Are there options to undertake this...?

[jkinbkk]

Previously I have worked for Foreign companies with there own entity established in Thailand.

Therefore work permit, Non O visas & income tax payments have been straightforward to undertake/maintain.

I now have been approached by a Foreign company that wishes to employ me full time as a consultant but has no business established in the region.

What then would be the best way (if there is a way?) for me to set myself up here in Thailand so that I can manage the work permit, Multiple entry Non O visa's & Income tax payments myself?

Assuming there is a way to undertake the above, the intention is to pay my salary directly into my account here. How creative can I be on declaring the full value of funds I receive? I want to be fully legal in all matters, but maybe creative in some!

[Soutpeel]

You would need to set up a Thai limited company to do this fully legally

[Naam]

You would need to set up a Thai limited company to do this fully legally

"consultant / no business in the region" but setting up a Thai company for a work permit with all the hassles plus paying income tax?

[Soutpeel]

You would need to set up a Thai limited company to do this fully legally

"consultant / no business in the region" but setting up a Thai company for a work permit with all the hassles plus paying income tax?

He asked how you would do fully legally, LOL this the only real option, or he could find a Thai company who will "employ" him and get him a WP for an "admin" fee

[jkinbkk]

You would need to set up a Thai limited company to do this fully legally

"consultant / no business in the region" but setting up a Thai company for a work permit with all the hassles plus paying income tax?

To clarify, the mentioned European company has yet to venture into SE Asia and now wishes to do so.

I will be employed as a subcontractor on their books and I wish to remain in Thailand.

For my salary I will need to produce an invoice monthly for services rendered/expenses an submit it to HO of this German company.

I need to understand how I can legally set myself up to undertake matters legally, which will INCLUDE Work Permits, Visa etc...

[Soutpeel]

You would need to set up a Thai limited company to do this fully legally

"consultant / no business in the region" but setting up a Thai company for a work permit with all the hassles plus paying income tax?

To clarify, the mentioned European company has yet to venture into SE Asia and now wishes to do so.

I will be employed as a subcontractor on their books and I wish to remain in Thailand.

For my salary I will need to produce an invoice monthly for services rendered/expenses an submit it to HO of this German company.

I need to understand how I can legally set myself up to undertake matters legally, which will INCLUDE Work Permits, Visa etc...

Set up a thai limited company this is the only real practical way of doing it legally.....ie if not married to a thai THB 2.0 million capitalised Ltd company and employ 4 Thais and you got your Work permit

Or be employed by a thai company who will get you a WP for an admin fee

[NBD]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

[Soutpeel]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

[mikebike]

Also remember WP is tied to a location and may not work for a consultancy unless your clientele comes to you.

[Soutpeel]

Also remember WP is tied to a location and may not work for a consultancy unless your clientele comes to you.

Not strictly true, my WP is good for country wide, it all depends on the job description given to the DOL and if the job description states would be required to work at variety of locations in country you will get permission in your WP to do so

[Naam]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

technically i am working illegally too when i shave in the morning and/or trim my moustache. according to Thail law these are services reserved for Thais only

[NBD]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

As he explained it to me he's not actually working here in the sense of exchanging his labour for a salary, but conducting business and he seemed to think this was all above board.

With the caveat that I'm not a lawyer or visa consultant and this is very second hand!

[Soutpeel]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

As he explained it to me he's not actually working here in the sense of exchanging his labour for a salary, but conducting business and he seemed to think this was all above board.

With the caveat that I'm not a lawyer or visa consultant and this is very second hand!

If he is a resident in Thailand, irrespective of where or if he is getting paid this could be interpreted by the DOL as working

The purpose of the non imm B is to explore business options or get a business set up, would seem to me that your friend is a bit beyond this definition and is actually doing regular work for someone

[Soutpeel]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

technically i am working illegally too when i shave in the morning and/or trim my moustache. according to Thail law these are services reserved for Thais only

This true, but as always on this question its up to the specific official to decide what is or isn't working, so one could suggest if An official from DOL caught you standing in front of a mirror in your Y fronts trimming said moustache he could interpret as taking employment from a Thai, but in your case couldn't your multilingual, gardener do it for you and be perfectly legal, as one suspects he would be very proficient with a weed Wacker ?

[Naam]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

Well technically speaking your friend is working illegally if he is resident in thailand

technically i am working illegally too when i shave in the morning and/or trim my moustache. according to Thail law these are services reserved for Thais only

This true, but as always on this question its up to the specific official to decide what is or isn't working, so one could suggest if An official from DOL caught you standing in front of a mirror in your Y fronts trimming said moustache he could interpret as taking employment from a Thai, but in your case couldn't your multilingual, gardener do it for you and be perfectly legal, as one suspects he would be very proficient with a weed Wacker ?

do you think multilingual Thai gardeners exist? i have strong doubts.

[jkinbkk]

A friend of mine has a Non B without a work permit, which sounds like it would be the best way to proceed here. As I understand it this is much more restrictive on what you can actually do, but much less hassle. My friend is contracted (not employed) out of the US and his payments are basically a commission for ensuring that goods manufactured here get to the US on time and up to quality.

To get a WP you need a Thai company with at least 4 Thai employees unless there is a special arrangement for your particular industry under BoI.

If you're prepared to be a little more creative then you could either be technically employed in Germany (assuming you have a German/EU passport?) and pay your tax etc there, while living here on a Non-O.

The best route depends on how visible/active you will be within Thailand. If you're arranging stuff offshore and just happen to live here, working out of a home office then I really wouldn't worry about it. If you're doing business in Thailand with Thai companies and looking to employ Thai people then definitely keep it all above board.

This seems interesting, but I have also taken on board the comments made thereafter.

Would be of interest to understand what documents your friend produced at the time of Visa application?

Anyway, I also know very well that matters can get subjective when it comes to Visa application of any kind when dealing with the Consulate officers.

If this where to go ahead my working exposure in Thailand would be almost zero. I want to reside in Thailand, but my area of resposibility initially work wise will be neighbouring countries & India

[fifthcolumn]

If you are serious about the job and this is just not some bs way to live in Thailand, live in Malaysia or Cambodia and pop over to do whatever you need to do.

The company seems like they want as little exposure to Asia as possible. No way they will help you set up a corporation, pay employees and pay everyones taxes. What will these employees even do? Not to mention 2mb cash sitting about waiting to get pilfered by you or staff. Then there is accounting and legal isdues for corporation.

Lol. No cigar pal

Edited February 3, 2014 by fifthcolumn