Thailand May Ease Overseas Income Tax Rules Amid Global Changes

[oldestswinger]

5 hours ago, IsaanT said:

My point was that expats are guests in Thailand. 

Wrong. Guests are invited and don't pay anything. Expats are what the hotel/entertainment industry call "paying guests" i.e. customers. We pay through the nose to stay here as it is.

[Unamerican]

8 hours ago, Drumbuie said:

That is less than a third of what would have been due on the same income back home.

So you are not paying tax “back home”?  How does that work?

[Porthos]

8 hours ago, bamnutsak said:

Does anyone know where, when, and under what circumstances the Finance Minister made his "indications"?

On February 13 at the Siam Kempinski Hotel "Thai Economic and Financial Direction 2025".

Some articles in Thai. Matichon mentions a timeline. Thairath writes about foreigners bringing money to Thailand.

https://www.matichon.co.th/economy/news_5047819

https://www.thairath.co.th/money/experts_pool/columnist/2841934

 

 

[CallumWK]

13 minutes ago, quake said:

 

That's what I thought.  thanks.

I have only ever been talking about pre 2024 income.

I'm done with some big members on this forum.

Thanks again. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So for the rest of your life you only gonna remit money earned prior to 2024?

[quake]

2 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

 

So for the rest of your life you only gonna remit money earned prior to 2024?

 

 it can easy do me for 6 years.

is that ok by you. 

[Cuchulainn]

And the yearly interest generated from pre 2024 savings?

 

Apparently, that is taxable, unless the TRD recognises FIFO.

 

That's my hope!!

[quake]

53 minutes ago, Cuchulainn said:

And the yearly interest generated from pre 2024 savings?

 

Apparently, that is taxable, unless the TRD recognises FIFO.

 

That's my hope!!

 

I'm sure the interest will be taxable,  as it will be earned in the current year.

As for FIFO with the Thai revenue department. I don't know.

But one poster says it's 100% a yes. did ask for proof of this,  but he spat dummy. 

So he went off my  Christmas card list. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[samtam]

13 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

 

I'm'assume somebody important with important friends in important positions did not agree.

 

I'm'assume also that global taxation is dead in the water, for the same reasons.

 

11 hours ago, Kerryd said:

I'm guessing a certain nation to the north doesn't want it's citizens to have to worry about paying taxes in Thailand while working on Chinese projects Thailand has contracted Chinese companies to do with money borrowed from Chinese "investment banks" who will own/operate/collect revenue from those projects for decades.

Guaranteed this sudden "re-evaluation" has absolutely nothing to do with a couple thousand white-hairs squeaking by on their meagre pensions being worried that their non-taxable pensions might be taxed because they have no clue about the tax treaties or the actual Thai tax scheme itself.

When "Big Red" whispers these days, Thailand is quick to jump. Hence the recent announcements about changes in condo ownership rules (in "certain designated areas only), changes in Visas, proposed casino legislation, submarine deals.

Many expats have the ludicrious notion that the Thai economy hinges on what they spend in the country every year.
A lot of them actuall think that a few thousand "Farangs" - most of them barely skimping by on their pensions as it is - has such a huge impact on the economy that Thailand makes all those changes with them in mind.

And not the 10s of millions of Chinese coming here every year. And the multi-billion dollar projects like the high speed troop transport - er, I mean "rail link" between China and Thailand. Or the condo projects. The weapons deals (i.e. submarines). The proposed "southern bridge" entirely meant to allow Chinese shipping to get to Europe without having to pass through the Straits of Malacca - which China has no influence or control over.

One just has to look at how Big Red has it's hooks deep into Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia to see that Thailand is a priority for them to gain control over.

 

10 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

I'm told that enormous pressure has been put upon the TRD, by wealthy, influential Thais, to leave this issue well alone.

 

As noted, the comments from the Finance minister are hardly "bankable", and need to be clarified to have any meaning whatsoever, such as "Por 161 & 162 are to be scrapped". Whether this materialises before 31 March  (or 8 April for online) filing deadlines remains to be seen.

 

@NoDisplayName @Kerryd @Thingamabob I think the reasons you have suggested for the change, (if indeed there is one) are absolutely spot on. They will (may) come about because the issue has affected the important (aka rich) members of Thai society. Even if Kh Richguy doesn't himself have to pay more taxes, it is possible that spending for 2024 has seen a nosedive, and the evidence is in reduced inward remittances, resulting in his business suffering. Reduced spending has already seen a major reduction in property transactions, (when it is possible these may not be affected); but when there's uncertainty for the largest consumers, (Chinese and Indians), they are going to wait until there is clarity.

 

I agree, that the reduction of the amount of money we expats have brought in is chicken feed, and of no consequence, even though we may have reduced our inward remittances (therefore spending) by 50% or more.

 

I also wondered why there was nothing in the press that I could see that addressed the concerns of the wealthy Thais to whom this change was directed. Well, of course they don't have their AN equivalent, as they have direct access to the levers of power.

[BritManToo]

11 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

It's odd or very telling  that the 3 proponents of taxation on foreigners have slipped back into the shadows. A  shame that some foreigners were duped into demanding Tins and tried to file taxes. 

You can't fix stupid!

[Ben Zioner]

12 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

It's odd or very telling  that the 3 proponents of taxation on foreigners have slipped back into the shadows. A  shame that some foreigners were duped into demanding Tins and tried to file taxes. 

But in every instance the Tax due was reported as zero or negligible, so why not? They just followed the rules. If my tax office was in Silom I'd do the same. But I live in Nakhon nowhere and I doubt anyone here knows about RD 743. 

[Yumthai]

3 hours ago, quake said:

I'm done with some big members on this forum.

Well size down.

[EVENKEEL]

5 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

But in every instance the Tax due was reported as zero or negligible, so why not? They just followed the rules. If my tax office was in Silom I'd do the same. But I live in Nakhon nowhere and I doubt anyone here knows about RD 743. 

The other guy said it best. You can't fix stupid.

[Ben Zioner]

59 minutes ago, samtam said:

As noted, the comments from the Finance minister are hardly "bankable", and need to be clarified to have any meaning whatsoever, such as "Por 161 & 162 are to be scrapped". Whether this materialises before 31 March  (or 8 April for online) filing deadlines remains to be seen.

You are dreaming. Any change will have to wait until next year to take effect and will be measures relieve the tax burden of those who want to reinvest in Thailand significant wealth from overseas. 

 

RD 743 and some of the DTAs already protect foreigners.

[Ben Zioner]

6 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

The other guy said it best. You can't fix stupid.

You've tried and failed? Sorry to hear that.

[safarimike11]

13 hours ago, paahlman said:

What most people dont understand though is that is mostly beneficial to tax to Thailand since according to the specific Tax Treaty between the different countries mostly it is deducted in home country and on average the total tax will therefore be lower than just be taxed in home country. However. Its a paper mill of course.

That makes sense (not).

[samtam]

57 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

You are dreaming. Any change will have to wait until next year to take effect and will be measures relieve the tax burden of those who want to reinvest in Thailand significant wealth from overseas. 

 

RD 743 and some of the DTAs already protect foreigners.

 

I didn't realise the Finance minister's remarks were so precise (date), concise (process) and clear🫡

[NorthernRyland]

13 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

It's odd or very telling  that the 3 proponents of taxation on foreigners have slipped back into the shadows. A  shame that some foreigners were duped into demanding Tins and tried to file taxes. 

Not duped they chumped out on their own accord!

[NorthernRyland]

13 hours ago, Drumbuie said:

I consulted a Thai accountant about my income this week. I brought over THB1.1 million into Thailand last year. By the time he'd removed the non-assessable income and deducted all the allowances, I'm due to pay just over 20k tax - in three installments from April.

That is less than a third of what would have been due on the same income back home.

Stop moaning about the tax, guys. Pay up and enjoy actually having the moral right to moan about the infrastructure. 

So you were tax cattle back home and now you're tax buffalo in Thailand. How is this a win? You could have literally done nothing and been in the same situation as before. 

[Cameroni]

2 hours ago, samtam said:

 

 

 

As noted, the comments from the Finance minister are hardly "bankable", and need to be clarified to have any meaning whatsoever, such as "Por 161 & 162 are to be scrapped". Whether this materialises before 31 March  (or 8 April for online) filing deadlines remains to be seen.

 

@NoDisplayName @Kerryd @Thingamabob I think the reasons you have suggested for the change, (if indeed there is one) are absolutely spot on. They will (may) come about because the issue has affected the important (aka rich) members of Thai society. Even if Kh Richguy doesn't himself have to pay more taxes, it is possible that spending for 2024 has seen a nosedive, and the evidence is in reduced inward remittances, resulting in his business suffering. Reduced spending has already seen a major reduction in property transactions, (when it is possible these may not be affected); but when there's uncertainty for the largest consumers, (Chinese and Indians), they are going to wait until there is clarity.

 

I agree, that the reduction of the amount of money we expats have brought in is chicken feed, and of no consequence, even though we may have reduced our inward remittances (therefore spending) by 50% or more.

 

I also wondered why there was nothing in the press that I could see that addressed the concerns of the wealthy Thais to whom this change was directed. Well, of course they don't have their AN equivalent, as they have direct access to the levers of power.

 

It's not convincing that this has to do with "wealthy Thais", because it was clear at the outset that the new tax rules would impact wealthy Thais, that was the point. 

 

More likely this has to do with the changed economic landscape created by Trump's tariffs, which will greatly affect China and Thailand sees a chance to get more foreign investement from China.

[samtam]

14 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

 

It's not convincing that this has to do with "wealthy Thais", because it was clear at the outset that the new tax rules would impact wealthy Thais, that was the point. 

 

More likely this has to do with the changed economic landscape created by Trump's tariffs, which will greatly affect China and Thailand sees a chance to get more foreign investement from China.

 

Por 161 (September 2023) & 162 (November 2023) were issued before Trump's presidency, and the imposition of tariffs.

 

So far, sadly, there have been no new PORs issued, to deal with Trump tariffs, threatened, imaginary, or real. 

[DrPhibes]

19 hours ago, zepplin said:

It’s such typical piss poor planning, Thais are absolutely the best at this, land of the flip flop!

f muppets couldn’t organize a pissup in a brewery 

And the government wonders why they can't attract the wealthy.  When your changing the rules every other day, who would want to settle here and bring money in that is sometimes hard to get out.

[RSD1]

On 2/15/2025 at 5:32 AM, NoDisplayName said:

 

I'm'assume somebody important with important friends in important positions did not agree.

 

I'm'assume also that global taxation is dead in the water, for the same reasons.

Fingers crossed. 🤞🏼 👍🏼

[RSD1]

23 hours ago, zepplin said:

It’s such typical piss poor planning, Thais are absolutely the best at this, land of the flip flop!

f muppets couldn’t organize a pissup in a brewery 

 

True. But a logical reason would be that they realized the administrative costs of enforcing the taxation weren’t worth the revenue they’d gain from it. When they reverse course on something here, it’s often due to financial motivations or an attempt to contain a growing public relations disaster. In this case it could actually be a bit of both.

 

Let’s see if they truly abandon the whole crusade, and if they do, what kind of explanation, if any, they provide. It’s also possible they just quietly drop it without much clarification, leaving everyone confused and in a state of taxation filing chaos.

[daveAustin]

Yes they’ve probably realised how much of a headache it will be and also upset some big boys with large assets. That or they’re going to really stick it to everyone. Whatever. Not really worth commenting further until they come out with a definitive response. May as well just contribute a bunch of tat to Gamma or Bob Smith’s latest nonsense topic 😜

[Ben Zioner]

14 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

All income pre-2024 remains exempt, regardless of tax-residency.

That's misleading.

 

Pre-2024 income  has always been taxable if remitted during the year of earning. 

 

If you get audited you may get taxed and fined on undeclared untimely remittances made in the past 10 years.

 

This is why those who diligently file returns might have a point.

[anrcaccount]

1 hour ago, Ben Zioner said:

That's misleading.

 

Pre-2024 income  has always been taxable if remitted during the year of earning. 

 

If you get audited you may get taxed and fined on undeclared untimely remittances made in the past 10 years.

 

This is why those who diligently file returns might have a point.

 

Do you seriously think that any individual has ever filed and paid Thai tax on foreign income remitted same year?

 

 

 

 

[redwood1]

2 hours ago, RSD1 said:

 

True. But a logical reason would be that they realized the administrative costs of enforcing the taxation weren’t worth the revenue they’d gain from it. When they reverse course on something here, it’s often due to financial motivations or an attempt to contain a growing public relations disaster. In this case it could actually be a bit of both.

 

Let’s see if they truly abandon the whole crusade, and if they do, what kind of explanation, if any, they provide. It’s also possible they just quietly drop it without much clarification, leaving everyone confused and in a state of taxation filing chaos.

 

It’s also possible they just quietly drop it without much clarification,

 

 

Most of the time this is exactly what they do....They like to Quietly drop egg on their face things with no explanation....

Or throw in the old " It was all a big misunderstanding"

 

Trying to enforce this tax is a lose-lose-lose for them financially , a time waster, and just a over-all pain........I think they are wising up to this fact....

[ryandb]

On 2/15/2025 at 7:05 AM, quake said:

 

No disrespect.

But you have had over a year to keep funds separate.

 

what the hell are you going on about

[Yumthai]

23 minutes ago, anrcaccount said:

Do you seriously think that any individual has ever filed and paid Thai tax on foreign income remitted same year?

Reading certain posters on AN I will not surprised some people did.

[hotandsticky]

1 minute ago, ryandb said:

what the hell are you going on about

 

 

Do you understand the difference between savings and taxable income ?