tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 My employers are in Australia and my work is all going to be done for them via emails. Does anyone know if this will require a working visa for Thailand? My hunch is that I won't but I don't want to go on just a hunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 That's a complicated question. There are visa issues and work permit issues. If you choose to conceal that you are working in Thailand from the authorities, what visa type do you propose using to live here? In other words, you really need to provide more details about your specific situation to get the best advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 There is no such thing as a work visa. If you are going to work legally it requires getting a work permit. To get a work permit requires working for a Thai registered company and having a non immigrant visa. There are a lot of people doing exactly what you plan on doing that don't have work permits and have had no problem doing it. There is always a risk of getting caught though. It is your decision to do it legally or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaiphoon Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 (edited) Any work in Thailand requires a work permit. If caught working without a WP the penalties can be severe, maybe 5 years in jail, but usually fine and deportation. Yes, you may be able to work under the radar if your work is just e-mail, but you have to decide whether the risk is worth taking. In my opinion it is not. People set up a Thai company which can support WP application to keep legal. And you need a Non immigrant visa to obtain a WP. Edited August 31, 2009 by thaiphoon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lite Beer Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 As UJ said a Work Permit is needed to be legal. That would mean setting up a company etc. Most do not bother and fly under the radar. Up to you if you want to take the risk or not. It is illegal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 That's a complicated question. There are visa issues and work permit issues. If you choose to conceal that you are working in Thailand from the authorities, what visa type do you propose using to live here? In other words, you really need to provide more details about your specific situation to get the best advice. I'm probably going to be in Thailand all up for about 6 months for martial arts training. I'll have enough money to cover this period but I also want to be keeping my work going. I'm not so sure about what type of visa to get to live there, that's what I'm trying to figure out. I not going to do anything illegal I'm just not sure about what constitutes working in Thailand. My employers will be paying me from Australia so if the money is not coming from within Thailand does that mean I'm officially/legally working there? I haven't really planned much more than that at the moment as the trip is in about 8 months. I'm just trying to find out info on what I need to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 (edited) The basic answer to this is if you can figure a visa method to stay in Thailand independent of your discreet work activities, you will most likely be OK doing the work, but it won't technically be legal. If the total length of your stay is only going to six months, it would be an absurd amount of overhead to get legal on the work front. There are laws and then there are practical realities. I am afraid the practical reality is you ARE going to have to do something illegal to pull off what you propose. Edited August 31, 2009 by Jingthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 Wow, fastest replies that I can type. Thanks for the info. As I said I'm not going to be doing anything illegal, I prefer not to be looking over my shoulder whether at home or abroad. This has got me thinking further though - one of my training partners is coming over with me and gets a fair bit of income from advertising on websites. All this is already set up so he won't be doing any work, just receiving income. He figured since he won't actually be working he could just have a tourist visa but in the eyes of the Thai authorities is this work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 The basic answer to this is if you can figure a visa method to stay in Thailand independent of your discreet work activities, you will most likely be OK doing the work, but it won't technically be legal. If the total length of your stay is only going to six months, it would be an absurd amount of overhead to get legal on the work front. There are laws and then there are practical realities. I am afraid the practical reality is you ARE going to have to do something illegal to pull off what you propose. That bad huh? Guess I need to do some thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 (edited) The basic answer to this is if you can figure a visa method to stay in Thailand independent of your discreet work activities, you will most likely be OK doing the work, but it won't technically be legal. If the total length of your stay is only going to six months, it would be an absurd amount of overhead to get legal on the work front. There are laws and then there are practical realities. I am afraid the practical reality is you ARE going to have to do something illegal to pull off what you propose. That bad huh? Guess I need to do some thinking. My opinion only. Keep posting. I also think as long as you are very discreet and of course don't blab about it, the chances are excellent you won't have any problem doing your work by email, again, as long as you can figure out another non-work visa method to stay in Thailand. For a six month stay, that isn't a big problem, you could even stay on tourist visas. Edited August 31, 2009 by Jingthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lite Beer Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 The definition of Work from the Dept. of Employment website. http://www.doe.go.th/service3_en.aspx 1. Definition “Alien” means a natural person who is not of Thai nationality; “ Work ” means to engage in work by exerting energy or using knowledge whether or not in consideration of wages or other benefits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 (edited) I have assumed that your work is all by email, that income will be paid into a non-Thai bank account, and that there is no interaction with Thai customers or workers. Who would know whether you are working or just another thaivisa.com addict if you are just poking around on your keyboard? BTW, to those who correctly assert that this activity is technically illegal, do you realistically think it is practical to create a legal working structure here for a six month stay? If not, you are basically saying for him to forget about it. Another point, Thailand isn't the only country that has not kept up to date on the issue of online international working modes. Their work visa system is based on old assumptions. It would be a progressive change for Thailand and other countries to create visa types for this kind of activity, they could charge extra money for this in exchange for not requiring an office and Thai workers and make it a profit center. Do I think they will do such a thing? Not a chance. Edited August 31, 2009 by Jingthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lite Beer Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 It would be wrong for anyone of us to advise him to indulge in any illegal activity. All we can do is explain the situation and let him make his own mind up. It is up to him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 It would be wrong for anyone of us to advise him to indulge in any illegal activity. All we can do is explain the situation and let him make his own mind up. It is up to him. I agree. He needs the facts. Then he needs to make up his mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaiphoon Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 BTW, to those who correctly assert that this activity is technically illegal, do you realistically think it is practical to create a legal working structure here for a six month stay? If not, you are basically saying for him to forget about it. The Op asked for information and that provided was given correctly. Only later do we find out the Op is planning only a 6 month stay. Practicality may be the chosen route, but it is not without risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 (edited) BTW, to those who correctly assert that this activity is technically illegal, do you realistically think it is practical to create a legal working structure here for a six month stay? If not, you are basically saying for him to forget about it. The Op asked for information and that provided was given correctly. Only later do we find out the Op is planning only a 6 month stay. Practicality may be the chosen route, but it is not without risk. Indeed, there are risks. However, overall I find the Thais a practical people, so this MAY be a case where don't ask, don't tell is a reasonable course. Of course, we all have to make our own choices and suffer the consequences if things go south ... Let me put this another way. I have seen no evidence over the years that investigation of such discreet casual online work arrangements is really a law enforcement priority in Thailand. On the other hand, if Thais were involved in the business or the business was of an illegal nature such as porn, it would likely draw unpleasant attention. Edited August 31, 2009 by Jingthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 I have assumed that your work is all by email, that income will be paid into a non-Thai bank account, and that there is no interaction with Thai customers or workers. That's exactly right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tfc Posted August 31, 2009 Author Share Posted August 31, 2009 The definition of Work from the Dept. of Employment website. http://www.doe.go.th/service3_en.aspx 1. Definition "Alien" means a natural person who is not of Thai nationality; " Work " means to engage in work by exerting energy or using knowledge whether or not in consideration of wages or other benefits. I'm figuring that my friend's advertising income isn't work by this definition then as he won't be exerting "energy" or using "knowledge." He's just collecting income - though he does have to pay tax on that in Australia and they definitely consider it a form of "work" in that regard. Thanks all for the information and opinions. I understand that no one is telling me what to do and you're all just putting forward information and I appreciate that. I'm going to keep investigating it so I can make a realistic decision on what to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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