100,000 Baht Tax Exemptions For Life Insurance

[0zz1]

I found this following text:

Allowances (Exemptions) allowed for the calculation of PIT

Life insurance premium paid by taxpayer or spouse: Amount actually paid but not exceeding 100,000 baht each

in here: http://www.rd.go.th/publish/6045.0.html

So where is a good deal for life insurance that can be tax exempted?

[canopus1969]

There is no 'good' life insurance in Thailand as it's all rediculously expensive so this allowance is a red herring - unless you are a Thai then you are stuck with the local offerings . Buy Life insuance (but make sure you really need it) from overseas.

[tonydabbs]

Keep in mind that you are stranger in strange land here. Thais don't buy life insurance in order to provide financial security for their loved ones in the event of the death a "breadwinner". Thais buy life insurance to provide a savings program for themselves and/or for their close loved ones. These are actually Savings Endowments. Traditionally, Thais aren't concerned about providing financial security in the event of their death. They know that their relatives will take care of their family.

The Thai government encourages people to save money through life insurance savings indowments by offering a tax incentive for doing so. Offering kind of a win-win situation.

Prior to WW 2, life insurance companies came into Thailand trying to sell "death benefit" life insurance, but Thais weren't interested.

Meanwhile, the Communists took over China and tossed AIA out. So, AIA ended up here. AIA had been very successful convincing the Chinese to purchase "savings programs," not death benefits. So they brought the savings program concept to Thailand and have become very successful with it here also. Now there are more than 26 life insurance companies here using the savings program approach and seem to be quite sucessful with it.

Savings Endowments offering self-completion death benefits are much more costly than pure death benefit life insurance, but they provide incentive for people to build up savings. It's called "forced savings."

Edited July 22, 2012 by tonydabbs