Please Me With This...

[chrisk108]

Forgot the word HELP int the post title.. lol...here it is again

Please help me with this

1. I have a non 'B' with a work permit now (going to quit my job so will expire soon) & i just got married to a thai national.. Im thinking of startin my own business but if i register a company on my wife's name & try to get a work permit from it.. my agent says i will have to register VAT (which i dont want to) or i cannot ask for a work permit.. i do not want to register VAT as its a small company & dont want to deal with the VAT issues.

My agent also says that ill have to hire 2 thai nationals as employees & pay their & mine social security every month which i dont mind doing.

So will have to pay social security for 2 thais, myself, VAT & other taxes for the company. Is there a way to register a small pawn shop type company showing 1 million baht investment without the VAT registration & get a work permit??

2. My work actually doesnt need any office or shop where I sit the whole day.. i mostly visit my clients & work outside so i dont really need an office or a company & all that.. I was thinking as I dont need an office or a shop, is there a way to get a thai wife visa on which I can just stay in Thailand without a work permit? I've heard that there is such type of visa which gives me one year (renewable every year) visa to just stay but not work... my work doesnt need any kind of staff or office so i can just visit my clients & work.. cant i?

Would be really helpful if one knows how much I should pay the agent for the thai wife visa.

I would really like to find a way out & get a registered company with a work permit so that I can buy a house & get a loan from the bank. The thai wife visa will not get me the loan from the bank to buy a house.

Thanx for reading & hope some1 can help..

Cheers

P.S. Not sure if the thai wife visa & retirement visa is the same.. but im young in my 20's & dont think can get the retirement visa yet..

[Mario2008]

When you're permission to stay ends because your job ends, you can get an extension of stay based on your marriage. For this you will need to show either an income of 40,000 baht a month or 400,000 baht in a bank account in Thailand in your name. (Money must be there for at least 2 moths).

No visa allows you to work, only a work permit does. Working without a work permit is illegal and could result in arrest and deportation when caught. If you want to live in Thailand with your wife I would strongly advice you to consider this very carefully.

[opalhort]

If you want to live in Thailand with your wife I would strongly advice you to consider this very carefully.

Very good advice!

The OP stated:

...Is there a way to register a small pawn shop type company..

As I understand it this type of activity is not open to foreigners.

opalhort

[nakachalet]

i wonder, can your pawn shop compete successfully with government's own pawnshops across the country....

govt pawnshop charges a fraction of a percent....

can you truly become competitive with such enterprise....?

[chrisk108]

well its not that i wanna open a pawn shop.. in my post i meant.. a pawn shop type company.. its a company thai ppl open where there is not much profit or loss.. with very little tax every month..

[chrisk108]

i understand also that the pawn shop type company is not for foreigners.. but can it be on my thai wife's name & i get a work permit from it???

[nakachalet]

ah.... then that is a dif story

if your wife's co meets the financial obligation guidelines, then she can hire you.

but as far as i can recall.... the investment out front is substantial and the bookkeeping chore is horendous as well....

any rate, wish you best of luck and success....

[bellste]

i understand also that the pawn shop type company is not for foreigners.. but can it be on my thai wife's name & i get a work permit from it???

You need a lot of money, to start that sort of business. A gold shop also. They ask for millions. 

[thaiphoon]

Your options are:

1) Obtain a multiple entry Non-Immigrant O visa on the basis of Thai wife from a consulate abroad. KL will issue with bank book showing 100k+, marriage certificate, wife's ID card and tabbien bahn, plus short note from wife to issue. Will require border runs every 90 days, or

2) As Mario2008 has already said, you can apply for extension of stay based on marriage at Thai immigration if you meet the requirements, financial requirements being 400k in Thai bank account in your name for two months prior to application (3 months for renewals) OR 40k/month income (your income). In the case of income from abroad you will need to obtain an income letter from your embassy. In the case of income within Thailand, you will need to show tax receipts. If using the bank balance option you will need a letter from bank confirming the account balance and copies of bank book.

You should apply at your local immigration office during the last 30 days of your permission to stay (assuming your current permission to stay is based on visa entry), bringing with you the wife (for interview), her ID card, tabbien bahn (house book), marriage certificate, photos together around the home, map to home, completed application form TM7, copies of passport/TM6 departure card and current passport sized photos. Cost 1,900 baht. Most offices are now asking also for Kor Sor 2 (copy of marriage register) and you may have to provide two witness to your living together (this is a new thing at some offices) so best to check before you go.

You will get a 30 day under consideration stamp. Immigration will give you a date to go back and get the remainder of your extension. You will have to report your address to immigration every 90 days, but for most offices that can be done by post.

For setting up a business I strongly suggest you read THIS and the restrictions on what types of businesses foreigners can operate HERE.. You can apply for a work permit using extension of stay based on marriage or Non-O visa.

http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/download/tm7.doc (print the two-sided form on a single sheet of paper)

[moe666]

As stated earlier you need 400,000baht in bank or 40,000baht a month income to get a extension of stay married to a Thai.

[thaiphoon]

.. as i need a bank loan to buy a house..

You do know that under Thai law foreigners cannot own land/house in their own name?

[chrisk108]

i know i cannot buy land.. but if i buy the house on my wife's name.. we both can together ask for a loan from the bank.. for it i need a Work Permit..

[Ijustwannateach]

That was a most useful link, Thaiphoon, and I especially appreciated reading this part:

Non-Immigrant visas provide the holder with eligibility to apply for a work permit, and allow the holder to work while the work permit application is being considered

For years I had wondered about the (sometimes very lengthy) work permit application periods that usually start only when someone has already been hired- of course, the whole time that person continues to work. This provides the first government source I have seen which confirms that this application-period-work is actually and truly legal.

Now I'm off to start a thread in the teacher's forum....

[monty]

And there is no way to apply for a work permit on a company not VAT registered!

[opalhort]

To OP:

There is not much chance for a foreigner obtaining a loan in Thailand unless you have a very substantial salary from a big company.

The best chance is to let your wife handle the loan matter on her own in her name only. You may then only have to sign that you as husband approves of your wife's loan application.

Every bank has different loan policies so ask around first.

To Mods:

Isn't it possible for you to place a big red notice into posts which provide incorrect information?

Many people may only read a few posts of a thread and take it for granted as being correct info.

opalhort

[Time Traveller]

i know i cannot buy land.. but if i buy the house on my wife's name.. we both can together ask for a loan from the bank.. for it i need a Work Permit..

If the main reason for getting a work permit is to buy a house/get a loan, then it might not be worth your effort (not to mention cost) to start a business. Every bank (perhaps GHB is the exception but only for low income Thais) will need a minimum of 30% deposit based on the banks valuation. Plus you will generally need to have been employed for at 3 years in the same company. For non Thai's there's also minimum and maximum amounts for the housing loan.

Also housing loans for foreigners are a little more difficult than car loan / credit card applications. I believe the housing loans need to be issued by a Thai bank outside of Thailand e.g. Bangkok bank in Singapore have people that can handle that. (Note: This rule may have recently changed)

So it's much simpler to just buy a house is with cash if you can or with a Thai partner taking out the loan. Finally, as you're already aware of land ownership laws, it might be a lot easier and cheaper just to take out a long term lease.

Good luck!

[nakachalet]

a friendly warning:

don't come back a few years from now and tell us that the good thai lady cheats you when things do not seem to be of your liking which i certainly hope that it is not going to be so in your case....

we'll remember that at this point in time that you are a willing, ready and able, and besides, a happy partner....

things do fall apart, at times, which might not be of your own doing.... and

it is alway wise to plan ahead.... like--if things fall apart, what are you willing to give up.... and how much are you willing to give in.... and

we are certain that you already know that the house will be in your lady's name.... so when things do not go well, pls do not tell us that your lady and her family and her clans deceive you from day one.... alright?

wishing you success and happiness.

[chrisk108]

@ time traveller.. i've spoken to the bank & they only need 4 months salary slips which i can get if i start a businesss on my wife's name or her family member's name & be the employee of the company... ill be buyin a new project townhouse so the bank gives out 100% finance for such projects..

@ nakachalet.. thanx for the advice bro but im not worried about it.. iv been datin this girl for 5 years now & shes not thai.. shes from the country i come from but born here so that makes her thai..

[lopburi3]

Being born in Thailand had not made a person Thai for many decades.

[nakachalet]

now i'll have even more reasons

to wish BOTH OF YOU

even greater success in thailand....

but pls do stay away from anything that is remotely questionable or illegal....

it is just not worth it in the long run.... it is much better to have the peace of mind and sleep well at night than having to look over your shoulders wondering when you are going to be exposed.... speaking from experience, of course.

good luck and good fortune.