Hi .. I hope I have chosen the correct topic forum but if not I appologise as I'm new to this site ..

Could anyone pleaase advise me regarding the necessity to have a work permit in Thailand in order that I may trade through the my internet website selling Thai goods to customers outside of Thailand..?

The reason I as is that I will be moving to Thailand to get married to my Thai girlfriend next year and we plan to live in BKK. I have a pension that I will be receiving but it falls slightly short of the non-immigration O visa requirement .. so I need something to bridge the gap but wish to saty within the Thai law ...

Any advice will be welcomed .. Many thanks to all wo read this ..

Hello WildDave,

Welcome to the Forum.

Unfortunatley though, I cannot answer your question directly to whether you will require a work permit to trade import/export from home on the web.

However, there are people on the Forum with a lot better knowledge than me who will advise soon, so hopefully my post may help kick-start the process.

Nonetheless, I too hopefully in a few years will be looking to "trade" from home, perhaps trading financial markets to "supplement" my private-pension income, which at the age of 50-52, may also fall short of the non-immigration o visa requirement.

Whether this is still applicable to you (being married to a Thai) or myself also now/then I am also unsure about?

regards

alvin

Hi Alvin,

Many thanks for your comments and the "kick-start" for replies..

My indications is that for a Non-Immigration O type visa for someone married to a Thai national is a sum of 40,000 baht per month .. not but do not try for O-A (Retirement) type because firstly you have to prove either 800,000 baht in the bank or an income of 80,000 baht per month ... and you are not permitted to work under that type of visa I understand.

Anyhow I wish you well for the future

Best of luck

Dave

quote:

My indications is that for a Non-Immigration O type visa for someone married to a Thai national is a sum of 40,000 baht per month .. not but do not try for O-A (Retirement) type because firstly you have to prove either 800,000 baht in the bank or an income of 80,000 baht per month ... and you are not permitted to work under that type of visa I understand.

The 40,000 baht per month now includes you wife's earnings. So for example she earned 7000baht a month you would need 33,000 a month.
For the retirement visa O-A it's not 80,000 baht a month but 65,000 baht. 800,000 a year, this must be in your account 3 months prior to visa renewal.

quote:

The 40,000 baht per month now includes you wife's earnings. So for example she earned 7000baht a month you would need 33,000 a month.

So, if your wifes salary was more that 40000 per month does that mean you can earn nothing ?

Yep

If you can prise some money out of her

BigRed

Hi Dave, I would stick my neck out and say that you do not require a work permit to run an internet business from Thailand. I do this from BKK myself. I have previously been on Non-B visas (as organised by my own business and my Thai suppliers without problem) and now on a Non-O. As you would not be making your money from inside Thailand, laws are relaxed. However, this does not help you extending your non-O visa as you cannot show funds coming into a Thai bank account...my suggestion would be for your wife to set up a Thai company exporting to your own UK company, employing yourself and paying you 40,000+ salary....open a Thai bank account and transfer your "salary" of over 40,000 baht per month (which shouldn't be difficult as you could use this to buy stock also)....or lastly, forget those two and do the visa runs (last choice!).

quote:

However, this does not help you extending your non-O visa as you cannot show funds coming into a Thai bank account

During my recent experience I didn't need to show funds going into a Thai bank. I showed UK bank statements to the British Embassy who prepared a letter declaring my monthly income converted into baht. The letter alone was accepted by Thai Immigration and they didn't look any further into my finances.

Ok that's useful info. Can I ask how much the Embassy charged for a letter like that?

quote:

Originally posted by Carl28:
Hi Dave, I would stick my neck out and say that you do not require a work permit to run an internet business from Thailand. I do this from BKK myself. I have previously been on Non-B visas (as organised by my own business and my Thai suppliers without problem) and now on a Non-O. As you would not be making your money from inside Thailand, laws are relaxed. However, this does not help you extending your non-O visa as you cannot show funds coming into a Thai bank account...my suggestion would be for your wife to set up a Thai company exporting to your own UK company, employing yourself and paying you 40,000+ salary....open a Thai bank account and transfer your "salary" of over 40,000 baht per month (which shouldn't be difficult as you could use this to buy stock also)....or lastly, forget those two and do the visa runs (last choice!).

Either way you'd still LEGALLY need a WP...I think the statement "As you would not be making your money from inside Thailand, laws are relaxed" is basically untrue...Just means it's unlikely that anyone would find out!

There's been a long-running and "heated" debate on Thai Visa about "remote working" here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=91071


The common consensus is that as you are physically in Thailand, and working there, no matter where the "end product" is, a WP would be required, taxes paid etc.

Same as if you lived in the US or UK and designed websites, sold widgets etc etc to any other country via the internet.

Some people have this strange idea that the "real-world" and "cyber-world" somehow have different laws.

Read the last two posts on page 9.

Good luck

Nick

Nick's technically right. As the Thai law goes, working and living in Thailand requires a work permit. On the other hand, if you have a Non-Immi B (business visa) and come to Bangkok to visit suppliers/source products, have meetings and telecommute (although I hate that phrase) I'm pretty sure that visa will suffice by law. It does mean though that you should be in Thailand temporarily while you carry out this business, which means exiting every 90 days. In my case, I travel back and forth the UK often...the business in based in the UK and I do visit suppliers officially in Thailand and work online while I'm there. I don't take the risk of "visa runs" every 90 days on this visa to keep renewing it.

If the original poster wants to live permanently in Thailand and operate his business from there, it is a different story and I'd recommend he set-up a Thai company (45,000 baht or so) to consult/export to/work with the foreign company. 7% tax can be advantageous, and it will also get you the work permit to be safe in the knowledge that if you make an enemy, they can't play the Immigration Rules card.

And 'enemy' in the general Thai business environment could surface with or without your knowledge nor intentions. Same rules apply in family's environment.

So if you're wanting to live in Thailand and you have a Thai wife, and let's say you work designing websites...

You can't get a work permit, so you'd have to set-up a company that would cost you 45,000baht to register and you'd basically employ yourself and pay taxes in Thailand?

Is that correct?

Christopher

That's right Chris, but not forgetting about the registered capital you have to prove to set it up in the first place, plus having to employ some Thais. The Thaivisa.com forum will give you exact details and rules.

Preferable to that would be for your wife to start the business and employ you. Wrong as it may be :-)