Moving To Thailand And Becoming A Non-resident Of Your Home Country

[kunash]

Hi

one day soon i think i will have to make the decision to move to Thailand on a more permanent basis.  I have made a brief enquiry with the tax people and they inform me that to be a non UK resident and so not liable for Uk income tax, you first have to inform them you will be a non-resident, and you still have to complete a tax return, and you also have to be out of the country for a maximum of about 90 days per tax year.  if i save myself about 10,000 pounds in Uk tax it has to be good.   But if your (un)earned income is sent to thailand, would i have to pay thai tax on it??

also what are the important things to remember to do, if you are moving to thailand??  for example - informing the tax office.  where would you get important letters sent to, if you have no friends you can rely on or family in UK?  could you keep your UK credit cards?  what other things are important to remember to do, before you move.   any tips would be welcome

[sarahsbloke]

Whatever money or income you have ....... lose offshore and keep it there, don't be tempted to bring more than you need into Thailand.

Best to maintain an official address in the UK, a friend or relative should do.

I have some friends that I have all my post sent to, and they scan anythying important and email it to me.

Credit cards and banks accounts are a little problem, but they keep the cards and pay any bills I get for me.

I do have a small UK income just to maintain my 'official existance' as a person living in the UK.

Then you can keep any state pension increase and your access to NHS health care.

Why tell anyone you have gone, they can't force you to, and they don't know where you are.

Edited April 25, 2010 by sarahsbloke

[terrier123]

If you receive any pension that is UK sourced then you will still be liable for tax on that income. I have tried unsuccessfully for 9 years to become tax exempt and they always quote the above law. If any other member knows otherwise I am more than willing to learn.

[BWPattaya]

Then you can keep any state pension increase and your access to NHS health care.

Why tell anyone you have gone, they can't force you to, and they don't know where you are.

Actually they can insist on knowing your whereabouts. If you have a state pension and do not declare that you are in a country where the increases are not paid they will claim it all back when they do find out.

I don't know whether they are liable to prosecute someone for fraud as well.

Biometric passports and computers may mean that "they" can track where you are, when you leave the UK, the flight you are using and the destination. The UK Big Brother mentality gets worse every year.

When I looked at this several years ago, from a tax perspective, I was told that there was nothing I could do to avoid paying tax on my UK private pension.

[happylarry]

I do have a small UK income just to maintain my 'official existance' as a person living in the UK.

What rubbish, but keep believing it mate, if you are collecting as you say then you are commiting fraud and they will come down on you one day.

Why do you think they input your passport info on computers, its only time before the computer program ties two things together and throws your name up.

If you cant relocate to Thailand without commiting fraud then why dont you go to somewhere like the Phillipines where they still give you the pension increases....mind you, you still wont be eligible for NHS treatment if you are out of the country for more that three months.

I use my sons address in the UK and keep my bank account and credit cards there too but when my time comes for an old aged pension I wouldnt dream about lying for the rest of my life.

HL

[kunash]

 My unearned income is from properties i rent out, on which i pay about 10k a year to the tax man.   i am a long way off claiming a pension yet.  my understanding is that i complete my self assessment as usual, but if i register as a non uk resident i am not liable to tax, as long as i stay out of the country for more than 9 months.   this is the way forward for me i think, as 10k can go a long way in thailand, as well as my normal income.   this way i can live very well, and still keep all my properties in uk.  

[bprinceuk]

I have been using the 90 day rule to claim Non-Residency for tax purposes in the UK. However when I received my normal questionnaire form from my accountant for my 2009/2010 April tax return a few weeks ago there was an accompanying letter to advise me of a gentleman who lost his court of appeal case.

The Gaines-Cooper case:

In this case Gaines -Cooper had settled in the Seychelles in 1986, but still retained both personal and financial ties with the UK, owned a house in the UK, his son went to a private school in the UK and his wife frequently visited the UK. The Court of Appeal Judges decided although Gaines-Cooper restricted his visits to the UK to fewer than 90 days in any income tax year, his "place of gravity" was still in the UK.

My accountant has advised all of his clients that after talking to the HM Revenue & Customs it would appear that from 6th April 2009, all claims for Non-Residency will be rejected if the claiment still has financial and personal ties in the UK.

Brian

[sarahsbloke]

If you cant relocate to Thailand without commiting fraud then why dont you go to somewhere like the Phillipines

You are assuming I am not already a criminal in the UK!

[jazzbo]

from The New York Times -- Published: April 25, 2010

More American Expatriates Give Up Citizenship

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/26/us/26expat.html?hp

[alfieconn]

My unearned income is from properties i rent out, on which i pay about 10k a year to the tax man. i am a long way off claiming a pension yet. my understanding is that i complete my self assessment as usual, but if i register as a non uk resident i am not liable to tax, as long as i stay out of the country for more than 9 months. this is the way forward for me i think, as 10k can go a long way in thailand, as well as my normal income. this way i can live very well, and still keep all my properties in uk.

Any income you have in the UK you have to pay tax on.

This link might be of help http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/CNR/nr_landlords.htm.

Edited April 26, 2010 by alfieconn

[Chinavet]

Remember to bring all important original documents, birth certificate, divorce papers etc.

[chantorn]

With all the trouble, Thailand is risking a civil war at the moment.

And you still want to come.

OMG. I just cannot understand Farang.

Hehe, just kidding. Welcome to Thailand. Land of smile.

[longstebe]

I have my birth certificate in Thailand, thats about as important as it gets with me.

I worked for 10 years (paying uk taxes) after leaving school the other 10 years I've been working overseas.

No bank accounts there only a driving licence with my brothers address on (extra i.d).

I may find out one day what sh!t I'm in if I go back to work there.

[Dave the Dude]

I have my birth certificate in Thailand, thats about as important as it gets with me.

I worked for 10 years (paying uk taxes) after leaving school the other 10 years I've been working overseas.

No bank accounts there only a driving licence with my brothers address on (extra i.d).

I may find out one day what sh!t I'm in if I go back to work there.

or you want a state pension(assuming they still exist!)

Edited April 26, 2010 by Dave the Dude

[Penkoprod]

There was a case in the UK where someone to whom the UK is "the centre of gravity of his life and interests" is still liable to tax, even though they abided by the "less than 90 day" ruling

It wasnt too long ago that it was reported, either, so i wouldnt take this non residency rule as the gospel some people think it is

Penkoprod

*Edited to include links:

Here

Here

And Here

Edited April 26, 2010 by Penkoprod

[torrenova]

...........

Biometric passports and computers may mean that "they" can track where you are, when you leave the UK, the flight you are using and the destination. The UK Big Brother mentality gets worse every year.

When I looked at this several years ago, from a tax perspective, I was told that there was nothing I could do to avoid paying tax on my UK private pension.

I stand to be corrected but I think that is utter tosh. Your biometric passport does not send out homing signals to the UK tax office ! and they have always been able to see whether you have flown out because they always had your passport number in the system at check in. So nothing has changed there.

However, they do not know where you are. If you fly to somewhere and then continue onwards, do you honestly think the UK government is privy, for normal travellers and not prison escapees, to information as to where and when you traversed the Thai / Cambodia border ? I am not even sure they track you within the EU but I do not see any arrangement which means that the UK tax office knows where you are after you leave the UK and they have no idea that you are in the country you left the UK for or not.

If they did, why would all the embassies in Bangkok and around the world ask you to voluntarily register with them if they already knew where you were ?

It is the same scare mongering techniques that the UK establishment uses when it sends quasi ice cream vans around as TV licensing detectors and pretends it can tell what you are watching on your TV. Not one shred of evidence to prove that has ever been used in court yet they insist it exists. It does not.