Transcript of the above video: 

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing "upbeat news" here in Thailand regarding taxes. What are we talking about here? 

I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from the Pattaya Mail, pattayamail.com, from none other than Mr. Barry Kenyon, hats off to you sir; always like to read his stuff. Quoting directly from the article, Upbeat expat news on foreign income taxes coming soon. Yeah, an emphasis on that "coming soon". I have talked about this; this prospective possibility of a memo that is going to change the analysis of tax here in Thailand. As I have said in other videos, not necessarily a foregone conclusion so it remains to be seen. That said, quoting directly: "According to a news report in the Bangkok Post, the Thai Revenue Department is finalizing legislation to appear in the Royal Gazette about foreign income transferred here. Director-general Pinsai Suraswadi said the new law will exempt from personal taxation resident individuals who bring foreign-sourced income into Thailand, provided that they transfer the cash in the calendar year, or the following successor year, in which it was earned." So that would actually operate in the opposite direction as it operated up until January 1, 2024, where if you brought it in in a year different from the calendar year in which it was earned, it was not subject to assessability. As we have discussed in other videos, there is a difference between assessability and liability but basically, they just didn't look at it in the past.

That changed with the memorandum that I talked about. I think I was one of the first if not the first to talk about it going back into Q3 of 2023, although I wasn't being hyperbolic about it and trying to whip up a frenzy in order to basically scare people to do tax filing and things. As I said at the time, I didn't think it applied to about 85% of the people that later thought it applied to themselves but whatever, leave that aside. That all came into effect January 1 and we have sort of been dealing with the aftermath of that ever since.

It does look like they are talking about promulgating a new memorandum in order to change that. Exactly what the terms of that look like remain to be seen. We will certainly be keeping you updated on this channel as that situation evolves.