Just would like to know if my home country, which has a tax treaty with Thailand (not the US), gets any information about tax paid on interest on a Thai fixed deposit account, or is this too far fetched?

You have to tell us which country otherwise we'll guess and be wrong!

When my tax affairs were reviewed by Thai Revenue a few months ago (sounds more dramatic than it is - they reviewed it because I reclaimed a reasonably significant amount of tax deducted from savings interest here) it was obvious to me that they had made pre-enquiries about my tax status in the UK. In this day and interconnected age you should not assume that your tax affairs will be secret across international boundaries.

If your country knows that you have any financial connections in Thailand and if you stick your head above the parapet here in Thailand by say reclaiming more than a trivial amount of tax there is a realistic risk that connections will be drawn and questions asked.

Ok, thanks.

Can countries (again : not the US) ask or find out if one has a Thai bank account, or will this be kept secret by Thai banks for privacy reasons?

Edited October 13, 201510 yr by jobe33

Privacy? The age of privacy is dead.

Unless your bank account is numbered (no connection to your name) and held by a financial institution with no ties in anyway to your home country (I'm thinking a private Swiss institution), you cannot assume privacy.

A few years ago Scotiabank (Canadian) was subpoenaed to release information to the Canadian government about its account holders in the Cayman Islands despite anonymity being required according to the laws of the Cayman Islands. One country's laws trumped the other's.

It's worth pointing out to the OP that Thailand and the UK have reciprocal tax treaties in place, presumably Thailand has similar treaties with a whole host of other countries also. What this means is that tax paid in one country can be claimed in the other so as to ensure there is no double taxation, that doesn't happen without the respective Revenue departments talking to each other about a whole host of things.

you cannot open any bank acc.without them seeing your PASSPORT. and your visa status.

It's worth pointing out to the OP that Thailand and the UK have reciprocal tax treaties in place, presumably Thailand has similar treaties with a whole host of other countries also. What this means is that tax paid in one country can be claimed in the other so as to ensure there is no double taxation, that doesn't happen without the respective Revenue departments talking to each other about a whole host of things.

But if one doesn't reclaim tax then the chances that my home country will find out are not that big, am I correct?

It's worth pointing out to the OP that Thailand and the UK have reciprocal tax treaties in place, presumably Thailand has similar treaties with a whole host of other countries also. What this means is that tax paid in one country can be claimed in the other so as to ensure there is no double taxation, that doesn't happen without the respective Revenue departments talking to each other about a whole host of things.

But if one doesn't reclaim tax then the chances that my home country will find out are not that big, am I correct?

I don't know about you or your circumstances and how far the Revenue in your country might want to go to try and find out what assets you have and where, my sole point was to confirm that the Revenue in Thailand does talk to the Revenue in the UK and to Revenue in other countries.

But if one doesn't reclaim tax then the chances that my home country will find out are not that big, am I correct?

There is no routine exchange of financial information on foreign account holders between Thailand and other countries (not yet anyhow). There is a non routine mechanism for doing so, under most tax treaties, but some countries, like Thailand, will only release tax related information on folks under criminal (vice civil) investigation. This had been a stumbling block in initial IGA FATCA negotiations (later rectified).

But FATCA isn't even implemented fully yet. And as you say you're not a US person, then the son of FATCA (the OECD version), which may encompass your country, is even further down the road. http://www.mnp.ca/en/posts/towards-a-global-fatca-oecd-g20-unanimously-endorse-global-automatic-information-exchange

So, no, you're country, today at least, is not going to know anything about any interest earned on a fixed account, let alone what tax was withheld and later refunded (or not).

Curious that you're worried about this. What country are you from that, like the US, taxes worldwide income? Certainly if you didn't get a refund of the withholding, you won't be double taxed by your country (if they even require you to report this income). But, if you do get a refund, maybe you're then required to pay tax to your home country on this income. Again, thought only the US was in this bracket....

My lack of knowledge on this subject made me worry. Thanks for clearing things up.