Retiring and taxes

@Teatowel

First off there is a DTA between Australia and Thailand.....

I have been seriously thinking about retiring to Thailand but the more I find out about the tax implications the more turned off by the idea I am. If I am in Thailand more than 180 days I am considered a tax resident which means even if I dont have to pay any tax I will still have to put in a return.   

I am not sure why you think you have to submit a tax return if you have no Thai income?? Most of the foreigners, with a foreign income, do not do the tax return unless there are some benefits.

If I settle down in one place for too long Australia will also see me as a non resident and tax paid on rental income will go up to the full rate. Bank interest goes down to 10% but no doubt Thailand will just tax me extra on that to make up the difference.   If I sell my place here and just have bank interest  then it will be taxed at 10% but again Thailand will probably want a cut too.

Yeah there is a choice to be made here, but Thailand will not ask a cut over your interest income unless you did not pay in Australia and if you fill in a tax return in Thailand (see above)

I seriously feel like a financial prisoner in a sh*tty system I don't even want to be in.  All I want to do is be free. I've worked my whole life and just want to relax and enjoy life now but I have to worry about this BS.   And now it's all changing in Thailand and will be even worse.   I hear so many people talking about how they've moved there for a better life but how's it working out for you regarding taxes??

Nothing is changing in Thailand unless you make a fortune and do not pay taxes in your home country......so it is less dramatic as you say it..

The events in Australia you mentioned in paragraph 2 related to the tax going up in A because of you being a non resident are unavoidable. You mention a solution in the same paragraph so it will be your choice.

I am retired, worked in Thailand and regionally (based in Thailand) since 2000. I get a state allowance (taxed) from my home country and a small pension (tax free)

also from my home country.  in Thailand I enrolled in Social Security which gave me a one time lump sum (small, tax free) at my retirement and a one time lump sum from my provident fund (taxed). During the time I worked I did the annual tax return as it has some deductions that I could use. Since my retirement I have not submitted and will not submit a tax return.

Only people that have an income from work in Thailand HAVE TO fill in the tax return or suffer a fine of 2,000 thb, again a choice to make, a calculated choice...

So it is not all misery, you just need to be informed before you make a decision.

Key point is does your home country have a DTA with Thailand, that simplifies things enormously.

Then you have personal decisions to make.....and sometimes it hurts to be better off...

Pay more taxed in A to live in T at considerable lower living costs, better weather, friendlier people and you name it....

Quote; And in life, it is all about choices we make. And how the direction of our lives comes down to the choices we choose

@Teatowel

Maybe considering moving to Paraguay, a much more (tax) friendly country, with great opportunities. I'm thinking about moving, after 31 years Thailand, to Paraguay next year. Surviving in Thailand with their Immigration rules is getting more and more complicated, and they will eventually link the tax formalities and compulsory healthcare insurance to the immigration requirements! 

    @Teatowel
Maybe considering moving to Paraguay, a much more (tax) friendly country, with great opportunities. I'm thinking about moving, after 31 years Thailand, to Paraguay next year. Surviving in Thailand with their Immigration rules is getting more and more complicated, and they will eventually link the tax formalities and compulsory healthcare insurance to the immigration requirements! 
   

    -@hvandijk6

@hvandijk6

I disagree on the requirements becoming more and more difficult, they just ask for more paperwork, fine

Tax could be linked but with DTA's in place for all developed countries there are no worries about that!!!

Yes, they might move to compulsory health insurance, but if you read the news and how they are looking to fill their own wallet instead of the insurance companies, they most probably are going to develop a system that is similar to the Social Security system they have now, but the health insurance part only.

They developed something for tourists and the next step is the Non O holders.

I have that SS card, kept it privately going after first retirement in 2014 and I pay 432 THB per month for 100% coverage and existing conditions are no issue.

SS is a very profitable part of the Thai government provisions for working people. It funded all social occurrences and allowances during the C19 pandemic!!

Maybe they double or triple the price for foreigners, still a bargain.

On the other hand Thailand loves grandfathering rules, which means if you lived here for a few years without certain new additional requirements you will get a free pass on that.....

martinoo2002

Thank you very much for your opinion and point of view, but I am considering leaving Thailand for various reasons.

what insurance do you have (mentioning SS) that you pay 432 per month... interested in the name of the firm.

thanks

@myrtoglou

That is social security fund, I was employed in Thailand and I extended the SS in my private name after retirement.

Not for eveyone I guess

@Teatowel same story for me, from the UK

I already own 2 condos here in Thailand, I am thinking about moving to the Philippines