Is purchasing a condo through a thai company legit for foreigner ?

[Wimbledon]

In the westerm world a property is often bought in a corporation for legal protection, liability , and ease of transfer if you want to sell! ..........How is a thai company different roughly from this ???,Is there anyone qualified to,answer this whom has property in a corporation , and also a thai company here to note similarities and the DIFFFERENCES ! Thanks

Edited October 22, 2013 by Wimbledon

[Jasun]

There's nothing wrong with buying a property through a legitimate company. The issue is buying property through an illegitimate company, ie nominee shareholders etc.

[somchaismith]

There is a tax now ffor sitting on land and thats why people are developing

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

It seems to be increasing, too.

"and the tax for undeveloped land will be at least 0.5% of the appraised value for the first three years after passage of the law, which can double but not exceed 2% of its value after that."

2 Sep 2013

Please use google

[Langsuan Man]

There is a tax now ffor sitting on land and thats why people are developing

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

It seems to be increasing, too.

"and the tax for undeveloped land will be at least 0.5% of the appraised value for the first three years after passage of the law, which can double but not exceed 2% of its value after that."

2 Sep 2013

Please use google

Or read Thai Visa

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/676398-thai-govt-eyes-land-property-taxes-to-boost-revenue/

[dg1980]

If you are buying the condo for the purpose of renting it out, would it be better for you to purchase as an individual or through thai company?

Also, if you are buying condos that are legal for foreigners to own, does the company still need to be "51% thai owned"?

[Langsuan Man]

If you are buying the condo for the purpose of renting it out, would it be better for you to purchase as an individual or through thai company?

Also, if you are buying condos that are legal for foreigners to own, does the company still need to be "51% thai owned"?

If it is in the foreign quota then it would always be better to buy as an individual, the purchase via a company would only make sense if it was not in the foreign quota.

Your second question is a non starter since you would be foolish to buy a condo that is legal for foreigners to own via a company

Foreigners renting out property is probably one of the only areas of foreign "income" where the Thai government has not gotten involved YET

[KittenKong]

Your second question is a non starter since you would be foolish to buy a condo that is legal for foreigners to own via a company

By all means let him buy a farang-quota unit in company name, but please have him tell me the day before he does it so that I can do the reverse procedure.

I know some very nice units in finished Jomtien buildings that are still on the developer's books having been unsold for years due to them being in the Thai quota. There is one in particular that I would buy like a shot, if I could.

Foreigners renting out property is probably one of the only areas of foreign "income" where the Thai government has not gotten involved YET

They are already involved. Such income is subject to tax and should be declared here. Just because the Thai tax authorities dont (currently) pursue the owners of multiple units in order to find out whether they are getting undeclared rental income does not mean that these owners should not already be declaring that income. And presumably by not doing so they may already be leaving themselves exposed to possible deportation.

There is no doubt in my mind that one day someone in the tax office will start correlating the ownership of condos and tax returns. It would be extremely simple to do and very cost-effective. An obvious way to start would be to make it a requirement to show your Thai tax ID card when purchasing property.

[Langsuan Man]

Your second question is a non starter since you would be foolish to buy a condo that is legal for foreigners to own via a company

By all means let him buy a farang-quota unit in company name, but please have him tell me the day before he does it so that I can do the reverse procedure.

I know some very nice units in finished Jomtien buildings that are still on the developer's books having been unsold for years due to them being in the Thai quota. There is one in particular that I would buy like a shot, if I could.

Foreigners renting out property is probably one of the only areas of foreign "income" where the Thai government has not gotten involved YET

They are already involved. Such income is subject to tax and should be declared here. Just because the Thai tax authorities dont (currently) pursue the owners of multiple units in order to find out whether they are getting undeclared rental income does not mean that these owners should not already be declaring that income. And presumably by not doing so they may already be leaving themselves exposed to possible deportation.

There is no doubt in my mind that one day someone in the tax office will start correlating the ownership of condos and tax returns. It would be extremely simple to do and very cost-effective. An obvious way to start would be to make it a requirement to show your Thai tax ID card when purchasing property.

Nothing is going to be easy to do here in Thailand where every government department is it's own little fiefdom.

The Land Office has those records but is only interested in collecting transfer tax. They are not about to provide information to the tax authorities, whoever they may be. Very few Thais pay income tax in the first place and those that do are usually employed by the government or large corporations who have to withhold income taxes from paychecks