Working 3-4 Weeks In Thailand, From Australia

[pemberley]

Hi all i am a current resident of Australia and i know little about working in thailand

i apologise if there has been a previous thread about this but i am running short in time and would like more specific answers to suit me.

I will be heading off to thailand soon..

And there are a few questions i would like to know.

i would greatly appreciate if you can help me out with any sort of true and honest advice, providing sources on how you know would be helpful.

In Thailand i am considering of starting a company where i will be the Head coach of sport and have a couple of coaches who will work for me.

I will be working at schools and the schools will pay me direct.

here are my questions

1. Do i need a working visa and what type? working permit? ect.

2. what is the best bank and type of bank account to start in bangkok?

3. how much tax do i have to pay considering the school is paying me direct ?

4. what is the best way to transfer money from Thailand BACK to Australia ? preferably keeping most money i can

- avoiding tax in Australia ? , what are the few safe and secure methods ?

giving me basics and an outline is also appreciated.

feel free to mail/message me answers.

Thanks in advance.

Edited November 10, 2009 by pemberley

[Mario2008]

You want a lot and would need a Non-immigrant visa and a work permit if you want to work in Thailand.

Have a look here for some more information about setting up company in Thailand: http://www.boi.go.th/english/how/legal_iss...n_investors.asp

[monty]

First and foremost you'll have to start a company. Meaning 2 million Baht capital (not sure how much actually has to be in a Thai bank but it's a fair chunk), you'll need apart from yourself two other Thai shareholders and they together need to have at least 51% of the shares, with you having the remaining 49%.

Then you'll need 4 Thai employees, with social security payment made. You need them to get your work permit.

1. Do i need a working visa and what type? working permit? ect. You need to apply for a non immigrant type B in Australia, make sure you'll get a multiple entry. When in Thailand you'll need to apply for a work permit. See the above mentioned 4 employees!

2. what is the best bank and type of bank account to start in bangkok? Pretty much any bank is good. Kasikorn, Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial have rather good online banking systems.

3. how much tax do i have to pay considering the school is paying me direct ? The schools cannot pay you directly as you are not employed by them. You are employed by your own company. They have to pay your company, which in turn will pay you.

4. what is the best way to transfer money from Thailand BACK to Australia ? preferably keeping most money i can

- avoiding tax in Australia ? , what are the few safe and secure methods ? I assume Thailand and Australia have a double tax agreement, so normally if all your Thai taxes have been paid, you should be able to repatriate said money without paying additional taxes. You'll have to talk with a local Australian accountant to confirm this. Do realize that personally you might not be able to transfer more money out then what you made according to your personal tax declarations.

Remember, you are not allowed to do any work at all until you have your work permit.

This includes signing on behalf of your own company. Which means that until you have your work permit (which will have to state that you are a director in your own company) you will have to appoint a Thai director who will sign everything on behalf of your company, including your work permit application.

I would venture a guess that the whole thing, from entering Thailand, up to having your company and your work permit, will take between 1 and 2 months...

This website explains how to calculate your personal income tax: http://www.rd.go.th/publish/6000.0.html

This website explains how corporate taxes are calculated: http://www.rd.go.th/publish/6044.0.html

Additionally you will not qualify for a 1 year extension based on employment, as the employing company would need to have 2 years worth of audited book keeping. Hence me mentioning you to get a multiple entry visa, where you will have to do a border run every 90 days (1 day trip, out and back in with a new 90 day stamp).

Your last border run has to be done 1 year from issue of the visa, giving you a total stay of a tad under 15 months.

[thaiphoon]

To establish your own business in Thailand you would need to set up Thai company which needs to be capitalised at minimum of THB 2million (THB 1million if married to Thai). 25% of that amount needs to be paid up, ie, paid into company's bank account to run the business. The balance can show in company accounts as money due from the shareholders. As said, farangs can only own a maximum of 49% of the shares in the company so you need Thai shareholder(s) for the remaining 51%. There are restrictions as to what businesses farangs can operate as detailed in the Foreign Business Act ... have a look at the link in Mario 2008 posting. You need to employ 4 Thais (2 if married to Thai) to obtain a work permit sponsored by your company. Be aware that working in Thailand without a work permit is illegal and the penalties if caught can be severe.

[pemberley]

Thanks monty,

if i don't have a company.. and i am employed by the schools will this mean the school can pay me directly

Leaving out the company?

[Mario2008]

The schools can pay you directly, but if you work at several schools, you would need a work permit for every school!

[monty]

Thanks monty,

if i don't have a company.. and i am employed by the schools will this mean the school can pay me directly

Leaving out the company?

Yes, possible. They will need to provide the paperwork for you to get your work permit.

For each and every school you would need to lodge a work permit application with all supporting paperwork, which when approved will be noted down in your existing work permit.

The first employer (school) will have to agree for you to take on a second job (second school) and put this in writing, otherwise the labor department will deny accepting your second job.

I'm not sure on subsequent schools (never met anybody with more then two jobs at a time) so not sure how labor department would handle this.

Also not sure on the tax part when going this way, as normally withholding tax is calculated on a steady income (fixed salary), and like you say it'll be more like loose contracts/jobs!

In my opinion, this would work if just working for one or two schools, if planning to contract several schools simultaneously I can see this scenario all go wrong.

Add to that you are not allowed to employ additional coaches, they would have to be hired directly by the schools, just like you, potentially taking revenue away from you!

[pemberley]

thank you very much for your info and time

i appreciate it

[Sunbelt Asia]

Dear Pemberly,

If you intend to work in Thailand you must have a work permit. This will enable you to actively work in your business. The types of that visa that support a work permit are Non-Immigrant B (business) and Non-Immigrant O based on marriage. A work permit can be obtained through your own company or alternatively through employment in a Thai limited company, providing that the requirements are met. The company must have four Thai employees and 2,000,000 Baht of registered capital to qualify for one work permit. Once your company has been set up you will be able to open a company bank account. In order to do this you will need to bring certain company documents to the bank, such as shareholder list etc, as well as your work permit.

The minimum salary requirement for an Australian national working in Thailand is 50,000 Baht per month. Therefore you will be required to pay personal income tax on a salary of at least 50,000 Baht. This will equate to approximately 3,750 Baht in taxes per month, including social fund contributions. In Thailand, the first 150,000 Baht of earnings is tax free and earnings in excess of this amount will be taxed on a rate dependant upon your total annual earnings.

For a free consultation on the company set up process, please contact Sunbelt Asia at your convenience on 02-642-0213.

Best regards,

Legal Advisor

Sunbelt Asia Co. Ltd

www.sunbeltasia.com

[email protected]

[thaiphoon]

The types of that visa that support a work permit are Non-Immigrant B (business) and Non-Immigrant O based on marriage.

Actually, a Non-O visa can be issued by consulate abroad for many reasons, one of which is based on marriage. A Non-O visa, issued for whatever reason, can be used to support work permit application.