It’s time for foreigners in Thailand to file their personal income tax. MSNA is always chosen by expats living in Thailand to help prepare and file their tax returns for the income they earned the previous year. We have worked with foreign tax payers from all over the world to determine what income must be included as their taxable income in their Thai tax returns, what and how much expenses are allowed by law, what tax related deductions they are allowed to take, and how much tax they have to pay while considering the double taxation treaty their home country has with Thailand.

If you were in Thailand more than 180 days in 2010, you are considered a tax resident and need to find out if you must file your income tax for 2010 within 31 March 2011. Please contact us for consultation.

Remember if your foreign majority owned company does exports from Thailand or manufacturing of goods in Thailand, you do not need to obtain a Foreign Business License. And if you are Australian or Japanese or American, you may not have to obtain a Foreign Business License but please read on..

Australia

Thailand and Australia have Thai – Australia Free Trade Agreement. The persons who conduct the business according to the Foreign Business Act and who are under Thai – Australia Free Trade Agreement condition can request for the Certificate of Business Operation from the Bureau of Foreign Business Administration, Department of Business Development details of which are included in Guideline for Requesting Business Operations Certificate according to Section 10 of Foreign Business Acts B.E.2542 under Thai – Australia Free Trade Agreement

Here is the full version of Thai – Australia Free Trade Agreement.

Japan

Since Thailand and Japan have the JTEPA agreement, the persons who conduct the business according to the Foreign Business Act and who are under JTEPA condition can request for the Certificate of Business Operation from the Bureau of Foreign Business Administration, Department of Business Development details of which are included in Request for Business Operations Certificate under JTEPA.

Here is the full Japan – Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement.

USA

Thailand and the USA signed the Treaty of Amity (the Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations between the Kingdom of Thailand and the United States of America) on 29 May 1966. Because of the Treaty of Amity, American citizens and American majority owned companies can operate their business in Thailand without having to have a Foreign Business License. However, they still have to request for the Certificate of Business Operation from the Bureau of Foreign Business Administration, Department of Business Development of the Ministry of Commerce, Thailand.

Here is the full version of Treaty of Amity between Thailand and U.S.A.

If you are a foreign majority owned company, you will need to obtain a License to Operate Business. If you are a US majority owned company, because of the Treaty of Amity between Thailand and USA, you will request for a Certificate of Business Operation. Some Australian and Japanese citizens and companies may not have to apply for a Foreign Business License (thus only have to request for a Certificate of Business Operation) if certain conditions are met under the Thai – Australian Free Trade Agreement or the JTEPA (Japan Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement). An application must be submitted to the Bureau of Foreign Business Administration, Department of Business Development of the Ministry of Commerce, Thailand with applicable fees. Usually it takes a few months to get a Foreign Business License but only less than a month to get a Certificate of Business Operation in case of American majority owned companies or Australian or Japanese under the trade agreements mentioned above.

The application usually contains details of your company’s profile, type of applied business, characteristics of business and stages of operation, capital structure, business structure, size of business, technology transfer plan, and employment. You may want to hire a lawyer or a good Thai accounting firm with lots of experience in the field like MSNA to obtain the Foreign Business License for you. It is not an easy task if you do not do it all the time to prepare such an application.

In June 2010, the Department of Business Development issued an application preparation handbook to help foreign businesses understand what they need to submit to get the Foreign Business License.

The following is an overview of establishing a business in Thailand. There are 4 forms of establishment you can choose to operate your business in Thailand:

1. Sole Proprietorships. This is not the form of business we recommend since the sole owner is exposed to unlimited liability of the business.
2. Partnerships. A partnership can be registered and unregistered. Again partnerships are not recommended for foreigners wanting to do business in Thailand for the same reason as sole proprietorships.
3. Limited Companies. The most popular form of business organization among general investors is private limited companies due to the fact that the liability of the investors is limited to the amount of unpaid shares subscribed by them.
   A private limited company requires a minimum of three promoters who file a memorandum of association, convene a statutory meeting and register the company. Once the company has been registered, it needs to obtain a tax identity card. Some companies are required to register into the VAT (Value Added Tax) system, depending on the types of business and the level of their gross income. They must also follow accounting procedures specified in the Civil and Commercial Code, the Revenue Code and the Accounting Act. Companies are required to close their accounts and have an auditor audit their books and file their audited financial statements once a year with the Revenue Department and the Department of Business Development.
4. Branch Office . You may choose to operate your existing foreign company in Thailand as a Branch Office. Or you can choose to set up a representative office, which is a form of Branch Office but you cannot earn income in Thailand.

In order to operate a business in Thailand as a foreigner, you need to consult Thailand Foreign Business Law (Alien Business Act). Certain types of businesses do not have to apply for a Foreign Business License while most types do require that you get the Foreign Business License before you start the business operation.

Contact MSNA for any questions about setting up a business in Thailand.

If your company is Thai majority owned, you can do almost any kind of legal business. However, if yours is a foreign majority owned company, set up inside or outside of Thailand, you can do business with the following conditions:

(1) Non-restricted Businesses
General rules are that if your foreign majority company does export (from Thailand) or manufacturing businesses, it can operate the business without having to apply for a Foreign Business License.

(2) Restricted Businesses
Nearly all types of service and retail businesses are restricted to foreigners. As a foreign majority company you may obtain exemptions through getting a Foreign Business License or a Board of Investments (BOI) promotion, or in case of US companies or American majority companies, registration under the Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Thailand. It should be noted that for some types of businesses, exemptions cannot be obtained.

Click for more information of Thailand Foreign Business Law or for the full version: https://msnagroup.com/thailand-business-company/thailand-foreign-business-law.