Tax

[chrisoary]

Hello,

I am hoping someone may be able to give me some advice. I am currently employed by a UK company and pay UK tax I am able to claim this back at the end of the year under the seafarers tax rules. I work 6 months of the year and live the other 6 months here in Thailand with a non imm 'o' visa.

I have an opportunity to leave my current employment and work for a Singapore based company in a freelance capacity again working 180 days per year and living in thailand tfor the other 6 months. My question is who, if anyone will i have to pay tax to?

I currently only have a UK bank account but am considering getting a Thai account to be paid into, will this have any bearing on my situation?

any advice would be appreciated

cheers

[Xircal]

Here's the Thai position: http://www.rd.go.th/...ish/6045.0.html Do note that 6 months is more than 180 days.

[chiang mai]

The test for Uk residency for tax purposes used to be based solely on days spent in the UK, if you were resident in the UK for more than 91 days per year you were considered resident and had to pay UK tax. Over time that rule has changed to where it is now based on an average over four years where if the result is less than 183 days, you might be able to avoid UK tax. But in the past twelve months HMRC has taken a more radical line and they've decided that days spent in the UK is not the only factor to be considered and that lifestyle factors also come into play. The bottom line here is that if you own a UK home, have family there that you spend time with each year, have UK credit cards and bank accounts etc, you are probably going to be considered as resident, regardless of the number of days you spend outside the UK each year.

But there are a number of alternatives and these include special tax rules for seamen which you should look into since I understand that they cover the situation you are in. Now, having said all of that there is nothing to stop you from opening a Thai bank account and having your salary paid into it directly, the issue of whether your employer would report such payments to HMRC and/or how you would handle the tax side of such payments is something I can't answer. It's worth pointing out however that HMRC has struck a number of deals globally whereby data on UK resident bank account held in various countries can be reported back to HMRC and Singapore is one such country, Thailand however is not.

Finally, in the absolutely best scenario: if you spend less than 183 days each year in Singapore and have no tax relationship with HMRC, there's a very strong likelihood that you may not have to pay tax anywhere as long as the Singaporean rules don't lay claim to your contract being based there.

Good luck

[chrisoary]

Cheers chaps, obviously i am hoping that i wont have to pay any tax. I wont only be working in Singapore it will be throughout SE Asia. i'll let you know how i get on!

[astral]

As you will be working for a Singapore company my guess is that they will take

local tax from you but it may only be a 10% witholding tax. You will need to check on this.

You will be able to claim this back against UK tax, as there is a dual tax agreement,

that is if they ask you to pay any UK tax.

IME the UK is only interested in money earned in the UK, but as one poster mentions

there have been moves to tighten up there.

You are liable for Thai tax if you are resident for more than 180 days, but only on

earnings remitted to Thailand. tax already paid in the UK can also her offset here,

another dual tax agreement.

I suggest you establish an offshore bank account for all your earnings and would recommend

the Channel Islands or Isle of Man.

You should also look at private medical insurance, if you do not already have it.

[tombkk]

I don't know about UK taxes. But I would recommend not to use a bank account in Thailand. Here we go:

Any income you have from work outside of Thailand is tax-free over here (Thailand), unless you bring the funds into Thailand within one year. Therefore, my recommendation is to receive funds from overseas (UK, Singapore) work in a bank account outside of Thailand. Bring it into Thailand only after it has been seasoned for a year.

Of course, if you work while in Thailand, you need a work permit and are liable to income tax. I understand that is not your situation.

[PattayaParent]

If you're working out of UK for more than 1 full tax year you will be 'not ordinarily resident' and not liable for UK tax.

Get an offshore account to pay the moeny into as someone suggested, or even better open a Singapore account.