Anyone wanting to become a franchisor must have been operating their business for at least 2 years.
As a franchisee, here are the two ways you can operate your franchised business in Thailand:
Register a Thai company with 51% shares held by Thai shareholders.
If you do not have Thai partners to hold the majority shares in your business, then as a foreigner majority company, you will have to get a Foreign Business License, which is not easy to get.
After registering a company, you should:
Sign an agreement with the franchisor, who is the owner of the brand and know-how.
Apply with the Ministry of Public Health for the license to operate the place for cooking. This is so that you can have a cooking place in your restaurant.
Submit sign board tax at District Office where your restaurant is located within 15 days after putting your sign board up.
Register into VAT system and Social Security system.
These steps above take a lot of time and effort. Consult with MSNA Group, who will give you the best advice so you can spend time and energy on things that are more important.
Manufacturing plastic products from recycled plastic
Thailand is strengthening its role as a leading global hub of plastics manufacturer, with makers placing greater emphasis on value-added and environment-friendly products. The Thai plastics industry is growing consistently, and demand in the vigorous domestic economy is the key driver.
To promote sustainable growth in the plastics industry together with protection of the environment, the BOI classifies projects in the manufacture of eco-friendly plastics as priority activities of special importance to the country. Therefore, these are given maximum investment incentives.
The only condition that a business needs to follow in order to become a manufacturer for plastic products from the recycled plastics is that it must have plastic forming process using domestic plastic raw materials only.
The incentives that can be given to this project are those under A4 category which includes:
3 years of corporate tax exemption
Exemption of import duties on machinery
Exemption of import duties on raw materials used in the production for exports
100% foreign business ownership
Permit to own land
Permit to bring skilled workers and expert to work into the Kingdom.
If you are planning to register your business in Thailand, please do not hesitate to contact MSNA for more information. We are experienced in BOI application, setting up a company, getting Foreign Business Certificate, visa and work permit application.
Do you want to open a company in Thailand but don’t really know how to proceed or the process might seem difficult? Do not worry, we at MSNA can give you the best solution.
The procedures depend on the type of company that you will set up. Let’s discuss it in details.
A. Registering a Thai company with 51% shares held by Thai shareholder
Pros:
Your company can do business right after registration.
The process is much easier because you don’t need to get special license.
Cons:
If you want to hire foreigners to work, your company must have 2 million Baht capital and hire 4 Thai employees in order to apply for one work permit.
How to register:
You need at least 3 shareholders (if you have 2 foreigners, then you need 1 Thai).
The number of shares to be held by Thai must be at least 51%. This Thai shareholder must show proof of funds (at least 6 months update of bank statement showing enough money to buy the amount of shares they will hold).
If new Thai limited company will be doing only export activities from Thailand or manufacturing goods in Thailand, then it can be foreign majority owned without obtaining a Foreign Business License.
It would be fine if you don’t have a Thai partner as long as your business activity falls under any category of eligible activities for BOI promotion.
Tax exemption such as corporate income tax, tariff exemption or reduction on import machinery and raw material (depending on the company’s activity).
Non-Tax privileges such as permission to own land, permission to bring foreign expert to work on the promoted projects, exemption on foreign ownership of companies and exemption from work permit and visa rules.
Cons:
Not all activities are eligible to obtain a BOI certificate. Please checkout Foreign Business law here
If your company’s activity is not in this list, you will need to get Foreign Business License.
Since the last decade, Thailand has been the biggest manufacturer of hard disk drives. Thailand offers low cost, literate, high quality labour and national infrastructure that facilitates the export market. The big digital companies are now manufacturing their products in Thailand to take advantages of these benefits. Some of the conditions and incentives that could help you are listed below.
BOI Activity 5.4.6 Manufacture of hard disk drive
Conditions:
– The areal density of hard disk drives must not be less than 2,000 gigabits per square inch.
– The cost of refurbishment of existing machines shall be regarded as an investment and will be taken into account in the calculation of corporate income tax exemption cap. The original cost of existing machines shall not be regarded as an investment.
Incentives:
An exemption of corporate tax for 8 years.
Exemption of import duties on machinery
Exemption of import duties on raw materials used in production for export
100% foreign ownership
Permit to own the land
Permit to bring skilled workers and experts into the Kingdom
Get in touch with us so we can help you set up your BOI Company in Thailand.
Thailand Investment Promotion for Software Park Business
As the digital way of life has now been touching all corners of the Thai society, the software industry is a very crucial driver for the country’s technological, social and economic development. With a very competitive market, Thailand is a very attractive software investment location for its skilled and affordable workforce, with programmers with a strong suit. If you are planning to invest in a Software Park business in Thailand, then the conditions and incentives below might help you.
Conditions:
Project must have high-speed fibre-optic main communication system throughout the area.
The main telecommunication system must have a high-speed cable from the software park to domestic and international telecommunication centre.
Continuous back-up of electricity supply must be installed.
The total area must not be less than 5,000 square meters.
Incentives to set up a software park in Thailand promoted by the board of investment are:
An 8 year exemption from corporate income tax
Exemption of import duties of machinery such as computers and software
Exemption of import duties on raw materials used in production for export
100% foreign ownership
Permit to own the land
Permit to bring skilled workers and experts to work in Thailand.
For further queries, please feel free to read the Thailand BOI information and contact MSNA to help you with your BOI company registration.
Foreigners who want to own their business in Thailand 100% can choose to set up or buy a BOI company. If you decide to set up a new company and get a BOI promotion, most of the time, you will have to go through a long gruesome process for months before you can get your project approved by the Board of Investment. A perfect alternative is buying a BOI company which will allow you to start your business operation right away.
Here are some pros and cons of buying a BOI company:
Pros:
You can start hiring your employees right away;
You can start invoicing your clients and making money immediately (yes, why wait for months before you can start making money?);
You may take over all the existing clients if the seller agrees;
In many cases, the company already has accounting system in place;
You can get your work permit and visa extension processed in a very short time;
You may take over the employees if the company is in operation;
etc.
Cons:
If the company has been operating, you may need to hire an accountant to do due diligence to see the financial health of the company;
You may have to check for pending cases with the Revenue Department, Social Security Office, and the Department of Business Development.
You have to hire a law firm to check if there is any pending court cases (including the labor court);
You may want to check if the company has been in compliance with all the BOI conditions;
If you take over the employees, please note that their length of employment started before you really become their employer. Thus, if you need to let some go later, think about the severance payment rates, which depend on how long they have been hired by the company;
etc.
Ask MSNA Group. We may have BOI companies for sale. And we make sure the buyer and the seller get a fair deal. If you are considering buying a BOI company, especially for software business, contact us now.
Foreigners can own the business 100% if their business is eligible for Thailand BOI. For grading, packaging and storage of plants, vegetables, fruits or flowers, it is possible if your business have one of the following features:
If your project uses advanced technology (e.g. fruit ripeness sensor, radio frequency pest control, nuclear magnetic resonance) then for this business activity, the BOI benefits that you will get are:
8 year corporate income tax exemption, not more than 100% of investment (excluding cost of land and working capital);
Exemption of import duty on machinery;
Exemption of import duty on raw or essential materials used in manufacturing export products for 1 year, which can be extended as deemed appropriate by the Board of Investment;
Permit for foreign nationals to enter the Kingdom for the purpose of studying investment opportunities;
Permit to bring into the Kingdom skilled workers and experts to work in investment promoted activities (meaning many work permits without the ratio of 4 Thais per expat);
Permit to own land; and
Permit to take out or remit money abroad in foreign currency.
Projects that use modern technology (e.g. color sorter, vapor heat treatment to kill fruit fly eggs, seed coating); or
Project of rice grading (with advanced technology only)
For the business activities in 2 and 3, the BOI benefits that you will get are the same as in 1 above, but the corporate tax exemption is only 5 years and capped at100% of the investment (excluding cost of land and working capital).
Consult with MSNA Group for setting up your BOI promoted business in Thailand.
If you are interested in getting Thailand BOI promotion for Amusement Parks, Open Zoos, Hotels, Hostels, Race Tracks, Convention Halls, Exhibition Centers, now is the time. As we all know, Thailand is one of the most visited countries in South East Asia. It only makes sense that many foreign investors think about having a business out of tourism in Thailand.
The government makes a lot of effort in bringing and attracting more tourists all over the world. This opens a lot of opportunities and growth in the tourism related businesses. Thailand Board of Investment is offering both tax and non-tax incentives to foreigners who want to invest in Amusement Parks, Open Zoos, Hotels, Hostels, Race Tracks, Convention Halls and Exhibition Centers in the country. The benefits includes owning land for your business, import duty exemption for machineries, corporate tax exemption, dividend tax exemption, big number of work permits for foreign employees, etc.
Take a look at Thailand BOI promotion for more information and contact Thai lawyers at MSNA Group who are BOI experts and knowledgeable in assisting foreigners to set up their business. Contact us and explore the possibilities of owning your tourism related business 100% without a Thai partner.
If your company outside Thailand buys goods from a Thai supplier and you have someone in the country (your agent, employee or supplier) deliver it to your Thai customer, you are considered doing business in Thailand, which according to the Foreign Business Law, your company needs to apply for a Foreign Business License in order to operate as such legally. The business activity is considered retail or wholesale of goods in Thailand, which are in List three of the Foreign Business Law.
However, if you pay the Thai supplier from your country and have it delivered to your country before you send it back into Thailand to your Thai customer, then it is considered an international trade and you do not need to get a Foreign Business License before you can operate such business.
MSNA Group of companies helps international clients in the areas of foreign business registration, be it representative office, branch office, BOI company, and accounting and taxation. Our clients include the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) and international groups of companies having an affiliate in Thailand. Contact us for any questions regarding your doing business in the land of smiles.
When we have a branch office in Thailand, are we liable to pay taxes to the Thai government on overall income?
Answer:
No, branches of foreign companies in Thailand are liable to pay income tax at the normal Corporate Income Tax rate on locally earned income only. Hence, branch incomes that are remitted to the head office overseas are subject to an additional tax of 10%.
Branches of foreign commercial banks however are exempt from this tax in respect of their profits derived from the “out-out business”.
Contact MSNA for your Thai accounting and tax questions.
