34 year old Brit wants to move to Thailand ... which VISA to go for?

[james007lamb]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm sure many people have created similar posts to this one I'm writing. I tried a quick search, but though it may be easier just to create a new topic for my specific scenario ...

 

I'm a 34 year old British male who own my own Ltd company in the UK as a sole director doing IT contract work and running a few online businesses.

I've just come back from a 17 day holiday in Thailand and completely fell in love with the country and everything about it.

 

I've decided I'm ready for an adventure and want to live and work out in Thailand. Ideally I'm looking to move at the start of November this year if VISA bits allow that. I'd go sooner but I figure I need that much time to cancel my lease and contract, and to sell all the stuff I just don't need.

 

I'd like to continue running my own online business out in Thailand. Initially I thought I'd leave it as a UK registered business which I manage from Thailand, but I'm open to change that structure depending on what is required for VISA purposes.

 

I'd also consider doing local IT contract work (I'm a senior management level IT professional with over 10 years commercial experience).

I'm also keen to do a PADI Divemaster & InstructorCourse, so would consider doing that as part time work but wouldn't depend on that as an income.

 

I'm basically open to any routes VISA wise in order to get to live and work out in Thailand. Which ever one is the less hassle and easy to renew would be best. I'm definitely looking to stay a minimum of 12 months, and most likely longer, so I'm keen to go about this the proper way.

 

Am I best getting a 60 day tourist Visa initially (which can be extended for 30 days).

With my online business that is registered in the UK, all I need to continue working on that is a laptop and an internet connection.

I'm also looking to write and direct independent movies later down the line. I've done quite a few screenwriting courses already, written some screenplays, and I'm certain living in Thailand will give me much inspiration for stories and characters.

I'm in a fortunate position where I potentially wouldn't have to have an income for my first 3-6 months of stay.

 

Any advise or tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers,

James

[zydeco]

Sounds like you're another customer for the Thai Elite card.  But I wouldn't count on any work permits.

[james007lamb]

Sounds like you're another customer for the Thai Elite card.  But I wouldn't count on any work permits.

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

[zydeco]

 

Sounds like you're another customer for the Thai Elite card.  But I wouldn't count on any work permits.

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

There will probably be a horde of people along any minute to give you much more info.  But here is their website: http://www.thailandelite.com/glimpse.php

 

If you're under 50 years old, not married, without a job and work permit, then Elite card will be about your only way to remain in Thailand long term.  Cost Tbhat 500,000 at the lowest rate.

[kriswillems]

- If you plan to start a company here (invest at least 2 million), hire at least 4 Thai people and get a work permit and a non-immigrant-B visa for yourself you can live here.
- The elite card is another option (pay 500000) for 5 years.

The group to which you belong has a hard time getting long term visas right now. You might want to reconsider your decision or look for another similar country. Edited August 12, 2014 by kriswillems

[96tehtarp]

 

Sounds like you're another customer for the Thai Elite card.  But I wouldn't count on any work permits.

 

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

The Thailand Elite Card's cheapest option costs 500,000.00 baht. It entitles you to 5 years multiple entries of one year each. This is the easiest and best option for you. With one of these each time you enter Thailand you will receive an "admitted until" date of one year.

 

If the elite card doesn't interest you then you may want to come to Thailand on a double entry tourist visa. It is possible to stay here for about 180 days with one of those, leaving the country once. However with the new rules repeating this process will be difficult or impossible. The use of multiple back to back tourist visas is actively being discouraged now by Thai immigration.

 

Terminology: People do not stay in Thailand on visas. A visa (or a waiver) is used to enter Thailand. Upon entry an "admitted until" date is given of either 15, 30, or 90 days. Then one needs to go to immigration and apply for an extension of stay. People stay in Thailand using extensions of stay, not visas. The beauty of the elite card is a person gets the one year "admitted until" stamp without needing to apply for an extension.

 

If you decide to find work here you can apply for an extension of stay based on your work permit and after obtaining the correct (new) visa at one of the neighboring countries' Thai consulates. The same would apply if you decide to set up your own Thai company and employ yourself.

 

The elite card is the best option, however you are committed to the five year time period's cost of 500k.

 

Good luck.

[Satcommlee]

I wouldn't rush in to get the elite card just yet, it's a lot of money...  Many peoples dreams of moving to Thailand end in disaster and quite quickly, I'm not saying that will happen to you but it is worth being mindful of.

 

Starting a business is probably not practical for you either, believe me it creates nothing but hassle in your life.

 

The nature of your work being laptop based so to speak is not going to ring many alarm bells (cue.. the work permit prison doomsayers)

 

Maybe you could find an educational course (I would recommend something genuine), that will buy you some time, well at least a year..

 

After the year you can then decide if staying in Thailand is the right thing for you.. By then you could be eligible for a marriage VISA lol!!!!

[rwdrwdrwd]

My understanding is that the Elite card will solve your visa requirement but it will not in itself allow you to work (if anyone has documentation proving otherwise I'd like to know about it - the promotional info is pretty bad, but it certainly doesn't state 'you can work' just that there is a speedy work permit service - don't think it removes the actual requirements for obtaining one)

 

With this in mind, to be 100% legal you need to set up a Thai company, of which you can own 49% and must have 4 Thai employees. Lots of people fly under the radar, but you did ask about the 'proper way', and that would be it. With this you can get a B Visa (Business) and a Work Permit.

 

The other alternative is to get 'employed'. There is one co in Chiang Mai that is offering a solution for your type of scenario - http://www.iglu.in.th - they handle the WP for a 30% take on 2k USD monthly income (though this covers tax etc). Bit more expensive  than setting up your own firm if you ask me, but much less paperwork, and if you happen to move to Chiang Mai they have office space and other benefits.

 

For local IT contracting - don't hold your breath - bad pay and few opportunities. I'd recommend seeking remote contracts with western co's.

 

Maintaing a UK company would leave you liable to full Corp and Income Tax (you're still liable on UK sourced income wherever you live). To optimise, set up a HK co to invoice from, pay yourself in Dividends offshore, and only run through Thai co what you need to in order to be legit. This is a good setup because HK only taxes income sourced in HK, Thailand only taxes offshore income remitted to Thailand in the year it is earned, and the UK does not tax non-resident UK citizens on non UK sourced income.

Edited August 12, 2014 by rwdrwdrwd

[ColdSingha]

@OP adapt your business so you can utilise the local resources (cheap staff) and you'll be good to go. company+work permit+visa

 

in the meantime maybe come over on a TR visa for a few months to get the lay of the land and talk to some accountants about company setups

 

great advice from rwdrwdrwd above too 

[worgeordie]

"stories and characters", yes you will hear and see many 

of those here,lots  unbelievable and the other unsavory. 

regards Worgeordie

[Cappella]

Hi,

 

  I would suggest you open a company in Thailand, and get a work permit under your own company. That will cost some money (count 100000 setup + 20000 to 25000 baht / month on average including taxes, social security, accounting, visa, work permit, ...), but you'll have a legal status in Thailand. If you want more information, you can PM me as I have been through the full process.

 

David.

Edited August 13, 2014 by Cappella

[rogerpilly]

Here are mine two cents. Don't start any company, work permit and so on or, even worse, the elite card. Get a double or triple entry tourist visa in UK, whatever is possible. Come here and spend the maximum time your visa allows. After spending at least six months, you might have a different idea. Living here is different than coming for a two week vacation.

[garyinhuahin]

I'd suggest you come on a double-entry tourist visa to scope the situation out more fully. You can get a short-term rental and keep you business going (probably without fear of getting busted, but not guaranteed. It is in fact illegal). That will tell you how well that works. Then you can decide on Elite card, forming a Thai company with staff, or some other scheme (marriage?) to stay longer. If you work online long term without a work permit, there is always the risk that they'll clampdown on that too. It could be coming. Good luck

[ukrules]

Hi,

 

  I would suggest you open a company in Thailand, and get a work permit under your own company. That will cost some money (count 100000 setup + 20000 to 25000 baht / month on average including taxes, social security, accounting, visa, work permit, ...), but you'll have a legal status in Thailand. If you want more information, you can PM me as I have been through the full process.

 

David.

 

Sounds like a good plan, can you get work permits issued right away or do you need to wait until you've got one or two years of audited accounts first ?

 

I understand the rules for this might be different in different regions within Thailand.
 

[james007lamb]

Wow, thanks for all the advice and tips people. That is really helpful. Unfortunately I'm not quite that comfortable financially that I can afford 500,000 bart!

 

I think my best route is to initially get the double entry tourist VISA for 180 days (and maybe the triple entry, but i've heard that is very hard to come by). That way I can see the lay of the land, and get local advise.

 

Setting up the business in Hong Kong for tax efficiency may also be the way to go longer term, so I will look into that to.

 

And I'm not ruling out marriage either ;)

[recycler]

Spend at least half a year cooling down and doing research, maybe also come here for a while longer running your business over Internet and compare with other countries. There are many IT companies here and the competition is strong, staff wages and cost of living are increasing at a steep pace. I would estimate that within now and 5 years Europe is cheap for Asians, so for that part you may be a bit late.

 

First impressions of Thailand can be deceiving and there is a lot between dreams and reality!

[ukrules]

Wow, thanks for all the advice and tips people. That is really helpful. Unfortunately I'm not quite that comfortable financially that I can afford 500,000 bart!

 

I think my best route is to initially get the double entry tourist VISA for 180 days (and maybe the triple entry, but i've heard that is very hard to come by). That way I can see the lay of the land, and get local advise.

 

Setting up the business in Hong Kong for tax efficiency may also be the way to go longer term, so I will look into that to.

 

And I'm not ruling out marriage either

 

You can easily get a triple entry tourist visa in the UK - I suggest you get one as only single or double entry visas are available from other asian countries.

 

[darkian]

Wow, thanks for all the advice and tips people. That is really helpful. Unfortunately I'm not quite that comfortable financially that I can afford 500,000 bart!

 

I think my best route is to initially get the double entry tourist VISA for 180 days (and maybe the triple entry, but i've heard that is very hard to come by). That way I can see the lay of the land, and get local advise.

 

Setting up the business in Hong Kong for tax efficiency may also be the way to go longer term, so I will look into that to.

 

And I'm not ruling out marriage either

 

My advice would be to come over on a tourist visa and see how things feel living here. There'll be tons of people declaring that you're working illegally etc etc and should get the right visa as if it's really that simple... However, I can see from your post that your income will come from outside Thailand, so if anything you're putting money into the economy here. Also I laugh when people go on and on about having the right visa in a country like this where ten tons of illegal stuff happens every day at every level but is smoothed over with money...

 

Starting a local company is a headache, since you have everything from finding a Thai business partner to finding useful staff. How much is the time and effort doing all this going to impact on the actual useful time you have keeping your business(es) working?

 

Unfortunately Thailand like many countries does not really make provision for people who have an external source of income, i.e. they work online and are therefore not taking a job away from a local person. However many people who do have proper visas and jobs here seem to be bitter about this, maybe it's because the so-called 'digital nomad' crowd aren't paying tax here. The whole online business thing is relatively new to the world, and lots of governments and ministries are just not conscious enough of it. It would be great if they could offer a special visa and permit for people who can prove they have an income above a certain threshold from a foreign (i.e. not Thai) source, with a tax rate to suit. You'd find lots of people willing to go this route and Thailand would make some money on tax.

 

Setting up a Hong Kong company is a viable option, since HK, unlike Thailand, make this accessible for foreigners. However if you wanted to advertise your services locally as a local company then you would really need to be registered as a local business.

 

Don't forget also if you move here you can possibly fill in a P85 and register with HMRC as non resident for tax purposes. This may be more difficult if you are a director of a company in the UK though.

Edited August 13, 2014 by darkian

[user82374298374]

 

I tried a quick search, but though it may be easier just to create a new topic for my specific scenario ...

 

. . .

 

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

Yeah, you're a real IT superstar - don't know how to use Google, don't know how to search forums for topics which have been covered endlessly, too lazy to look for yourself and instead expecting others to do your work for you.  You claim you're comfortable financially and don't have to work for 3-6 months, yet you can't shell out ~$15.5K USD.

 

You should fit right into the Thai IT scene - you have the skillset, the probity, and the work ethic down pat.
 

Edited August 13, 2014 by disambiguated

[SaintLouisBlues]

First trip to Thailand was it?

[csabo]

 

 

I tried a quick search, but though it may be easier just to create a new topic for my specific scenario ...

 

. . .

 

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

Yeah, you're a real IT superstar - don't know how to use Google, don't know how to search forums for topics which have been covered endlessly, too lazy to look for yourself and instead expecting others to do your work for you.  You claim you're comfortable financially and don't have to work for 3-6 months, yet you can't shell out ~$15.5K USD.

 

You should fit right into the Thai IT scene - you have the skillset, the probity, and the work ethic down pat.
 

 

OMG Finally someone said it! I have been chewing on my tongue reading this whole thread.  Does anyone wanna spoon mashed peas into the babies mouth next?  Dude its called Gooooooogle .  Here I'll say it slower, Goooooooooooooooogle.  Look into it and start acting like a big boy.

[paz]

 

 

I tried a quick search, but though it may be easier just to create a new topic for my specific scenario ...

 

. . .

 

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

Yeah, you're a real IT superstar - don't know how to use Google, don't know how to search forums for topics which have been covered endlessly, too lazy to look for yourself and instead expecting others to do your work for you.  You claim you're comfortable financially and don't have to work for 3-6 months, yet you can't shell out ~$15.5K USD.

 

You should fit right into the Thai IT scene - you have the skillset, the probity, and the work ethic down pat.

 

And the nickname nevertheless!

[louse1953]

Well James,you tick all the boxes not to come to Thailand.Go to Cambodia and visit us occasionally.

[KhnomKhnom]

 

 

Sounds like you're another customer for the Thai Elite card.  But I wouldn't count on any work permits.

What does "Thai Elite Card" mean? Could you help explain please.

 

 

There will probably be a horde of people along any minute to give you much more info.  But here is their website: http://www.thailandelite.com/glimpse.php

 

If you're under 50 years old, not married, without a job and work permit, then Elite card will be about your only way to remain in Thailand long term.  Cost Tbhat 500,000 at the lowest rate.

 

If you have movie investment money, contact this writer, the donkey pic, and myself.  We can get movie making going for you.  Beware of scams.  Otherwise, the Elite Card is for you as much as old Brits on this venue hate it for some reasons.

[mercman24]

34 years old , spent 17 days here, fell in love with the place (read girls),  take the rose tinted glasses off mate, come back as a tourist, and keep your hard earned money, to yourself , best advice you will get, 

[ggt]

Be smart about this...do not make a permanent move...until you have visited Thailand several times...visit several cities...and get over the phenomenon of easy availability of Thai puzzy...I know this is a strong draw for a young man...but take your time...and enjoy your adventure....

[asdecas]

The wonder is that it took so long; for at least forty years, Westerners have been coming to Thailand in increasing numbers in search of the sympathetic lifestyle that this country affords. Only with globalisation over the past twenty years have numbers coming to live here burgeoned exponentially. With the expansion of travel opportunities and global communications has come the possibly mistaken idea that those of us with the means and the wherewithal can pick and chose where we live on this globe. Up to a point it's true, but it also remains true that, if we do partake of our host country's hospitality, we are also subject to the whims and vagaries of their politicians, generals and lawyers, and these whims can be as happen-chance as the love of Ooy at the massage parlour on soi 46. 

Edited August 13, 2014 by asdecas

[darkian]

... has come the possibly mistaken idea that those of us with the means and the wherewithal can pick and chose where we live on this globe

 

I think it's more a case that people are choosing where they live on this globe, and that older generations don't seem to be able to deal with it. I guess a lot of people are stuck in a mindset of always playing by the rules (which, as I mentioned in my last post, seems utterly ridiculous in a country where so much illegal stuff happens), and making sure their life fits into an easily definable box, i.e. I live in this country where domiciled, or I live in this country and migrated properly and completely.

 

The long and short of it is that this is changing by the day. I meet tons of people who hop from one country to another, and enjoy doing it. Sure dealing with visas and the like is part of the challenge, but it's hardly a show-stopper. I'm more confused as to why there's so much animosity from some people towards those who choose to live like this. They're not displacing native people, they're not stealing jobs, they're not sponging off the state.

 

Fortunately for those that choose to do this there are indeed (reachable via Google) many blogs and resources that offer tips on how to live in many cities around the globe, solutions for off-shore banking and running location-independent businesses. In fact, the smart university leavers will be doing just this, forging their own global paths and reaping the benefits.

[Dellie]

Do not move here based on a 17 day holiday. You will regret it.

This is from 14 years of seeing people in your situation come and go....

 

 

[Varangkul]

 
I think it's more a case that people are choosing where they live on this globe, and that older generations don't seem to be able to deal with it. I guess a lot of people are stuck in a mindset of always playing by the rules (which, as I mentioned in my last post, seems utterly ridiculous in a country where so much illegal stuff happens), and making sure their life fits into an easily definable box, i.e. I live in this country where domiciled, or I live in this country and migrated properly and completely.
 
The long and short of it is that this is changing by the day. I meet tons of people who hop from one country to another, and enjoy doing it. Sure dealing with visas and the like is part of the challenge, but it's hardly a show-stopper. I'm more confused as to why there's so much animosity from some people towards those who choose to live like this. They're not displacing native people, they're not stealing jobs, they're not sponging off the state.
 
Fortunately for those that choose to do this there are indeed (reachable via Google) many blogs and resources that offer tips on how to live in many cities around the globe, solutions for off-shore banking and running location-independent businesses. In fact, the smart university leavers will be doing just this, forging their own global paths and reaping the benefits.
[/quote]

I accept what you are trying to say - I'm an "old fogey" - and do believe in living within the rules of the country I decide to live in. Perhaps people are "trying" to choose where they live - they always have done - but today you can't just choose where to drop anchor, countries (read governments) are becoming more choosey who they want to put down roots, and there are those (like me) who are wary of those who decide to flout the laws, not because we are old fogeys, but because we are concerned about how the authorities might react, which in turn might rock our boats! I dont really care if you do live illegally here, if you are caught that is your affair, what I do care about is if your irresponsibilities rub off on me! I too have "hopped from one country to another - and enjoyed doing it" but it has always been within the law of the land(s). Me and my ilk are not objecting to those who live like that - just dont rock my boat!