Thai gov. to tax (remitted) income from abroad for tax residents starting 2024 - Part II

[muratremix]

I am moving to Thailand this summer and I am married to Thai citizen. I will use 400k baht for marriage extension in a thai bank and / or I will setup a company for work permit. I will pay income tax as I have to show 35.000 baht salary for myself. My question is:

I have other income sources and I'm planning to open a personal bank account in Singapore or HK. I will receive & send money from this account and keep my cash in there. However many banks in Singapore has an office in Thailand which scares me. I really don't want to pay income tax for the money I didn't earn while being in Thailand. So for example, if I choose UOB, which has an office in Thailand, am I in danger?

Any ideas? Thank you

[Naam]

Does income tax apply for money / income in Singapore?

no!

[Soutpeel]

You know you cant open offshore accounts with ALL banks in Singapore, the "local" Singapore banks usually require Singapore residency before they will deal with you.

You need to stick with the bigger international banks, but as Naam has said above no tax applicable...BTW what nationality are you ?....as if US citizen highly unlikely any bank will open an offshore account for you, certainly the international ones.

If going the route you have suggested, the money has never come into Thailand, so f*kc all to do with Thai tax department, so nothing to worriy about

[trd]

Open an account with CitiBank offshore in Singapore. You can apply online. Very straightforward. You get online banking and an ATM card you can use anywhere.

http://www.ipb.citibank.com.sg/

[Soutpeel]

Open an account with CitiBank offshore in Singapore. You can apply online. Very straightforward. You get online banking and an ATM card you can use anywhere.

http://www.ipb.citibank.com.sg/

Provided you are not a US citizen...

[muratremix]

First of all, thank you for all answers. I am not US citizen. I have Turkish nationality. However, my friend working in a bank told me that banks who have local offices in Your country like HSBC can't provide you more secrecy / privacy than banks in your country. We have citibank in Turkey and last thing I want is that my account statement is shared with local government. We don't have a tax evasion crime or something in Turkey but I don't want to have problem.

Any other non-local banks in singapore, other than citibank and hsbc? It would be a shame if I can't use citi because I read great positive comments on Citi.

Maybe standard chartered?

[PoorSucker]

Tried to open a account in Singapore.

As not Singaporean citizen they wanted me to put at least 20 million baht into the account.

I opened a similar account in Luxenbourg instead.

[muratremix]

Tried to open a account in Singapore.

As not Singaporean citizen they wanted me to put at least 20 million baht into the account.

I opened a similar account in Luxenbourg instead.

20 million baht is insane. I hear swiss banks want as much that money (1 million usd) for private banking.

All I need to do with my account is, receive wire from USA and make personal spenditure by wire / ATM / maybe credit card. I read minimum is like S$1000 to S$3000 in Singapore for current accounts, which I am interested in (I don't need interest rate or whatsoever, just plain account to deposit & withdrawal money and Online banking to use it)

[Soutpeel]

Tried to open a account in Singapore.

As not Singaporean citizen they wanted me to put at least 20 million baht into the account.

I opened a similar account in Luxenbourg instead.

Which I bank ?...I have had an offshore account in Singapore for years and not a Singapore citizen or resident...the account was opened literally within 2 hours

[Soutpeel]

Tried to open a account in Singapore.

As not Singaporean citizen they wanted me to put at least 20 million baht into the account.

I opened a similar account in Luxenbourg instead.

20 million baht is insane. I hear swiss banks want as much that money (1 million usd) for private banking.

All I need to do with my account is, receive wire from USA and make personal spenditure by wire / ATM / maybe credit card. I read minimum is like S$1000 to S$3000 in Singapore for current accounts, which I am interested in (I don't need interest rate or whatsoever, just plain account to deposit & withdrawal money and Online banking to use it)

You can open an offshore accounts with any of the international banks in Singapore ie Citi/HSBC, Standard Chartered....THB 20 mill is not required

If for example with Citi bank and your minimum balance is below US$ 25k, you will not get free banking, there will be a monthly fee, which I believe is S$ 25/month

[Soutpeel]

First of all, thank you for all answers. I am not US citizen. I have Turkish nationality. However, my friend working in a bank told me that banks who have local offices in Your country like HSBC can't provide you more secrecy / privacy than banks in your country. We have citibank in Turkey and last thing I want is that my account statement is shared with local government. We don't have a tax evasion crime or something in Turkey but I don't want to have problem.

Any other non-local banks in singapore, other than citibank and hsbc? It would be a shame if I can't use citi because I read great positive comments on Citi.

Maybe standard chartered?

No reputable bank is going to give you more secrecy/privacy over other banks these days, if your country want to get information about an account holder, all they need to do these days is ask, but information is not "shared"...ie because you are Turkish all your account details are automatically forwarded to Turkey...this is not the case, you would need to be under investigation for "something"

Your original question was regards opening an offshore account outside of Thailand and any tax implications in Thailand, which there are none, now your talking about not having "problems" with your own country as regards tax evasion, this is a separate issue

[PoorSucker]

Which I bank ?...I have had an offshore account in Singapore for years and not a Singapore citizen or resident...the account was opened literally within 2 hours

SEB private bank.

[Naam]

Which I bank ?...I have had an offshore account in Singapore for years and not a Singapore citizen or resident... the account was opened literally within 2 hours

Soutpeel,

you have been and are still contributing valuable information. but let's drop the expression "offshore account" (which some banks use and i also used quite often) because it might confuse those who seek advice. moreover, the word generated the fairy tale with the negative attribute that "offshore" means "clandestine, tax evasion, criminal activity, etc.) which of course is rubbish.

reason: "offshore accounts" do not exist per se. any person which banks in a different country than his residence country banks de jure and de facto "offshore". a number of Singapore 'run of the mill' banks nowadays try to discourage non-residents from opening accounts because the fees they can charge (fee brackets set by the MAS - Monetary Authority of Singapore) do not cover the service they are opposed to render to "offshore" clients.

there is no legal basis that the holder of any bank account in Singapore has to be a resident. period! in this respect the banks are free to accept or reject clients for reasons of their own. the multinational "biguns" are completely free to charge whatever they want and they are only interested in clients with deep pockets who generate revenue by churning their holdings.

info for our turkish friend: you banker friend told you bullshit² when claiming "that banks who have local offices in Your country like HSBC can't provide you more secrecy / privacy than banks in your country". if the turkish taxman wants information about your finances in Singapore he has to go the OECD way (Turkish Government > Singapore Government >Monetary Authority of Singapore > your bank in Singapore) AND the taxman has to submit evidence in which Singaporean bank you have an account. don't worry, be happy!

[ExpatJ]

I opened an offsure account in singapore with HSBC this morning from Bangkok. Im resident in thailand with no ties to singapore, but if you are HSBC premier they will open an offshore account in sing easily at no cost. I opened it inorder to buy bonds.

[Naam]

I opened it inorder to buy bonds.

good boy!

Edited April 12, 2011 by Naam

[ExpatJ]

I opened it inorder to buy bonds.

good boy!

Yes, i think so:) i was going to put another chunk of cash into thai equties but too much of my portfolio already invested there. The only catch with the singapore offshore is- yes u can invest pretty much any amount in various bond mutual fund/packages but to buy your own bonds you need 150,000 USD minimum.

[Naam]

u can invest pretty much any amount in various bond mutual fund/packages

= but perhaps advisable for a "bond beginner".