Call For Commerce, Revenue To Inspect Tourism-Related Businesses Run By Foreigners In Thailand

[webfact]

Phuket: Call for Commerce, Revenue to target nominee companies

BANGKOK: -- The Tourist Police Division has called on the Commerce Ministry and the Revenue Department to inspect tourism-related businesses run by foreigners in Thailand.

Pol Maj Gen Roy Inkapairoj, commander of the Tourist Police, said on Sunday (May 5) that foreigners were using Thai nominees to open businesses such as restaurants, hotels, massage shops and jewellery shops.

Relevant agencies such as the Commerce Ministry and the Revenue Department should check the stakeholders of these businesses and their tax records and see whether they are legitimate because they are "hurting the image of Thai tourism", he said.

"Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said.

He said changes to investment laws might be necessary to suppress the nominee companies.

"Many foreign investors who run nominee companies here are from Russia, India and China and the number is increasing," he said.


-- Phuket News 2013-05-06

[OzMick]

Heaven forbid that there should be competition from competently managed businesses.

[assayer]

"Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said.

But, the resulting profits are fed back into the Thai commerce through these same foreign businesses.

Edited May 6, 2013 by assayer

[ratcatcher]

Maybe the tourist police want a larger segment of the farang managed business' pie?

[Scully]

Invest in the Thai money, bonds, stock markets and Thailand's happy. Try to create a business which again is good for the economy and it's a case of money being taken out of Thailand. Thailand wants it all with no leeway whatsoever.

[Thai at Heart]

Complete and utter unnecessary piffle.

They keep catching people fire work permit issues, have they caught anyone or closed a company for nominees?

So hard to prove it, he should give up before he starts.

[moe666]

Heaven forbid that there should be competition from competently managed businesses.

Its owned by a foreigner and that automaticlly makes it competenlly managed what planet are you from.

[Soutpeel]

"Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy

My dear Pol Maj Gen Roy...in the Police training academy you may or may not have attended...did they not teach you about economic's and capitalism

People invest/start up companies for this exact reason, so they can generate revenue for themselves and investors in said companies...

as regards "nominee's" in foreign run companies its hardly suprising is it Pol Maj Gen Roy ? seeing as for the most part a foreigner is only able to own 49% of the company, and Thai shareholders hold the 51% therefore to establish a legal business one actually needs "nominee's" and in effect its goverment sanctioned..

by all means investigate companies for legal compliance per the business laws and make sure said companies are paying their taxes etc

but to state in effect foreigners are "stealing" from the Thai ecomony..

[Ricardo]

"hurting the image of Thai tourism"

Unlike the Thai-owned/run jet-ski mafia, or the song-thaew/tuk-tuk mafia, who only enhance the 'Thai experience' ?

[waza]

Business is tight there no room for competitions, even from Russians.

[BrianCR]

Well it may just sort out the real businesses from the not so real - as for Thai nominees, very easy to discover, mother in law lives in a wooden hut in a village but owns shares in a business and is unable to even write her own name? A few questions from the Commerce Ministry and the Revenue Department should solve that problem. I'm all for westerners opening businesses here if, they realize that they have to stick to the rules!

[Thai at Heart]

Hurting the image?

He's looking for nominees. By definition they're not visible.

[Bellweather]

Heaven forbid that there should be competition from competently managed businesses.

I have no doubt many Thais would love to be able to takeover successful foreign business then make them fail in no time.

[Bellweather]

"Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy

My dear Pol Maj Gen Roy...in the Police training academy you may or may not have attended...did they not teach you about economic's and capitalism

People invest/start up companies for this exact reason, so they can generate revenue for themselves and investors in said companies...

as regards "nominee's" in foreign run companies its hardly suprising is it Pol Maj Gen Roy ? seeing as for the most part a foreigner is only able to own 49% of the company, and Thai shareholders hold the 51% therefore to establish a legal business one actually needs "nominee's" and in effect its goverment sanctioned..

by all means investigate companies for legal compliance per the business laws and make sure said companies are paying their taxes etc

but to state in effect foreigners are "stealing" from the Thai ecomony..

All the foreign owned business I have dealings with are owned by people with a long relationship to Thailand, have been resident for many a long year are married to a Thai, have children etc. but so many Thais like to believe that every Baht earned is immediately shipped overseas.

I live solely on pensions which are either paid here or are accessed via an international ATM card and in essence everything paid to me is spent here as I have no mortgage, insurances etc in another country and there are so many like me. We probably spend more in this country than a large chunk of the Thai population but that is overlooked on the grounds that, irrespective of how long I've been here, I'm about to leave anytime.

[soi41]

Seems like our friend Pol Maj Gen Roy attended the same business school as Robert Mugabe!!

[jonclark]

"Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said

And what about all the Thais working overseas and sending money back to Thailand? Should they be vilified, and stopped from supporting their families in Thailand with money earned overseas?? I'm sure the Thais would be up in arms to even hear such a suggestion.

What we have here typical myopic Thai view carefully worded to create division and maintain that antiquated 'them and us' view status quo. When you read between the lines of these statements. One thing is clear. The is great FEAR in Thailand of the outside world and that fear underpins the controls set on foreigners and also Thais.

[Thai at Heart]

They won't prosecute one nominee company because to do so would cause an implosion nation wide.

Proving that your wife is a nominee is virtually impossible legally.

[Thai at Heart]

Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said.

Glad this guy isn't running the country. What complete and utter hogwash. And considering he is part of the tourist police is quite ironic.

His raison d metre is to protect foreigners. His funding exists because of tourists, businesses to largely provide for tourists etc etc.

[kurnell]

As long as there are people with double digit IQs in positions of power in Thailand, then this sort of nonsense will continue. My msz and her friends (almost all uni graduates), are ashamed of the image that these sorts of Thais portray.

[OzMick]

As long as there are people with double digit IQs in positions of power in Thailand, then this sort of nonsense will continue. My msz and her friends (almost all uni graduates), are ashamed of the image that these sorts of Thais portray.

"As long as there are people with double digit IQs in positions of power in Thailand......."

I would hazard a guess that most Thais inpositions of power have double digit IQs, and that the single digits outnumber the triple. The question is, does their double digit exceed their shoe size?

[robblok]

Corruption fees 30-50% and they worry about a few businesses owned by foreigners. Amazing clean up your own mess before you start making idiot comments. Seems there are some real xenophobic Thais around. Tourist getting cheated with jet ski scams and many others aren't stopped but some foreigners doing straight business are a threat to Thais.

It only goes to show how much they worry about real competition.

[bkkgriz]

Most of you have covered all the bases on this one. This kind of garbage really irks me. It seems that even if a business is set up properly, pays taxes and does everything above the board, it is still under suspicion. Having feelings of extreme xenophobia, racism and nationalism seem to prerequesets for getting a job with the police in Thailand.

[clockman]

Remember they have pay somebody, to get any position in Thailand! throgh out the whole society!

[Zatoichi]

Read in between the lines (as is how the govt really communicates). They are really just concerned with Russians, Chinese, and Indian. Can you blame them?

[jacko45k]

Heaven forbid that there should be competition from competently managed businesses.

Its owned by a foreigner and that automaticlly makes it competenlly managed what planet are you from.

Yes, they want it to be incompetently managed and owned by Thais...who is better qualified????

[NCFC]

Surely it is perfectly legal for Thais to own 51% and foreigners 49% of a business. If no one is breaking the law what does the police hope to achieve?

[PhilipCook]

have to imagine that the commerce and revenue folks would tell the tourist police to mind their own business or simply ignore the tp altogether.

Edited May 6, 2013 by metisdead
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[wiyada]

Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said.

Glad this guy isn't running the country. What complete and utter hogwash. And considering he is part of the tourist police is quite ironic.

His raison d metre is to protect foreigners. His funding exists because of tourists, businesses to largely provide for tourists etc etc.

Hang on, his job is to look after tourists not business owners, at least get your facts right. He has no problems in believing Thai's can provide the same services as foreign run companies, you may disagree but your statement is untrue.

[whistleblower]

Tourists buy their products and services and the revenue goes to the foreign owners instead of the Thai economy," Pol Maj Gen Roy said.

Glad this guy isn't running the country. What complete and utter hogwash. And considering he is part of the tourist police is quite ironic.

His raison d metre is to protect foreigners. His funding exists because of tourists, businesses to largely provide for tourists etc etc.

Hang on, his job is to look after tourists not business owners, at least get your facts right. He has no problems in believing Thai's can provide the same services as foreign run companies, you may disagree but your statement is untrue.

Thai's providing same services as foreign run company??

Get your head out of the sand.

I would, however like them to take a sample tourist area, kick out/shut down every foreign owned/run business and see where it is in 3 months time!

If the Government, particularly the Tourist Authority stopped spending millions of baht on stupid slogans like 'Amazing Thailand, Miracle Thailand etc., employed some western consultants, stopped the corruption and the police linked rip offs they might just might attract more tourists.

[retell]

because they are "hurting the image of Thai tourism", he said.

how that's possible ? how can it be hurting ?

are tourists aware of the company structure from the business they stay or visit

, as if there is a huge sign above the door that says " we bought our way into thai commerce with nominees "

and even if there was a sign like that most will think this business has gotten nominated for some kind of reward

once again

it prooft not only the weather is hot

also the wind from spokesman like that

Edited May 6, 2013 by retell