File Picture for reference only.

 

Foreigners working legally in Thailand now face stricter tax compliance requirements as the government moves to align its system with international standards. The Bangkok Post reported an updated reminder, on 10 October, that with more than 3.3 million registered foreign workers as of latest data, authorities are stepping up enforcement to ensure all individuals earning income in the country meet their personal income tax obligations.

 

Under Thai law, any foreigner residing in the country for 180 days or more within a calendar year is considered a tax resident. Non-residents are only taxed on income earned within Thailand. The personal income tax system remains progressive, ranging from 5% to 35% depending on net income after deductions.

 

Tax rates currently exempt income up to 150,000 baht, while earnings above 5 million baht are taxed at the top rate of 35%. Foreign nationals are eligible for many of the same deductions as Thai citizens, including a 60,000 baht personal allowance, spousal and child deductions and relief for provident fund or life insurance contributions. Annual tax returns must be submitted using form PND 90 or 91 by 31 March of the following year.

 

Net income 0 – 150,000 baht: Exempt from tax (must still report to the Revenue Department)

Net income 150,001 – 300,000 baht: Taxed at 5%

Net income 300,001 – 500,000 baht: Taxed at 10%

Net income 500,001 – 750,000 baht: Taxed at 15%

Net income 750,001 – 1,000,000 baht: Taxed at 20%

Net income 1,000,001 – 2,000,000 baht: Taxed at 25%

Net income 2,000,001 – 5,000,000 baht: Taxed at 30%

Net income over 5,000,000 baht: Taxed at 35%

 

Thailand’s more than 60 double taxation agreements (DTAs) help prevent individuals from paying tax twice on the same income. However, the interpretation of these treaties may vary, particularly for pensions and capital gains, prompting tax experts to recommend professional consultation.

 

Beyond income tax, foreign workers must cover additional costs, such as visa fees between 2,000 and 5,000 baht and work permit fees starting at 750 baht for a three-month period. Contributions to Thailand’s social security system are also required, with a 5% salary deduction capped at 750 baht per month. Those running businesses must register for VAT if annual revenue exceeds 1.8 million baht, while certain sectors, including finance and property rentals, face specific business taxes. Non-compliance can result in fines or imprisonment.

 

A major change came into effect in January 2024, requiring tax residents to declare and pay tax on foreign income brought into Thailand, regardless of when it was earned. This replaces the previous rule, which taxed only income remitted during the same year it was earned. The Revenue Department is considering further reforms that could introduce a full worldwide income taxation system, signalling tighter oversight for foreign residents in the years ahead.

 

Key Takeaways

 

• Thailand now taxes foreign income remitted at any time, marking a major policy shift since January 2024.

• Foreign workers must comply with progressive tax rates up to 35%, with filing due by 31 March each year.

• Authorities are reviewing broader reforms toward a full worldwide income taxation model.

 

Related Stories

 

Minister-vows-to-impose-long-delayed-b300-tourism-tax

 

Thailand-eyes-tax-overhaul-push-for-increased-revenue

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Bangkokpost 2025-10-13

 

 

 

 

 

I understand that the overseas income tax is not law yet. for westerners. Plus something else about it not being taxed after 2026. 

3,3 foreign workers must be taxes.. How many Thai people are not being taxed yet?? Maybe start with them too and it will bring much more in than only tax... Corruption and bribes will come forward....Foreigners are not ATM's and of course they need to pay tax, but the double standards of Thais no problem, but foreigners first if there is money to collect is a bit too much

39 minutes ago, Bagwain said:

I understand that the overseas income tax is not law yet. for westerners. Plus something else about it not being taxed after 2026. 

who told you that... i hope you check the source of your information, because everything you write is misinformation or just a rumors ...

1 hour ago, Georgealbert said:

Foreigners working legally in Thailand now face stricter tax compliance requirements as the government moves to align its system with international standards.

 

white and grey (black on white) ./.. it saysa that foreign WORKERS will be taxed accordingly... is that a lapse in reporting?

 

Reitrees don't work... so how can this apply to us?

11 minutes ago, Pouatchee said:

 

white and grey (black on white) ./.. it saysa that foreign WORKERS will be taxed accordingly... is that a lapse in reporting?

 

Reitrees don't work... so how can this apply to us?

please reread the OP : 

"A major change came into effect in January 2024, requiring tax residents to declare and pay tax on foreign income brought into Thailand, regardless of when it was earned .."

Funny anecdote:  The Revenue Department used every year to publish a list of the top 10 (I think it was) tax payers.  None of the usual suspects turned up at the top of the list.  In the final year it was headed by a Revenue Department staffer.  Can't imagine why they stopped ;-)

 

In short, it would be far more revenue-generative to target the wealthy, but then paying taxes is only for the little people.

1 hour ago, motdaeng said:

please reread the OP : 

"A major change came into effect in January 2024, requiring tax residents to declare and pay tax on foreign income brought into Thailand, regardless of when it was earned .."

 

read the op title... somewhat misleading... that being my point

Here we go again.......

41 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

Here we go again.......

Yep, I'm curious who's behind this constant albeit inefficient tax propaganda.

1 hour ago, Pouatchee said:

 

read the op title... somewhat misleading... that being my point

I think the headline is okay as it matches the first half of the story. Then later on it goes on to talk about the law from 2024 that taxes all residents here more than 180 days. Not sure how many are aware, but there are thousands of foreigners working here both illegally and not paying tax on earnings from work in Thailand.I think that's the main point of the first half. Teachers, apparently, make up a big portion of illegal workers according to sources.

Doesn't look like anything has changed. What's this all about?

1 hour ago, ronnie50 said:

Teachers, apparently, make up a big portion of illegal workers according to sources.

How bad is that! Thai schools and universities should only hire Thai teachers, it will definitely improves their people education level.

5 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

How many Thai people are not being taxed yet??

All the ones earning less than 150,000 thb per year.

Just like the foreigners. 
 

If you don’t like it here then leave. 

It would be nice, and I would not mind paying taxes at all if they let into the medical system then.

19 minutes ago, MalcolmB said:

All the ones earning less than 150,000 thb per year.

Just like the foreigners. 
 

If you don’t like it here then leave. 

you don't have a clue what you are talking about..... you claim that all Thais earn less than 12.500 THB a month..How can they live in houses, pay the rent or mortgage, drive luxury cars, go on holiday several times a year and do luxury shopping as promoted by the Government...  And foreigners need at least an income of 40k if they are married a month and 65k a person for retirement...I know that at least 70% of all Thai people never have filled in a tax form, maybe just as you..... I fill it in every year... and I pay every year my tax, and I don't complain.. It is just that the double standards will kill everything in Thailand, less expats, less retirees, and less tourists, only low educated people don't see it  and make comments like you do

11 minutes ago, ikke1959 said:

you don't have a clue what you are talking about..... you claim that all Thais earn less than 12.500 THB a month..How can they live in houses, pay the rent or mortgage, drive luxury cars, go on holiday several times a year and do luxury shopping as promoted by the Government...  And foreigners need at least an income of 40k if they are married a month and 65k a person for retirement...I know that at least 70% of all Thai people never have filled in a tax form, maybe just as you..... I fill it in every year... and I pay every year my tax, and I don't complain.. It is just that the double standards will kill everything in Thailand, less expats, less retirees, and less tourists, only low educated people don't see it  and make comments like you do

What's that rant all about ?

What he said is very clear, Earn less than 150,000 per year and it's tax free. 

He did not claim ALL Thais earn less than 12,500 a month.

 

"All the ones earning less than 150,000 thb per year.

Just like the foreigners". 

7 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

3,3 foreign workers must be taxes.. How many Thai people are not being taxed yet?? Maybe start with them too and it will bring much more in than only tax... Corruption and bribes will come forward....Foreigners are not ATM's and of course they need to pay tax, but the double standards of Thais no problem, but foreigners first if there is money to collect is a bit too much

none are being taxed

 

Well, say you are a legit teacher with a WP earning like 500k baht  a year... which translates to like 41.5k a month. So, you get 150k of earnings tax free, takes you down to 350k taxable income. Then you get 60k personal allowance tax for free like all others, so takes you down to 290k taxable income for the single person.

On top of that, if you are married, and she doesn't work, that goes down another 60k, so then on 230k taxable income... and if you have kids then it's like 30k allowance for each one (up to 3), so can go even lower.

It can even go lower if you are caring for others or the disabled. There is plenty of relief for tax payers in the correct circumstances. Even if you forget the caring for others or only 1 kid or none, then you end up in the 5% bracket... which is hardly the end of the world for most and translates to about 12k baht a year. The rich, of course, will have accountants to dodge as much as possible, as they follow the mantra that tax avoidance is legal but tax evasion isn't.

The murky and grey areas are the double-taxation treaties and people bringing in savings, which are not earnings and have already been taxed... same goes for gifts or inheritances etc.

As I'm 80 yo now and married to a Thai my annual spending has dropped dramatically. No regular drinking in bars, no bar fines just money for living expenses and services, so I haven't got to many problems. I'm just waiting for a list to come out from the Government in regards to accredited accountants. If accountants aren't accredited then they can't do your tax assessment, this could get very grubby given the honesty of Thai solicitors.

1 hour ago, WHansen said:

What's that rant all about ?

What he said is very clear, Earn less than 150,000 per year and it's tax free. 

He did not claim ALL Thais earn less than 12,500 a month.

 

"All the ones earning less than 150,000 thb per year.

Just like the foreigners". 

he stated all the ones that earn less than 150.000 THB a year.. and as 75% of the Thai people don't fill in a tax form it is almost all Thais...Everybody should be obliged to fill in a tax form and if their income is less than 180.000 they don't need to pay, but the Thai Government has no clue who is living where, doing what and earn how much....That is why nobody can/need to fill in a tax form.. I know people who earn up to 1 million a year and never have filled in a form, as in my property people are registered that never fill in a tax form too... It just shows that you can't claim that they all earn less than 150.000 a year..

47 minutes ago, Mason45 said:

I'm just waiting for a list to come out from the Government in regards to accredited accountants. If accountants aren't accredited then they can't do your tax assessment,

If you are talking about Thailand then I think you will be waiting an awful long time......

And if Thailand where did you get it from that they need to be accredited?

2 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

All the ones earning less than 150,000 thb per year.

Sure, because the vast majority of the ones earning more than that are scrupulously declaring and paying.

8 minutes ago, topt said:

If you are talking about Thailand then I think you will be waiting an awful long time......

And if Thailand where did you get it from that they need to be accredited?

Just an assumption of mine on how Thai businesses get their mates involved of course for a good little earner.

What next ? They will again come back in attempts to racket with tax on foreigner's pensions earned abroad ? 

 

Move to Vietnam or any other place while you still can. 

No social security, no free healthcare, no access to bank loans, no access to drinkable water, no rights to own land, no pension, double prices for tourist attraction and higher prices in general at some places, .......and we also spend 10x and support local business over most low income thai citizens.........Hahaha thailand keep producing these april 1st headlines....because these tax proposals on income remittance are ridicolous do you think we are mugs

 

Start by Wiping out the absolute rampant corruption from local government officals and projects from each district and you will get equivalent income x 10 that you would get from trying to tax foreigners hard earned income...jokers

 

 

4 hours ago, hydraides said:

No social security, no free healthcare, no access to bank loans, no access to drinkable water, no rights to own land, no pension, double prices for tourist attraction and higher prices in general at some places, .......and we also spend 10x and support local business over most low income thai citizens.........Hahaha thailand keep producing these april 1st headlines....because these tax proposals on income remittance are ridicolous do you think we are mugs

 

Start by Wiping out the absolute rampant corruption from local government officals and projects from each district and you will get equivalent income x 10 that you would get from trying to tax foreigners hard earned income...jokers

 

 

from your post it seems you may have chosen the wrong country to live in ... 

what will you do if thailand actively starts enforcing the (already in place) tax law on foreigners? 

 

On 10/13/2025 at 6:39 AM, ikke1959 said:

3,3 foreign workers must be taxes.. How many Thai people are not being taxed yet?? Maybe start with them too and it will bring much more in than only tax... Corruption and bribes will come forward....Foreigners are not ATM's and of course they need to pay tax, but the double standards of Thais no problem, but foreigners first if there is money to collect is a bit too much

That’s a fair point.  However, i would *guess* that a substantial percentage of working Thais actually fall under the minimum earned wage threshold to even have a tax due obligation (host, this doesn’t exempt them from filing despite the income level)

 

I think that this is also a big reason why the use of the VAT is more prevalent because it’s far easier to enforce, control and collect - but as we know, any kind of tax like the VAT, tends to be regressive in nature unless key household items like food, rent, utilities are exempt. 

 

If I were revenue, Id start “upstream” by looking closer at the businesses finances - if they report X in “payroll” costs - then they’d be obligated to show to which tax payer IDs was said payroll disbursed to.. that would then give revenue a starting point for collection purposes .

 

You could also get the banks in play. Require a “payroll code” be applied to any payroll payments made to individuals accounts.. and report at years end anyone with said deposits… that too would help revenue identify those with taxable income over X level. 

 

Foreigners working legally is low-hanging fruit because there aren’t all that many of them, and due to the increased regulatory requirements (ie work permits) it’s easier to identify these people and make sure they meet filing/payment rules. 

On 10/13/2025 at 4:39 AM, ikke1959 said:

3,3 foreign workers must be taxes.. How many Thai people are not being taxed yet?? Maybe start with them too and it will bring much more in than only tax... Corruption and bribes will come forward....Foreigners are not ATM's and of course they need to pay tax, but the double standards of Thais no problem, but foreigners first if there is money to collect is a bit too much

Hardly no one reaches the 150,000 baht limit....

53 minutes ago, Richardsamui said:

Hardly no one reaches the 150,000 baht limit....

 

Sir you must be joking.....150,000 a year would barely cover the cheapest of rents and the cheapest of food and the cheapest of transport for a year.....With almost zero left over....In almost any city in Thailand...

 

Vast numbers of millions of Thais make more than 150,000 a year..

 

And most Thais have never paid one baht in taxes and you know what they have no plans to start paying any time soon...

 

Also its well known the stinking rich Thais are world class non tax payers.....