Phuket office identifies 82 'foreign-owned' businesses suspected of using Thai nominees

[Valentine]

Does anyone know a business run by foreigners not using nominees?

The only other choice is to open a business, find genuine Thai investors who will actually invest 51% of the capital and own 51% of the company and have effective control.

Using nominees is illegal, but everyone does it. It greases the wheels, and is the bread and butter for Thai accounting firms who actually provide the nominees, not to mention the endless kickbacks which end up in the pockets of the same people who every now and the beat their chests and threaten a crackdown.

Option 2 is legal and likely to end in ruin.

Then again it's illegal to drive on the wrong side of the road also

To answer your question, yes.

[KarenBravo]

Would a husband and wife team that own a business be strictly legal?

[deepcell]

what is the problem? If they have the money and time to make investment abroad, why not? Even if they generate new jobs for thai people? Really do not understand people sometime. ;( Anyway rush away people, DSI is coming.. LOL.

[keestha]

Quoting the OP: "“Of the 82 businesses, 64 of them are using the office of their accountant or lawyer as their business address. The others could not be contacted.” This means at least for now, they are only targeting extreme cases, so not for instance a company registered restaurant where the cook might be listed as a shareholder.

[belg]

blame the farang

in the land where you can not owm your own business more than 49% percent

where can we start a boycot on fuuket ?

Edited July 23, 2013 by belg

[steelepulse]

This will pass just like the various other crackdowns that grab headlines. Whether it's jet skis, foreigners owning land, land encroachment, bad tuk tuk drivers, black plate taxis etc. A couple businesses/foreigners will fall to save face, then everything else will carry on as it has been doing for years.

[Just1Voice]

It's going to get very interesting to see what happens when AEC opens the doors and other members of ASEAN can come in and legally open businesses, without having to use Thai nominees, and can own 100% of it.

[Paul888]

Phuket is the hub of places I wouldn't want to visit.

[steveyinasia]

What is this total paranoia Thai's exude from every pore.

Most bigoted people on the planet, foreigners can't own land because presumably they will buy up the whole country or push up prices for land (not if Thai's don't ask inflated prices in that equation).

Foreign owned businesses pay tax and vat (unlike most small Thai businesses).

Don't Thai's get it that any business legally paying taxes and salaries to anyone Thai or farang is a good thing for Thailand as that money goes straight back into the economy in not only tax but in restaurants, taxis, shopping, housing etc...

In most developed countries foreign investment is encouraged because the government's are aware of the potential increased inome that may be created.

Not Thailand.

The attitude of 'they' will steal our land and jobs amazes me.

One Thai girl, with a university degree and a straight face, once told me that 'America just wants to steal our rice and England stole our cats.'

<deleted>...

Says a lot for the University degree then doesn't it.

[Paul888]

Phuket is the hub of places I wouldn't want to visit.

[KarenBravo]

Phuket is the hub of places I wouldn't want to visit.

You are the hub of people I don't want to come to Phuket.

Both of us are happy.

[cobra1]

errrrrrrrr i would have thought that someones lawyer or accountants office would of coarse have a physical address ??and is it so that for a foreigner to own or operate a business that they must have a thai nominee working or allegedly working for the company? so most of us foreigners who have business with our wives and have work permits be it a restaurant or mini mart or what ever we could use our own physical home address as the home office of trading funny Thais people want foreign investment but dont want us here

[Markaew]

Phuket is the hub of places I wouldn't want to visit.

You are the hub of people I don't want to come to Phuket.

Both of us are happy.

Paul, include me in your hub. Been there and don't want to go back.

[Suffinator]

Only 82, you have to be joking. Nearly all Foreign business use the Thai Nominee system. Looks like it's a Russian targeting operation.

Phuket Authorities Begin Witch Hunt on Foreign Businesses

[jmccarty]

Technically, your not supposed to form a Thai company just to buy your property, but that was the accepted way years ago and I expect a lot of long term residents should now be a bit concerned about the government moving the goal posts! What is grey today can become very black and white tomorrow.

[thhMan]

I suppose a smart Government would look at ways to deal with this to make companies that are illegal or borderline, legal.

This would mean looking at the laws and structuring them, so foreign businesses can legally flourish, can bring TAX revenue in for the country, can employ people (Thai or Foreign) and can make companies working in Thailand more Transparent.

Thai's will complain but for certain, the education system would need to improve so that school leavers can actually have a chance to compete head to head with foreign workers for jobs.

Right now, if wages and resident/work requirements being equal, I would employ a foreign worker over a Thai if I needed the job filled by someone capable. However, I am also aware that foreign workers are not the solution either as I have come across many that do the job but dont have any ambition. I cant blame them as Thailand does not offer foreigners something to strive for and not everyone is content with a condo !

Perhaps looking at multicultural countries could prove a valuable idea to Thailand as how to manage things. All Thailand has to do is ask other countries, how they manage... That in itself maybe the hardest thing for Thailand to do! The second biggest hurdle would be the Thai people. I am guessing they dont have the capabilities to understand how the politics of something drastic can change the country for the better and open up even more relations with other countries, because they still have trouble grasping basic concepts.

[Tanlic]

Only 82, you have to be joking. Nearly all Foreign business use the Thai Nominee system. Looks like it's a Russian targeting operation.

Phuket Authorities Begin Witch Hunt on Foreign Businesses

I couldn't agree more. Like you I'm guessing but I doubt if Joe Bloggs who has run a decent business for years in Phuket will be affected.

If this is the way of them getting rid of the would be mafia who are giving Phuket a bad name then more power to their elbow.

[cosmont]

Does anyone know a business run by foreigners not using nominees?

The only other choice is to open a business, find genuine Thai investors who will actually invest 51% of the capital and own 51% of the company and have effective control.

Using nominees is illegal, but everyone does it. It greases the wheels, and is the bread and butter for Thai accounting firms who actually provide the nominees, not to mention the endless kickbacks which end up in the pockets of the same people who every now and the beat their chests and threaten a crackdown.

Option 2 is legal and likely to end in ruin.

Then again it's illegal to drive on the wrong side of the road also

Option 3 is NOT CREATE a business in Thailand, this country does not desserve our business investment.

[darren84310]

So when are they going to have a "Crackdown" on Thai law companies that blatantly ignore the law in order to make a profit.

We all know that they assure their clients that what they are doing is common practice and don't worry.

Stop blaming farangs for the problems, which are created for profit by Thais.

[FiestyFarang]

Bloody zenophobic glad I don't have a business or want one here. This country is 50 years out of date.

[eezergood]

What they dont mention is all the jobs these people potentially have created!

[overherebc]

It's going to get very interesting to see what happens when AEC opens the doors and other members of ASEAN can come in and legally open businesses, without having to use Thai nominees, and can own 100% of it.

Will that actually be the case? I'm asking because I really don't know.

[HOOD Robin]

I wonder . . . if this is such a bad thing for Thailand, will they crack down on the Lawyers/Accountants that facilitate this, and also the Govt. officials that ease the way also?

What am I talking about, of course they won't lol

Actually they SHOULD as those guys fill their POCKETS !

But sigh..... ALL the Thai poo yais are playing this game which seems to be NORMAL in TH...

[NomadJoe]

Bloody zenophobic glad I don't have a business or want one here. This country is 50 years out of date.

Bloody xenophobic glad I don't have a business or want one here. This country is 50 years out of date.

Bloody zenophobic glad I don't have a business or want one here. This country is 50 years out of date.

So xenophobic this country, about 50 years out of date. Look at Europe etc wealth for a country does not come by killing off foreign incentives.

You can say that again! lol

Here's a tip. If you don't see your post, before reposting, press F5. That will reload your page from the source, not from a chache which will make it look like your post wasn't made.

[inquisitive]

This will end in a lot of nonsense court cases.

Proving these people are nominees is virtually impossible.

That all depends on what is considered "proof." If the judge believes the people are nominees, then that is enough proof. End f story. I'm sad to say that even in the US this is actually the case. The judge (or jury) decide whether something has been proven. The fact that another reasonable mind might disagree is irrelevant. In the case of some earlier disputes over nominees, the court looked at the bank books of the nominees and decided that they really could not have afforded to have purchased their share of the company, and therefore they must be a nominee. Truth be told, the court was probably right.

[stevenl]

I thought the law was, 49/51, so if the 51 nominees are Thai partners on paper,the law has not been broken, it has always been a lawyer's job, to advise and get around the law, legally!...I ,may be wrong?....

I think that you are right,So why are they after the Farang and why don't they go after all the lawyer's (They are the crooks) and lock them away for life

They are after foreigners, not necessarily farang. Big and important distinction.

[NomadJoe]

Would a husband and wife team that own a business be strictly legal?

Could easily be, could easily not be.

[stevenl]

I wonder . . . if this is such a bad thing for Thailand, will they crack down on the Lawyers/Accountants that facilitate this, and also the Govt. officials that ease the way also?

What am I talking about, of course they won't lol

Actually they SHOULD as those guys fill their POCKETS !

But sigh..... ALL the Thai poo yais are playing this game which seems to be NORMAL in TH...

But are they doing anything illegal under Thai law? Would not surprise me at all if they don't (or if they do for a matter of fact).

[stevenl]

What they dont mention is all the jobs these people potentially have created!

The jobs have nothing to do with the setup of the company (unless of course the company could not have been set up legally).

[NomadJoe]

Does anyone know a business run by foreigners not using nominees?

Yes, both my current and former employers. My former was wholly owned by an American, so no Thai's needed. My current, the Thai owner works in the office with the foreign owners and has just as much to do with the day to day operations, and we have dozens of Thai employees, including dedicated staff to handle collection of any money, an activity which foreigners are forbidden to do by law.