I Need Advise About Visa/workpermit/freelance Work

[MickeyHolland]

Hi there,

I'm a Dutch man, 34yr, who has been offered a job in Thailand with a Thai company, starting next year.

This company is a very small company and has only the possibility to hire me on a freelance basis, not as a full employee.

For many years i've got a strong wish to start a newe life and career in Thailand and i need some really good info about how to proceed with this.

I would like to receive all of your comments/advise/experiences concerning the following questions:

* Is this "freelance" construction possible ?

* What about (which) visa and workpermit ?

* What are the requirements and obligations for working on a freelance basis for both the employer and the employee ?

* What are the financial consequenses (taxes, visa, workpermit, etcetera) ?

* What other constructions might be possible besides freelance?

* Which other questions did i forget ?

Thanx in advance !

Mickey

[MickeyHolland]

Ps. the company is a website for tourism/resorts

Edited October 5, 2007 by MickeyHolland

[MickeyHolland]

Anyone ??

[digitalchromakey]

Yes, you can work freelance, if you have a company and work permit that specifically allow you to do your work, at specified locations.

You would need to form a company (Thai legal entity) which could then be a vehicle for you to apply for a non immigrant B visa, which once issued could facilitate your applying for a work permit.

You would be required to maintain your non immigrant B visa status: Your work permit would require a renewal/re-issue process each time you did a border run or visa extension.

You would have to pay fees plus taxes/social security appropriate to your salary.

You would also need to fund annual audited accounts and make Thai tax returns as appropriate.

The requirements for an employer include paying withholding tax and issueing you with the appropriate paperwork in response to your invoices.

[LivinLOS]

Which isnt really 'freelance' in the way most westerners consider freelance (eg self employed one man company)..

[MickeyHolland]

Thanx for the info !

What kind of money is generally involved when i want to start a "one man company" ?

And what are the monthly costs ?

[jstumbo]

Yes, you can work freelance, if you have a company and work permit that specifically allow you to do your work, at specified locations.

You would need to form a company (Thai legal entity) which could then be a vehicle for you to apply for a non immigrant B visa, which once issued could facilitate your applying for a work permit.

You would be required to maintain your non immigrant B visa status: Your work permit would require a renewal/re-issue process each time you did a border run or visa extension.

You would have to pay fees plus taxes/social security appropriate to your salary.

You would also need to fund annual audited accounts and make Thai tax returns as appropriate.

The requirements for an employer include paying withholding tax and issueing you with the appropriate paperwork in response to your invoices.

Then aren't there the requirements for having Thai employees also in order to sponsor a WP? Or maybe if you invested a few million baht, you could also do it.

Then there is the 49/51 percent ownership thing.

[beechguy]

No requirements to have Thai employees to get the work permit, but, your right, alot of other things to deal with just to set up a company for that kind of work.

[digitalchromakey]

Thanx for the info !

What kind of money is generally involved when i want to start a "one man company" ?

And what are the monthly costs ?

Company formation fees using a law firm start at 10,000 THB and can easily go over 30,000 THB.

1) You have the work permit application and renewal fees about 4,000 THB per annum

2) With a Limited Partnership or Limited Company, you need annual audited accounts which may be upwards of 12,000 THB.

3) You have tax and social security to pay every month. If you are paying tax on 50,000 THB (minimum required salary to obtain for a Visa Extension for Business), then your monthly tax/social payments will be upwards of 60,000 per annum.

4) Assuming you then get a visa extension for business, the costs are almost 6,000 THB per annum if you require a multiple re-entry permit.

Adding these figures up you get 82,000 THB per annum, plus whatever company start up fee you pay in the first year.

I guess if you add in account and admin fees for the monthly returns, then you are looking at upwards of 8,000 pcm. So your business activities really need to be worth the financial pain.

[LivinLOS]

Secondly (and this is my pretty shaky understanding of it) to qualify for the WP extension incountry (to stop you still needing to do visa runs) that wont happen until you accounts have been filed.. So you have to pay all this and still visa run for a 1+ year period while you build up a history..

Then for incountry visa extension you need to have some Thai employees (dependant on area where this is done I think) and obviously then its salaries and tax contribs.. Note this is not to get the work permit but it is to get the extension of stay so you dont need to keep border hopping.

All in all being a freelancer here is not as simple and only really becomes attractive financially when freelancing at western rates not local ones IMO.