Work From Home Work Permit

[ljd1308]

Hi All,

Looking for some advice.....

I am married to a Thai and currently we are both living and working in Australia.

What I would like to do is outsource my own job from the company i am woking for to myself as a remote worker. Essentially I will be doing ongoing contract work for an Australian company.

As I can do this from anywhere we are looking to move back to Thailand to do so, as I have a Thai family my understanding is I will get an "O" visa permitting my stay.

However as I will be working from home I would like to do everything above board and get a work permit so everything is legal. Is there a cheap and quick way I can obtain a WP to work from home on an "O" visa?

I have looked at opening a company, but it seems like a bit of a hassle considering I could probably just draw the blinds and not worry about it, however if there is an easier way to do it legally I would take that option.

Any ideas?

[Upnotover]

This question seems to be asked daily of late, and as you will see in all the other threads the answer is basically no.

[Upnotover]

FYI, this was yesterdays...http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/742653-online-freelancer-long-stay-in-thailand/

[phirho]

However as I will be working from home I would like to do everything above board and get a work permit so everything is legal. Is there a cheap and quick way I can obtain a WP to work from home on an "O" visa?

There is no cheap and quick way. There is no slow and expensive way either! If you open a company, and hire a couple of Thais to satisfy the requirements of work permit, they must do actual work for the company otherwise it is still illegal and the company will be closed after the first check by the labor department (e.g. you can't open an IT company and hire Thais to mow the lawn)

So no, no way at all to be 100% legit if you work from home.

[scorecard]

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However as I will be working from home I would like to do everything above board and get a work permit so everything is legal. Is there a cheap and quick way I can obtain a WP to work from home on an "O" visa?

There is no cheap and quick way. There is no slow and expensive way either! If you open a company, and hire a couple of Thais to satisfy the requirements of work permit, they must do actual work for the company otherwise it is still illegal and the company will be closed after the first check by the labor department (e.g. you can't open an IT company and hire Thais to mow the lawn)

So no, no way at all to be 100% legit if you work from home.

To the Original poster:

You should be aware that there is a long list of jobs / occupations which can only be held / performed by Thai nationals on Thai soil.

There is a pinned, large and quite comprehensive file on this subject near the start of this site, you'll find the list of Thai only jobs in that thread, plus lots of other relevant information.

The reality is that your question has basically been covered many times before on individual threads which are easy enough to find using the TV search function.

But take a look have to be satisfied you have a complete answer to your situation.

And good luck.

[Moonrakers]

I work online as a writer. At least I usually do, only now I have taken on the role of looking after our 1yr old son.

As a writer I can expect to make 40k/month with an average workload, that can double if I get enough work in.

To qualify for a work permit I will need to employ staff, hire premises, pay additional overheads..... and so on. To cut a long one short most, if not all, that I earn will be spent entirely on meeting the requirements to make myself legal where working is concerned. I know that 40-80k a month is hardly a spectacular amount yet is is still more than many others make, but still not enough to afford working 'legally'. Also, workloads are quite irregular as a freelancer so it is quite likely that I will end up Losing money some months despite making an income which is more than most others will make.

I can stay here legally because I qualify for a Non-O as I am married to a Thai. As things stand I am not overly concerned about the work permit situation as I doubt somebody writing articles from home is high on the list of priorities, but they may decide to ask more questions about one's income at some point in the future. If that were to happen, then a scenario could arise where it would be more beneficial to the wife and I for me to not work at all. That would be a tad counter-productive.

Personally, I would like to see immigration and the department of employment recognise this situation and make it possible for those that are doing honest work online to become legal, and to contribute. Working online is a relatively new phenomenon, at least where its popularity is concerned, and I think that the rules need to be updated accordingly.

This could all become irrelevant to me in the not too distant future anyway as my wife and I are trying to get a business off the ground and once (hopefully) established, I shall be joining with a work permit. Still though, I think the relevant authorities could be missing a trick if they don't address the situation as there are plenty of people in Thailand that might be forced to leave, whereas they could otherwise stay and contribute.

[ubonjoe]

I work online as a writer. At least I usually do, only now I have taken on the role of looking after our 1yr old son.

As a writer I can expect to make 40k/month with an average workload, that can double if I get enough work in.

To qualify for a work permit I will need to employ staff, hire premises, pay additional overheads..... and so on. To cut a long one short most, if not all, that I earn will be spent entirely on meeting the requirements to make myself legal where working is concerned. I know that 40-80k a month is hardly a spectacular amount yet is is still more than many others make, but still not enough to afford working 'legally'. Also, workloads are quite irregular as a freelancer so it is quite likely that I will end up Losing money some months despite making an income which is more than most others will make.

I can stay here legally because I qualify for a Non-O as I am married to a Thai. As things stand I am not overly concerned about the work permit situation as I doubt somebody writing articles from home is high on the list of priorities, but they may decide to ask more questions about one's income at some point in the future. If that were to happen, then a scenario could arise where it would be more beneficial to the wife and I for me to not work at all. That would be a tad counter-productive.

Personally, I would like to see immigration and the department of employment recognise this situation and make it possible for those that are doing honest work online to become legal, and to contribute. Working online is a relatively new phenomenon, at least where its popularity is concerned, and I think that the rules need to be updated accordingly.

This could all become irrelevant to me in the not too distant future anyway as my wife and I are trying to get a business off the ground and once (hopefully) established, I shall be joining with a work permit. Still though, I think the relevant authorities could be missing a trick if they don't address the situation as there are plenty of people in Thailand that might be forced to leave, whereas they could otherwise stay and contribute.

To stay here legally is easy because you are married to a Thai.

You can get an extension of stay by having 400k baht in the bank or proof of 40k baht income.

You can also get a multiple entry non-o visa that would give you a 90 day entries for a year.

You can set up a company and get a work permit with either of these.

If you are writing it is possible to get legal to do that if you are doing it for a company that publishes them.

[Moonrakers]

I work online as a writer. At least I usually do, only now I have taken on the role of looking after our 1yr old son.

As a writer I can expect to make 40k/month with an average workload, that can double if I get enough work in.

To qualify for a work permit I will need to employ staff, hire premises, pay additional overheads..... and so on. To cut a long one short most, if not all, that I earn will be spent entirely on meeting the requirements to make myself legal where working is concerned. I know that 40-80k a month is hardly a spectacular amount yet is is still more than many others make, but still not enough to afford working 'legally'. Also, workloads are quite irregular as a freelancer so it is quite likely that I will end up Losing money some months despite making an income which is more than most others will make.

I can stay here legally because I qualify for a Non-O as I am married to a Thai. As things stand I am not overly concerned about the work permit situation as I doubt somebody writing articles from home is high on the list of priorities, but they may decide to ask more questions about one's income at some point in the future. If that were to happen, then a scenario could arise where it would be more beneficial to the wife and I for me to not work at all. That would be a tad counter-productive.

Personally, I would like to see immigration and the department of employment recognise this situation and make it possible for those that are doing honest work online to become legal, and to contribute. Working online is a relatively new phenomenon, at least where its popularity is concerned, and I think that the rules need to be updated accordingly.

This could all become irrelevant to me in the not too distant future anyway as my wife and I are trying to get a business off the ground and once (hopefully) established, I shall be joining with a work permit. Still though, I think the relevant authorities could be missing a trick if they don't address the situation as there are plenty of people in Thailand that might be forced to leave, whereas they could otherwise stay and contribute.

To stay here legally is easy because you are married to a Thai.

You can get an extension of stay by having 400k baht in the bank or proof of 40k baht income.

You can also get a multiple entry non-o visa that would give you a 90 day entries for a year.

You can set up a company and get a work permit with either of these.

If you are writing it is possible to get legal to do that if you are doing it for a company that publishes them.

Sure.

The problem is though that after the cost of renting premises, paying the associated overheads and hiring the staff I need to qualify for a work permit, I'll be left with little or nothing for myself. Cost isn't the only factor either as I simply just don't need any staff, anybody that I hire will be sitting around doing nothing all day long.

If there was an option that would allow me to operate as a one man band then that would be great. Having to hire staff so I qualify for a work permit, however, makes it unfeasible.

[arunsakda]

Hi All,

Looking for some advice.....

I am married to a Thai and currently we are both living and working in Australia.

What I would like to do is outsource my own job from the company i am woking for to myself as a remote worker. Essentially I will be doing ongoing contract work for an Australian company.

As I can do this from anywhere we are looking to move back to Thailand to do so, as I have a Thai family my understanding is I will get an "O" visa permitting my stay.

However as I will be working from home I would like to do everything above board and get a work permit so everything is legal. Is there a cheap and quick way I can obtain a WP to work from home on an "O" visa?

I have looked at opening a company, but it seems like a bit of a hassle considering I could probably just draw the blinds and not worry about it, however if there is an easier way to do it legally I would take that option.

Any ideas?

All you can do is get your extension of stay based on marriage. Then lock yourself in your study, pull the blinds, and hope that nobody grasses you out.