Tax

[Thailand]

As I have a one year "retirement" visa and have subsequently disclosed the required amount(s) to satisfy the criteria, are those amounts/income liable to tax or is tax only payable if employed with a work permit? Is tax payable on the interest from monies in the bank under my status?

Thanks,

Thailand

[fester]

Yes, you should pay tax. Not may retired foreignes does, but that's another story...

Read more about tax here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/397.0.html

The rules:

All ordinary persons must obtain a tax ID within 60 days after receiving income, and from the date of reg if a juristic person. Income from  Thailand employment is subject to Thai tax, regardless of where the employment income is paid. Income is cash, properties, benefits, are deemed income. This includes salaries, wages, bonuses, allowances, gratuities, pensions, handouts, commissions, education payments, house rent allowances, the monetary value of rent-free residence provided by an employer, utility bills, payments made by an employer for the settlement of any obligation due from an employee, income tax reimbursed & various other incomes.

Profits or gains from trade, business, commerce, professions  in Thailand are subject to tax whether or not the individual is resident in Thailand.Tax

[Vatman]

I pay a 15% withholding tax on the interest I receive from my deposits with my 2 Thai banks.

It is stopped automatically & the remainder credited to my accounts.

I remember reading some time ago that there were proposals to exempt the first 20K Baht for foreigners.

Did this ever eventuate? With interest rates now so low I could do with saving this 20K.

[Searat7]

I pay a 15% withholding tax on the interest I receive from my deposits with my 2 Thai banks.

It is stopped automatically & the remainder credited to my accounts.

I remember reading some time ago that there were proposals to exempt the first 20K Baht for foreigners.

Did this ever eventuate? With interest rates now so low I could do with saving this 20K.

The paltry interest paid by banks here does not amount to much on an annual basis for most people. I believe that you don't have to pay tax until you hit a certain amount.

[prism]

The income tax on the interest from your bank account is automatically withheld by the bank when the interest is payed(not much now a days as Searat7 mentioned). You should see it when you update your bank book. It'll be great if they start exempting the first 20K for foreigners.

[Maestro]

The bank does not know, does not need to know, and does not want to know what other taxable income you have in Thailand. This is the business of the Revenue Department to know and to deal with, and to give a refund where a refund is due after receipt and examination of the individual's tax declaration.

[InterestedObserver]

Monies transferred into Thailand from overseas (foreign currency) are tax exempt if earned in a different, earlier tax year; i.e., only money earned from a foreign source in the current tax year is taxable income.

[JimGant]

Monies transferred into Thailand from overseas (foreign currency) are tax exempt if earned in a different, earlier tax year; i.e., only money earned from a foreign source in the current tax year is taxable income.

For those of us who have to pay taxes to our home countries -- and which have tax treaties with Thailand -- no worry. But, for those expats not taxed by their home country, I guess it could be problematic to extend using the income method. Solution: Forget the income method; transfer 800k into Thailand in late December; renew extension 3 months (or later) into the next year.

Alternate solution: Don't worry about it (yet). No evidence Immigration and the Revenue Dept knows the other's address.