10 minutes ago, JimGant said:

You're then not in TRD's data base and thus will never hear from them (unless they start investigating folks with really large remittances -- and you're one of them).

What is considered a large remittance?

What is the threshold of remittance they are most likely to flag down and audit?

10 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

What is considered a large remittance?

What is the threshold of remittance they are most likely to flag down and audit?

I believe there is no official threshold, and it's rather TRD branch discretion/policy.

Last year I attended a TRD branch meeting for corporate tax matters, head of corporate audit department whispered audits are mostly performed upon denunciation and at least high 6 digits tax penalty.

2 hours ago, Yumthai said:

I believe there is no official threshold, and it's rather TRD branch discretion/policy.

Last year I attended a TRD branch meeting for corporate tax matters, head of corporate audit department whispered audits are mostly performed upon denunciation and at least high 6 digits tax penalty.

That makes perfect sense.

On 8/31/2026 at 1:56 PM, JimGant said:

That doesn't seem too hard a math problem. Private pensions remitted to Thailand are "assessable income," so the percentage of your annual deposits that are private pensions would be the percentage figure used to determine amount of remittance that is assessable. This would be very simple, if the only other deposit is SS. But, for co-mingled deposits, of both assessable and non assessable income off various sorts -- the percentage method is also doable.

I doubt TRD has any guidance, if presented with this percentage method of assessable remittances. But, it seems straightforward enough to pass muster, at least with someone of intelligence at TRD. And, really, how would you otherwise deal with remittances from a bank account containing co-mingled funding......

But if my only remittances were via ATM -- I certainly wouldn't even bother considering filing a Thai tax return. Same with credit card purchases. Yes, some tax assistance firms have conjectured that TRD considers such spending in Thailand as a remittance. But I don't believe there's anything concrete about this in TRD guidance. And certainly, as someone said, you wouldn't be on anyone's radar -- so why worry about an indefinite....?

AFAIK it's because the ATM withdrawals are also going to be tracked and accrued via global sharing mechanisms (AI and other automated BS) for those staying more than six months in Thailand if you get pulled at the airport?

Edited Friday at 12:25 AM2 days by FriendlyHorse

1 hour ago, FriendlyHorse said:

AFAIK it's because the ATM withdrawals are also going to be tracked and accrued via global sharing mechanisms (AI and other automated BS) for those staying more than six months in Thailand if you get pulled at the airport?

Can you provide any reputable sources? Or, is that just your opinion?

2 hours ago, FriendlyHorse said:

. . . the ATM withdrawals are also going to be tracked . . .

Whether they are tracked or not is immaterial to me.

If I owe, I will file. If I don't owe, I will take the advice of my attorney and not file.

1 hour ago, FriendlyHorse said:

AFAIK it's because the ATM withdrawals are also going to be tracked and accrued via global sharing mechanisms (AI and other automated BS) for those staying more than six months in Thailand if you get pulled at the airport?

I find it very hard to believe that Thailand is going to be tracking the millions of ATM withdrawals made each year by foreigners using foreign bank cards in order to determine income tax liability. That would be a massive undertaking.

1 hour ago, JohnnyBD said:

Can you provide any reputable sources? Or, is that just your opinion?

16 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

I find it very hard to believe that Thailand is going to be tracking the millions of ATM withdrawals made each year by foreigners using foreign bank cards in order to determine income tax liability. That would be a massive undertaking.

I'm sure that's right. However, if the TRD decided for whatever reason to investigate you, those transfers might come to light. I'm betting they won't, I've paid some bigger hospital bills with my UK credit card. The only downside of doing that is the 3% foreign currency surcharge on the card.

I wonder how much extra revenue has been raised since the change in rules after 2023. I bet it's very little from retirees like myself, even those who've actually registered. And while I might just think of replacing my 17-year-old D-Max with a new car, there's no way I'm going to incur a tax liability by remitting the funds to do that. As always everywhere, taxation stunts growth.

5 minutes ago, Eff1n2ret said:

And while I might just think of replacing my 17-year-old D-Max with a new car, there's no way I'm going to incur a tax liability by remitting the funds to do that. As always everywhere, taxation stunts growth.

Agree.

Two things.

I was going to buy a new car for my wife this year. No more.

Every time there is a new tax anywhere, consumers find ways to legally avoid it. In the case of Thailand, it will be to stay in Thailand for less time or not come at all and/or bring in less cash and/or spend less.

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Edited Friday at 04:10 AM2 days by save the frogs

1 hour ago, Talon said:

I was going to buy a new car for my wife this year.

You can wire gift her the money to buy her car. Tax-free unless she plans to buy a car for more than 20M THB.

1 hour ago, Talon said:

I was going to buy a new car for my wife this year. No more.

Have you considered gifting your wife the money to purchase the car? You could transfer the equivalent purchase price from your bank account in your home country - or wherever you maintain your overseas banking account - directly into your wife's overseas account, provided she has one.

The transfer would be made to her account, in her own name, and she would receive and control the funds herself. You could clearly state in the transfer description that the money is a gift to your wife for the purchase of the car.

She could then purchase the new car herself, with the vehicle registered entirely in her name. This would provide a clear paper trail showing that the funds were gifted to her and that she subsequently purchased and owns the vehicle. The gift laws in Thailand are quite generous...

6 hours ago, Yumthai said:

You can wire gift her the money to buy her car. Tax-free unless she plans to buy a car for more than 20M THB.

declaring a transfer of money from abroad to your own wife as a “gift” may look like a simple way to make the transfer tax-free, but it can have some pitfalls depending on how the thai revenue department assesses the actual circumstances ... the important question is whether it is a genuine gift, or whether the “gift” is simply being used as a way to avoid tax that would otherwise be payable ...

there is also an interesting question regarding the husband himself. if the husband is a tax resident of thailand and transfers money from his own foreign bank account directly to his wife’s thai bank account, does the fact that the money is ultimately received by the wife as a tax-exempt spouse gift mean that the husband has no tax liability on the remittance? or does the husband still have a potential tax liability because he was the person who remitted the foreign-sourced money???

it would be very interesting to have a clear and binding statement, or specific guidance, from the thai revenue department on this exact situation ...

2 hours ago, motdaeng said:

it would be very interesting to have a clear and binding statement, or specific guidance, from the thai revenue department on this exact situation ...

You're asking too much. You should know the rule in Thailand: to each official his own reading of the law.

That being said, gift rules are pretty clear and straightforward leaving little room to interpretation.

When you gift you are not remitting to yourself and receive no direct benefit from it.

7 minutes ago, Yumthai said:

You're asking too much. You should know the rule in Thailand: to each official his own reading of the law.

That being said, gift rules are pretty clear and straightforward leaving little room to interpretation.

When you gift you are not remitting to yourself and receive no direct benefit from it.

For the reason you stated: "to each official his own reading of the law."

I won't be "gifting" my wife.

On 9/3/2026 at 8:11 PM, save the frogs said:

What is considered a large remittance?

What is the threshold of remittance they are most likely to flag down and audit?

In a couple of ExpatTax Thailand videos I’ve seen the number1.2Million (in remittances) as the number that could trigger a Thai tax audit.

Haven’t seen anything anywhere else confirming this.

Edited Friday at 02:59 PM1 day by SamSpade

On 9/2/2026 at 11:58 PM, Talon said:

The attorney put forward this example:

• 1.4 million baht deposited in overseas account from Social Security and private pension (400,000 baht Social Security and 1 million baht private pension)

• 700,000 baht brought into Thailand

• 500,000 baht in Thailand tax deductions

400,000 baht of tax free Social Security brought into Thailand. 300,000 baht taxable. 500,000 baht in deductions. No tax owed, so no filing necessary.

As an aside, she did state that FIFO is part of the Thai tax law.

Seems to me that the most sensible thing to do would be having separate accounts for each source of income. It would be a bit of a hassle to set up, but it's a onetime inconvenience and would vastly simplify the documentation, as there would be no worry about FIFO or pro-rata.

3 hours ago, Yumthai said:

You're asking too much. You should know the rule in Thailand: to each official his own reading of the law.

That being said, gift rules are pretty clear and straightforward leaving little room to interpretation.

When you gift you are not remitting to yourself and receive no direct benefit from it.

Just wondering, for those of you that are helping to support your wife's family, why not gift it directly to them? Wouldn't that be considered a non-assessable remittance?

Also just wondering. If you rent a house/condo from a foreign landlord, couldn't you pay your rent via a method that doesn't have any remittance to Thailand at all?

51 minutes ago, PHL1986 said:

Seems to me that the most sensible thing to do would be having separate accounts for each source of income. It would be a bit of a hassle to set up, but it's a onetime inconvenience and would vastly simplify the documentation, as there would be no worry about FIFO or pro-rata.

That's exactly what I did in early 2024 when I found out about the tax changes. It took me about 10 minutes to open new accts online to separate my tax exempt income from my assessable income. That made things so much easier to track.

Edited Friday at 06:41 PM1 day by JohnnyBD

7 hours ago, SamSpade said:

In a couple of ExpatTax Thailand videos I’ve seen the number1.2Million (in remittances) as the number that could trigger a Thai tax audit.

Haven’t seen anything anywhere else confirming this.

Found the ExpatTax Thailand video, 1.2Million is mentioned 11:43 in...

Full video is here...

3 minutes ago, SamSpade said:

Found the ExpatTax Thailand video, 1.2Million is mentioned 11:43 in...

He calls it the LTR tax exemption.

So there are different rules for people on LTR compared to retirement visas?

I will speak to a tax expert. There are too many individual factors to consider.

24 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

He calls it the LTR tax exemption.

So there are different rules for people on LTR compared to retirement visas?

I will speak to a tax expert. There are too many individual factors to consider.

I know the video is aimed at LTR holders but that part is a general view on what might trigger a TRD audit and is the same for anybody from Visa Exempt to LTR holders if they’re Thai Tax resident.

Edited Friday at 11:13 PM1 day by SamSpade

14 minutes ago, SamSpade said:

I know the video is aimed at LTR holders but that part is a general view on what might trigger a TRD audit and is the same for anybody from Visa Exempt to LTR holders if they’re Thai Tax resident.

Ok, thanks. Appreciate.

I will speak to a tax expert next week and if he/she provides any general information that may apply to everyone, I will post here.

1 minute ago, save the frogs said:

Ok, thanks. Appreciate.

I will speak to a tax expert next week and if he/she provides any general information that may apply to everyone, I will post here.

Thanks, I'd be very interested in what they have to say...

BTW there are different rules for the LTR visas, E.g. the LTR "Wealthy Pensioner" Visa (requires you to have >$80K PA in passive income or >$40K income & have invested at least $250,000 in Thailand, E.g. Bought an 8.5Million THB Condo in your own name) holders are exempt (By Royal Decree) from tax on foreign remittances.

This makes most LTR WP holders believe they don't even need to file a return so the Video is aimed at explaining why they still might have to & what might happen if they don't - Most people viewed it as a sales pitch & not neccessary plus even if they were audited they could simply show the LTR Visa & the Royal Decree.

If you can match the income/investment it's well worth considering getting an LTR (I'm hoping to get one next year now my pensions have started).

LTR-WP visa holders are not required to file a tax return if their only income is from foreign sources as per Kasapon Singprasert, Senior Tax Economist for the Revenue Department, Thailand.

See page 7 of his presentation at the LTR Community Day on Feb 19, 2026 below:

Tax Essentials for LTR Visa Holders.pdf

Edited yesterday at 01:09 AM1 day by JohnnyBD
Attached presentation

16 hours ago, SamSpade said:

In a couple of ExpatTax Thailand videos I’ve seen the number1.2Million (in remittances) as the number that could trigger a Thai tax audit.

Haven’t seen anything anywhere else confirming this.

Not seen (or heard) that number and seems far too low to me. I do remember an article talking about total no of transactions and figures above 2 million - but my memory may be faulty on that.

4 minutes ago, topt said:

Not seen (or heard) that number and seems far too low to me. I do remember an article talking about total no of transactions and figures above 2 million - but my memory may be faulty on that.

Just found this as well from the end of last year but I think this was more a knee jerk to gold trading numbers -

https://www.imidaily.com/asia-pacific/thailand-mandates-that-banks-report-non-resident-transfers-above-200000/

Thailand Mandates That Banks Report Non-Resident Transfers Above $200,000

Central bank to monitor large non-resident transfers as speculative gold trading peaks at 60% of forex transactions and expat population swells.

1 minute ago, topt said:

Just found this as well from the end of last year but I think this was more a knee jerk to gold trading numbers -

Now they are talking about non-residents.

The Integrity Legal guy said most retirees will not owe any taxes.

But I guess everyone here is on different visas.

22 minutes ago, topt said:

Not seen (or heard) that number and seems far too low to me. I do remember an article talking about total no of transactions and figures above 2 million - but my memory may be faulty on that.

Found one article from last year that sort of supports what I remembered -

https://en.thairath.co.th/money/personal_finance/financial_planning/2922087

Under the "specific transactions" criteria, all financial institutions and electronic money providers (e-Wallets) in Thailand must report to the Revenue Department any deposit or incoming transfer transactions (receiving side), counting the total across all accounts within one year for that institution or provider under these conditions.

• 400 times or more with total incoming transactions of 2 million baht or more, or

• 3,000 times or more regardless of total amount.

On 9/4/2026 at 9:24 PM, Yumthai said:

You're asking too much. You should know the rule in Thailand: to each official his own reading of the law.

That being said, gift rules are pretty clear and straightforward leaving little room to interpretation.

When you gift you are not remitting to yourself and receive no direct benefit from it.

i do not agree "the gift rules are pretty clear"

... as a thai tax resident, i’m not going to transfer money to my wife as a “gift” until the TRD’s interpretation of the rules are really clear also for the "donor"...

... maybe that day will never come. sorry, wifey ... looks like you’ll have to wait until i’m gone ... 😂 😂 😂

https://aseannow.com/topic/1385046-tax-treatment-of-a-gift-transfer-to-my-thai-spouse/