Hi guys, I am currently on an ed visa living in Phuket but am thinking about moving to BKK to open an office to assist with business I do in the UK.

My company is incorporated in the UK and is based around internet business. There are a number of avenues I could be pursuing if I had the right infrastructure and it would make sense to take advantage of the lower costs associated with running an office in Thailand.

My questions:

1. Is bangkok a suitable place to open such an office? I am guessing there are enough people there that speak a good level of English.

2. Legally, is there anything else I should consider other than applying for a business Visa and getting a work permit?

3. Do you know how much say, a 35-50sqm office would cost to rent?

If you could answer my questions and provide any other feedback you think would be helpful, it would be much appreciated.

Are you sure the costs of running an office in Thailand will be lower ?

You are aware you will have to set up a THB 2.0 mil Thai limited company and employ 4 Thai nationals to get a work permit, if married to a Thai national these requirements are halved.

As regards a good level of English, define a good level of English, if you intend dealing with customers in the UK then would say you may not find the level of English required in Bangkok among Thai nationals, if you do, they will want quite high money

Interesting. So the 2 million baht incorporation - does that mean I have to pay 2m to form the company?! Employing 4 thai's isn't a problem. I will probably looking to hire 5-10.

From what I have seen, office space in Bangkok is pretty cheap and I was thinking 10k would cover a monthly wage. Am I off?

Are you sure the costs of running an office in Thailand will be lower ?

You are aware you will have to set up a THB 2.0 mil Thai limited company and employ 4 Thai nationals to get a work permit, if married to a Thai national these requirements are halved.

As regards a good level of English, define a good level of English, if you intend dealing with customers in the UK then would say you may not find the level of English required in Bangkok among Thai nationals, if you do, they will want quite high money

Edited August 30, 201213 yr by Marcoose

I will probably looking to hire 5-10.

I was thinking 10k would cover a monthly wage. Am I off?

10-11k salary (for "office workers"[?]) might be OK, but that's probably more at the lower end and you might not get the most qualified people. To get a better estimate, you need to be more specific with the job descriptions/ person specification. You also need to look into the overhead figures for your staff: i.e.salary, social security contribution, and other possible benefits. Low pay and merely paying legally required contributions might result in a high turnover rate, obviously.

Edited August 30, 201213 yr by Morakot

Interesting. So the 2 million baht incorporation - does that mean I have to pay 2m to form the company?! Employing 4 thai's isn't a problem. I will probably looking to hire 5-10.

From what I have seen, office space in Bangkok is pretty cheap and I was thinking 10k would cover a monthly wage. Am I off?

Are you sure the costs of running an office in Thailand will be lower ?

You are aware you will have to set up a THB 2.0 mil Thai limited company and employ 4 Thai nationals to get a work permit, if married to a Thai national these requirements are halved.

As regards a good level of English, define a good level of English, if you intend dealing with customers in the UK then would say you may not find the level of English required in Bangkok among Thai nationals, if you do, they will want quite high money

You will have to capitalise the company to the tune of THB 2.0m for each WP you require, it doesnt all have to be in cash

Edited August 30, 201213 yr by Soutpeel