 Investment case study 2. He gives an example of calculating capital gains tax for a tax resident who sells £40k of UK investments and remits the whole amount to Thailand in 2024. Out of the remittance of 1,722,911 baht including the 40% gain cited, he comes up with a figure of 487,341 as the gain and says that is the assessable income. Then at 19.30 shows a tax form with the 487,341 baht entered in a box as the assessable income. Why is the rest of the remittance not assessable?

What am I missing?

 

Capital gain is the income, which is assessable, and is entered on the form as taxable.

 

The original investment is prior earnings, non-assessable, so is not entered.

 

Youtube examples are always simple, they always remit the entire proceeds, but he did state that you cannot separate capital from gain.  If you remit partial amount of the sale, it's a percentage of capital and gain.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

2 hours ago, potless said:

At 17.40 Investment case study 2. He gives an example of calculating capital gains tax for a tax resident who sells £40k of UK investments and remits the whole amount to Thailand in 2024. Out of the remittance of 1,722,911 baht including the 40% gain cited, he comes up with a figure of 487,341 as the gain and says that is the assessable income. Then at 19.30 shows a tax form with the 487,341 baht entered in a box as the assessable income. Why is the rest of the remittance not assessable?

What am I missing?

 

Leaving aside a minor math miscalculation on his slide, the point he is trying to make is that only the capital gain, not the principal amount originally invested, is assessable income. Since the remittance also includes the principal amount, it should not be declared in its entirely. Only the portion that represents the capital gain is assessable income.

 

Assuming that the investment was purchased with funds earned prior to January 1st 2024, this would be correct. 

 

Assuming that the remitted amount of thb 1,722,991 per his slide is correct, and the gain was 40%, the capital gain would be 492,283, not 487,341.