3 hours ago, TimBKK said:

Should edit your post and delete it

Can only edit a post within 15 minutes.

44 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Can only edit a post within 15 minutes.

Even though the video only reflected a prediction, it was information. It's up to each person to accept it or reject it.

53 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Can only edit a post within 15 minutes.

Good point, didn’t know that.

8 minutes ago, Ricohoc said:

Even though the video only reflected a prediction, it was information. It's up to each person to accept it or reject it.

Its cr*p unfounded scaremongering - It Is Thereby Rejected.

1 minute ago, TimBKK said:

Its cr*p unfounded scaremongering - It Is Thereby Rejected.

You're entitled to that opinion. Have a good one.

8 hours ago, motdaeng said:

i am convinced that many members greatly appreciated his commitment and tireless efforts to help us better understand the thai tax system.

I am convinced that many more laughed their socks off at his single-minded attempts to persuade people to follow his western style application of Thai tax laws despite Thailand not being in the western world.

2 minutes ago, treetops said:

I am convinced that many more laughed their socks off at his single-minded attempts to persuade people to follow his western style application of Thai tax laws despite Thailand not being in the western world.

if i remember correctly, throughout all the many discussions about thai tax issues, nobody was trying to persuade anyone to do anything ...

as already mentioned, many foreign landowners using nominee with faked business structures have themselves often mocked and laugehd those who choose to follow the applicable rules and laws ... i think it now looks like the fun is over ...

Edited August 25Aug 25 by motdaeng

1 minute ago, motdaeng said:

if i remember correctly, throughout all the many discussions about thai tax issues, nobody was trying to persuade anyone to do anything ...

as already mentioned, many foreign landowners using nominee with faked business structures have themselves often mocked and laugehd those who choose to follow the applicable rules and laws ...

Persuade maybe not the right word, but he certainly took umbrage when other posters pointed out flaws in his reasoning, of which there were many.

The "whataboutery" relating to the foreign landowners will remain just that. It took them 40 years before doing anything and it could be another 40 before they ever get as far as a falang in Nakhon Nowhere with his house in a field, surrounded by blue pipes and water pumps, with a house in a nominee's name on the land. If ever. I think most on here will be the tax equivalent of said falang and those that aren't will already have been in the tax system anyway.

"The Invisible Handshake"

by tomp4129

There has always been what I’d call an “invisible handshake” between Thailand and long-term foreigners.

We accepted the deal.

We’d pay more to enter national parks. We’d report our address every 90 days. We wouldn’t demand a vote, interfere in Thai politics, or expect the country to remake itself around us. We’d navigate an absurd amount of bureaucracy, accept that some rules were selectively enforced, and use the legal grey areas and informal workarounds that everyone quietly knew existed in order to invest, build businesses, employ people and create a life here.

We demanded very little.

And in return, Thailand largely left us alone.

There was an understanding that if you contributed, behaved yourself, spent money here, created jobs and respected the country, the authorities generally weren’t going to crawl through every corner of your private financial life looking for another reason to make living here difficult.

That was the invisible handshake.

And I think Thailand is slowly breaking it without fully understanding what it is breaking.

Because the foreigners most affected are not necessarily backpackers or people here for six months. They are exactly the people Thailand says it wants: long-term residents, entrepreneurs, investors, retirees, business owners and people willing to move substantial parts of their lives and wealth into the country.

For decades, Thailand could almost take those people for granted.

I don’t think it will be able to for much longer.

Malaysia wants them. Vietnam wants them. Indonesia wants them. The Gulf wants them. Southern Europe wants them. More countries are going to compete aggressively for internationally mobile people with money, businesses and skills.

Thailand’s greatest danger isn’t that foreigners will get angry.

It’s that one day they’ll simply shrug, move somewhere else, and Thailand will realise the people it assumed would always tolerate the friction were actually some of the easiest people in the world to lose.

The invisible handshake worked because both sides understood the bargain. Once only one side is expected to honour it, it isn’t a handshake anymore.

Testimony from Brian McClellan

I’m actually attempting to do my taxes right now with a tax firm in Bangkok. It’s a disaster. They want to know the source of EVERY dollar that I brought into Thailand. I run every investment through 1 account and also my pensions. It’s impossible to provide the source of each dollar and the tax paid on it- be it dividends or capital gains or pensions (which are tax free under my DTA). I told my wife this morning if we weren’t married and this is my home I’d be gone to Vietnam. I’ve even considered leaving my home here for 6 months to avoid this disaster. I’m a relatively high net worth individual and have spent a lot of money here and now they change the rule. FYI, this is my accountant- my taxes haven’t even been turned into the Thai tax department yet! I’ve given them everything that the accountant and CRA in Canada have used to do my taxes there and still it’s not enough. I’m sorry I even applied for a tax number in Thailand now. Terrible, expensive, frustrating decision!

17 hours ago, Ricohoc said:

Even though the video only reflected a prediction, it was information. It's up to each person to accept it or reject it.

Spreading misinformation on social media is a crime in Thailand.

1 hour ago, Ricohoc said:

Malaysia wants them.

The financial requirements for Malaysia are 10 times higher than Thailand.

1 hour ago, Ricohoc said:

I’m a relatively high net worth individual and have spent a lot of money

My understanding is very high net worth folks need to be creative about moving their money around, in other words probably park some money in 0% or very low tax jurisdictions, not just in Thailand and home country.

That's why people like Nomad Capitalist exist. They have all sorts of tricks for reducing tax burden.

<>

Edited August 26Aug 26 by save the frogs

3 hours ago, save the frogs said:

The financial requirements for Malaysia are 10 times higher than Thailand.

But Malaysia may have better tax incentives than Thailand for foreigners.

5 hours ago, save the frogs said:

The financial requirements for Malaysia are 10 times higher than Thailand.

But out of all that was said about "The Invisible Handshake", Malaysia wasn't the point.

16 minutes ago, Ricohoc said:

But out of all that was said about "The Invisible Handshake", Malaysia wasn't the point.

Malaysia was my response to your other post about your friend Brian.

On 8/23/2026 at 8:40 AM, BritManToo said:

I don't really care that much about laws.

But I do worry about having my money taken.

Easier in Thailand to just offer a bribe, or leave the country without paying if you get caught and possibly fined.

It is a matter of honesty, and the other part is how long it works and does not kick back at you. Treating every instance as hostile and trying to take shortcuts might give you problems one day. Just like the convenient company solution many gambled on. Who knows when they will crack down on visa services on a larger scale, and not just selected offices here and there.

15 minutes ago, Hummin said:

It is a matter of honesty, and the other part is how long it works and does not kick back at you. Treating every instance as hostile and trying to take shortcuts might give you problems one day. Just like the convenient company solution many gambled on. Who knows when they will crack down on visa services on a larger scale, and not just selected offices here and there.

No, honesty is related to theft or deception, not laws.

7 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

No, honesty is related to theft or deception, not laws.

It comes with the nature of yourself, nothing else.

This lawyer put out another video.

Also, check out the comments section of this video.

A bunch of expats are saying they will leave.

And tomp posts his "The Invisible Handshake" post that was posted above here.

Edited August 26Aug 26 by save the frogs

He does not appear to be posting these videos to promote his tax services.

He thinks Thailand "is going down a bad road with this tax policy stuff" and Thailand will lose a lot of retirees.

He thinks it's getting ridiculous where you constantly have to explain where the money you are transferring into the country is coming from.

Edited August 26Aug 26 by save the frogs

More reading material ... FYI

https://www.pattayamail.com/latestnews/news/planning-foreign-remittances-to-thailand-and-avoiding-double-taxation-562646

Planning foreign remittances to Thailand and avoiding double taxation

The lawyer thinks this is all absurd banking bureaucracy and excessive surveillance and paperwork.

And at the end of the day, most retirees will not owe any taxes to Thailand anyway.

54 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

The lawyer thinks this is all absurd banking bureaucracy and excessive surveillance and paperwork.

And at the end of the day, most retirees will not owe any taxes to Thailand anyway.

He has said as much. He simply doesn't like the Orwellian direction things are going, based on the supposed control of things by the OECD, which he believes is not in Thailand's best interest.

Anyway, he's probably right about the typical retiree in Thailand with a pension payment and a Social Security check remitted into Thailand every month, both of which are typically taxable in the country of origin, only, per the tax treaties. The Thai tax authorities have better things to do than to chase around limited income retirees who don't really owe any taxes to Thailand in any event. They are looking for bigger fish.

6 minutes ago, jas007 said:

They are looking for bigger fish.

Time will tell.

But I do agree with your post prior to that sentence.

Additionally, I also agree that Ben's podcasts usually focus on a news article that is already in print. He isn't making up what he posts about; and he does offer helpful legal opinions from time to time. All have been helpful to me in what to ignore and what to take seriously.

21 minutes ago, jas007 said:

The Thai tax authorities have better things to do than to chase around limited income retirees who don't really owe any taxes to Thailand in any event. They are looking for bigger fish.

So who are the bigger fish?

Guys who are transferring millions of Baht into Thailand for business ventures?

1 hour ago, save the frogs said:

So who are the bigger fish?

Certainly not the foreigners.