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Foreigners "Chosen for Audit" by Thai Tax Authorities?
Transcript of the above video:
As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing foreigners being chosen for audit here in Thailand. What are we talking about? I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from the Pattaya Mail, that is pattayamail.com, the article is titled: Foreigners and Thai Law: the changing Pattaya scenario. Quoting directly: "It is worth noting that the submission of a tax form does not automatically mean any tax is due. Moreover, no supporting documentation is required unless the individual is chosen for audit."
So, yeah there's a lot going on here. One, people really need to stop listening to all the idiots both on YouTube and out in the real world, just talking a lot of nonsense. And there's a lot of half-truth out there, and a lot of people pretending that they're even qualified to talk about this stuff as we have discussed in the past. It is illegal for foreigners to engage in professional services which are restricted for Thais. I'm getting sick and tired of seeing it because it just flouts the very system of law we have in Thailand. Meanwhile those who are engaged with such people could arguably be deemed to be engaged in some sort of ongoing criminal conspiracy if you actually think about it. And meanwhile, if you are engaged with somebody like that, how do you know you're going to have confidentiality if authorities come down the line later and want to know your confidential information. Again, if you are not dealing with somebody for example in the American Tax system that is an actual American Tax attorney, you don't have Attorney-Client privilege. That is a pretty big deal when it comes to this tax stuff.
Meanwhile though, the other thing is first of all you may not even need to file, or you may need to file and you may not have any assessability. Everything is going to be dictated by the underlying facts in the given case. There is no one size fits-all answer. I know this is not a popular position, but it's just the truth. I find that oftentimes the truth is rarely popular, but that is the case. Your tax situation will be dictated by the specific facts in your case. So those people who are looking to find this magic answer via expat forums, YouTube or just people talking, blogging online or something, that's the worst place to find that. Look there are tax professionals out there who can give you an assessment and provide opinions on your situation and assist you in structuring your tax situation so as to be as efficient and in compliance as possible.