Taxes

[cooked]

I will soon have my visa extension due to marriage. My sole income is my retirement pension with a country that has a double tax treaty with Thailand. I believe that as a consequence that I will in this case not be liable to taxes. Correct?

Do I, all the same, have to get a tax identity number and fill out tax formulas? Will they automatically get to me or should I announce my presence?

Thanks

[Naam]

don't worry, no taxes, no tax ID, no forms to fill. that applies to all retirees whether a double tax agreement exists or not.

[meatboy]

don't worry, no taxes, no tax ID, no forms to fill. that applies to all retirees whether a double tax agreement exists or not.

unless you open a fixed term savings acc.interest will be taxed @ 15% then you will need to fill in the forms to register to claim the tax back.enjoy your retirement.

[David48]

Speaking of Tax, one question for the experts.

I have some dividend paying shares in the SET.

The total amount varies between 10,000 Baht and say 50,000 Baht per annum, depending on what I hold.

There is the 10% automatically deducted.

Are there any ways to legally negate this tax?

I'm not a resident, but spend extensive time in Thailand.

Thanks in advance.

.

Edited October 15, 2012 by David48

[meatboy]

Speaking of Tax, one question for the experts.

I have some dividend paying shares in the SET.

The total amount varies between 10,000 Baht and say 50,000 Baht per annum, depending on what I hold.

There is the 10% automatically deducted.

Are there any ways to legally negate this tax?

I'm not a resident, but spend extensive time in Thailand.

Thanks in advance.

.

if you go to the revenue web site.www.rd.go.th/ there is an abundance of info,what i read that 10%tax is deducted and is not refundable.look at tax structures.

[Naam]

no diversion please. the OP stated clearly "sole income is my retirement pension".

[puck2]

don't worry, no taxes, no tax ID, no forms to fill. that applies to all retirees whether a double tax agreement exists or not.

You refer to the reality. But it's not so simple.

1. It depends only on the terms of the double tax agreement. In such a treaty you can find the solution to OP's problem. The treaty clears which taxes belong to which country. This concerns the tax on rents, too.

2. I don't know anything about the UK or US double tax agreement with Thailand.

The Thai / German double tax treaty says, the taxes on rents belong to Thailand but only if you stay more than 180 days out of Germany - de facto.

And now to the reality, Thailand doesn't use (or demand for) any German government information. That means, if you don't declare your rent income, the Thai department will not bother you.

BTW, tax on German (government) pension belongs to Germany.

OP, you should ask/google for a double tax treaty between your home country and Thailand.

Edited October 16, 2012 by puck2

[cooked]

What? Maybe you would like to read my post again. I was asking if I need to register with the tax office even if I wasn't going to pay any tax. Naam answered my question 5 posts ago.

[ericg1953]

I was at the bank today with 500k to deposit and they told me they had a fixed 3.15 6 month cd that was taxable and the net after taxes was 2.6....also offered a 3% non taxable account that did not have an expiration date. Can someone please how the taxes are handled here and what is most desirable to expats living here

[Naam]

I was at the bank today with 500k to deposit and they told me they had a fixed 3.15 6 month cd that was taxable and the net after taxes was 2.6....also offered a 3% non taxable account that did not have an expiration date. Can someone please how the taxes are handled here and what is most desirable to expats living here

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

the offered 3% tax free is paid on money market funds for which Thai banks issue a separate passbook after going through a dozen nonsensical steps of paperwork

[Naam]

don't worry, no taxes, no tax ID, no forms to fill. that applies to all retirees whether a double tax agreement exists or not.

You refer to the reality. But it's not so simple.

1. It depends only on the terms of the double tax agreement. In such a treaty you can find the solution to OP's problem. The treaty clears which taxes belong to which country. This concerns the tax on rents, too.

2. I don't know anything about the UK or US double tax agreement with Thailand.

The Thai / German double tax treaty says, the taxes on rents belong to Thailand but only if you stay more than 180 days out of Germany - de facto.

And now to the reality, Thailand doesn't use (or demand for) any German government information. That means, if you don't declare your rent income, the Thai department will not bother you.

BTW, tax on German (government) pension belongs to Germany.

OP, you should ask/google for a double tax treaty between your home country and Thailand.

it is simple Puck and any double tax agreement between Thailand and UK or the US (or any other country) does not apply because the OP is talking about a tax liability on capital gains in France

[ericg1953]

I was at the bank today with 500k to deposit and they told me they had a fixed 3.15 6 month cd that was taxable and the net after taxes was 2.6....also offered a 3% non taxable account that did not have an expiration date. Can someone please how the taxes are handled here and what is most desirable to expats living here

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

the offered 3% tax free is paid on money market funds for which Thai banks issue a separate passbook after going through a dozen nonsensical steps of paperwork

Thanks....so as long as my interest income on the fixed deposit falls below the 20,000baht mark then I get to keep it all and there is no witholding deducted...is that correct? If that is correct than the fixed deposit would be better as long as I dont need to withdraw the money within the 6 mos timeframe.

[Time Traveller]

Speaking of Tax, one question for the experts.

I have some dividend paying shares in the SET.

The total amount varies between 10,000 Baht and say 50,000 Baht per annum, depending on what I hold.

There is the 10% automatically deducted.

Are there any ways to legally negate this tax?

I'm not a resident, but spend extensive time in Thailand.

Thanks in advance.

.

Here's what to do:

1. Get a Tax number from the Revenue Department. Go to one of their offices

2. Collect all of the documents evidencing your income for the tax year ending on December 31

3. Between Jan to March 31 fill in a Tax return (ภ.ง.ด.90)

4. Include all of your dividend income. there is a nice calculator on the Revenue Dept website if doing your taxes online.

Make sure to include Tax credits (if you really do hold the shares, not the NVDRs) as well as the withholding tax.

For example, if your only taxable income was 50,000 baht all from dividends and they came from companies that had paid tax at the corporate tax rate of say 20% then it will be listed on your dividend statement that you have tax credits.

So, you would have tax credits of 12,500 bt plus the 10% withholding tax paid of 5000 bt means you would be eligible for a tax return of 17,500 bt because your total taxable income was less than 150,000 for the year and so no tax liability.

Tip: it's usually quicker to submit your tax return in person because you will need to also show evidence of the dividend statements and that you have been resident in Thailand for more than 180 days in the tax year - the staff can also help you to fill out the forms.

[Naam]

I was at the bank today with 500k to deposit and they told me they had a fixed 3.15 6 month cd that was taxable and the net after taxes was 2.6....also offered a 3% non taxable account that did not have an expiration date. Can someone please how the taxes are handled here and what is most desirable to expats living here

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

the offered 3% tax free is paid on money market funds for which Thai banks issue a separate passbook after going through a dozen nonsensical steps of paperwork

Thanks....so as long as my interest income on the fixed deposit falls below the 20,000baht mark then I get to keep it all and there is no witholding deducted...is that correct? If that is correct than the fixed deposit would be better as long as I dont need to withdraw the money within the 6 mos timeframe.

yes, correct!

[ericg1953]

I was at the bank today with 500k to deposit and they told me they had a fixed 3.15 6 month cd that was taxable and the net after taxes was 2.6....also offered a 3% non taxable account that did not have an expiration date. Can someone please how the taxes are handled here and what is most desirable to expats living here

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

the offered 3% tax free is paid on money market funds for which Thai banks issue a separate passbook after going through a dozen nonsensical steps of paperwork

Thanks....so as long as my interest income on the fixed deposit falls below the 20,000baht mark then I get to keep it all and there is no witholding deducted...is that correct? If that is correct than the fixed deposit would be better as long as I dont need to withdraw the money within the 6 mos timeframe.

yes, correct!

Thank you for clarification on this. I can now make an educated decision for myself. These forums are just great

[ericg1953]

Naam..can you tell me how the tax process is addressed here if one exceeds the 20k mark in interest income. I guess I am wondering as well if you go to another bank and set up a timed deposit with say 500k is the 20k limit per deposit or as a whole.......Thanks

[Naam]

Naam..can you tell me how the tax process is addressed here if one exceeds the 20k mark in interest income. I guess I am wondering as well if you go to another bank and set up a timed deposit with say 500k is the 20k limit per deposit or as a whole.......Thanks

i'm not sure whether this works but it is obviously not necessary because a foreigner can get a refund of those taxes witheld on bank deposits. personally i have no idea how it works but the procedure was mentioned several times by more experienced people. use the search function and you might be lucky.

perhaps the same procedure applies as described by TimeTraveller in posting #13?

[IamNotaNumber]

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

My bank passbooks would seem to disagree with you. They tell me that withholding tax is normally deducted at source on TDs regardless of how much the interest is, but on savings accounts only if the interest exceeds 20K.

There are also some other accounts that are not exactly TDs and not exactly regular savings accounts, but which still pay interest without deduction of tax. These are often restricted to certain types of Thai person only (generally retired people), but some are available to farangs.

Of course, as is often the case in Thailand, this may all be down to the particular bank's interpretation of the rules.

[Naam]

Thai withholding tax on fixed deposits (no CDs in Thailand) is 15%, i.e. 3.15% yields net 2.6775% p.a.

BUT

withholding tax is only deducted on interest exceeding 20,000 Baht. your 500k should therefore yield 3.15% net (7,875 Baht for a 6 months period).

My bank passbooks would seem to disagree with you. They tell me that withholding tax is normally deducted at source on TDs regardless of how much the interest is, but on savings accounts only if the interest exceeds 20K.

There are also some other accounts that are not exactly TDs and not exactly regular savings accounts, but which still pay interest without deduction of tax. These are often restricted to certain types of Thai person only (generally retired people), but some are available to farangs.

Of course, as is often the case in Thailand, this may all be down to the particular bank's interpretation of the rules.

"my" Kasikorn branch uses the THB20k threshold for both savings and time deposits. but it would be prudent if the OP enquires how his bank/branch handles the withholding tax.

[Charlie1]

don't worry, no taxes, no tax ID, no forms to fill. that applies to all retirees whether a double tax agreement exists or not.

You refer to the reality. But it's not so simple.

1. It depends only on the terms of the double tax agreement. In such a treaty you can find the solution to OP's problem. The treaty clears which taxes belong to which country. This concerns the tax on rents, too.

2. I don't know anything about the UK or US double tax agreement with Thailand.

The Thai / German double tax treaty says, the taxes on rents belong to Thailand but only if you stay more than 180 days out of Germany - de facto.

And now to the reality, Thailand doesn't use (or demand for) any German government information. That means, if you don't declare your rent income, the Thai department will not bother you.

BTW, tax on German (government) pension belongs to Germany.

OP, you should ask/google for a double tax treaty between your home country and Thailand.

Question: How do you know that Thailand doesn't use information from Germany? What happens when Germany just gives the information, as agreed in the double tax treaty? In my case, I'm waiting for the Thai Tax Collector to visit me. Why wouldn't Thailand follow-up and enjoy the extra money?