Wire + Taxes

[lazerguy]

Hi,

I hope somebody can help me with this.

I work for a Thai company, which is based in Thailand without any foreign office. I am not in Thailand...I work in Canada as a brand representative and every month I receive a wire to my bank account to pay my salary. No problems at all!

Now the company has to pay 15% taxes for me for every wire. My question: Is this normal? I am already paying income taxes here in Canada, so why would I pay in Thailand? If I were in Thailand, then yes I can understand that I would have to pay over there.

Any insight would be appreciated.

[KamnanT]

Clearly something to clarify with your employer in Thailand: on what basis is tax being withheld from your salary? I'm assuming you are not a tax resident of Thailand (not physically present in Thailand for 180 days or more during the calendar year)? As a non-resident, you would normally only be liable for Thai tax on "Thailand source" income, which includes salary or compensation for employment services provided in Thailand, but not in Canada.

In any case, if your employer is withholding Thai tax from your salary payments, they should provide you with a withholding tax certificate at the end of the year and you can claim the amount of Thai tax paid as a foreign tax credit against your Canadian income tax liability.

[lazerguy]

Clearly something to clarify with your employer in Thailand: on what basis is tax being withheld from your salary? I'm assuming you are not a tax resident of Thailand (not physically present in Thailand for 180 days or more during the calendar year)? As a non-resident, you would normally only be liable for Thai tax on "Thailand source" income, which includes salary or compensation for employment services provided in Thailand, but not in Canada.

In any case, if your employer is withholding Thai tax from your salary payments, they should provide you with a withholding tax certificate at the end of the year and you can claim the amount of Thai tax paid as a foreign tax credit against your Canadian income tax liability.

Thanks for the help. I am not present in Thailand for 180 or more during a calendar year. I greatly appreciate the last tip. I should be able to do that.

However, I'm gonna call the international tax office first and see what they say: http://www.fin.gc.ca/treaties-conventions/Thailand_-eng.asp