Data Center is classified as one of the priority activities by the Thai Board of Investment. In order to promote investment in Data Center, develop information technology infrastructure, and enhance efficiency and to reduce costs of doing business which are crucial to the development of Thailand as center for regional operating headquarters and information technology, the BOI has set the following conditions and privileges of activities eligible for investment promotion as follows:

1. There must be hi-speed fiber optic telecommunications connection throughout data center.
2. The main hi-speed telecommunications system must link data center with domestic and international telecommunications centers.
3. There must be continuous power distribution backup system and backup power generator to support normal operation of information technology system.
4. There must be high-efficiency air conditioning and filter system to support efficient device operation.
5. Area of data center must not be less than 5,000 square meters.
6. Complementary services for customers located in the project e.g. server co-location, managed service, customer’s server backup service, disaster recovery services (DRC), data center professional consultation etc. must be provided.

Contact MSNA for your Thailand BOI company registration, visa and work permit, accounting, tax and other business needs.

The Thai Revenue Department has recently changed the personal income tax rates for the tax years 2013 and 2014.

If you earned income and taxes were withheld using the progressive rate during the year 2013, when you file your personal income tax return of 2013 whose deadline is 31 March 2014, you will most likely get some tax refund due to the fact that your employer withheld the tax using the rates that were in effect last year.

Here are the new personal income tax rates:

If you need help to prepare and file your Thai personal income tax return, please contact MSNA. We have been providing foreigner income tax service for many years.

In November, we posted an article about the new law regarding tax invoices which previously was to take effect from 1 January 2014. However, on 26 December 2013, the Thai Revenue Department has changed the date to take effect on 1 January 2015.

According to this new law, the tax invoice has to have the items on it as follows:

Under the address and contact number of the company, one must add:
– Headquarters (or in case of a branch office in Thailand, has to add the branch number too so that it can be specified whether the head office or the branch office is the one who issues the tax invoice.)

– Tax ID number, which should be near the company name and address) is the same number as the company’s registration number.

2. Under the address of the customer, add:

– ( ) Headquarters ( ) Branch Number………………..

– Tax ID No.: …………………………………

This is because when a tax invoice is issued to a company in Thailand, the issuer will have to check mark to indicate if the buyer of the goods/service is the headquarters or the branch of that company and need also to specify their Tax ID number which is the same as their company registration number.

Reminder if you are the customer:

From 1 January 2014, when you get a tax invoice from a vendor, please make sure you see their Tax ID number and that they specify headquarters or branch number near their company name on top of the tax invoice. Also, near your company name and address, it must specify headquarters (or branch) and your company’s Tax ID Number.

Know more about this new law regarding tax invoices and Thai taxation related matters. Contact MSNA for your accounting, tax and other business needs.

Foreigners who stay in the Kingdom for over 90 days are required to make the notification with the Thai Immigration. The procedures and notification are summarized below:

1. The foreigner makes the notification in person, or
2. The foreigner authorizes another person to make the notification, or
3. The foreigner makes the notification by registered mail
4. The notification must be made within 15 days before or after 7 days the period of 90 days expires
5. The first application for extension of stay by the foreigner is equivalent to the notification of staying in the Kingdom over 90 days.

Requirements for notification by registered mail:

1. Photocopy of passport pages with following pages

– front page showing name/surname/Passport no. etc

– current visa

– last entry stamp of immigration

– last extension of visa

1. Photocopy of departure card TM.6
2. Previous notification of staying over 90 days (if any)
3. Completely filled in and signed notification form TM.47 with signature
4. Envelope with 10 Baht stamp affixed and return address of foreigner for the officer in charge to send back the lower part of form TM.47 after having received the notification. This part must be kept for reference and for future notifications of staying over 90 days.
5. The above mentioned documents must be sent by registered mail and the receipt of the registration kept by the foreigner.

Notice from the Immigration Office:

– Your registered mail must be sent to the Immigration office at least 15 days before the due date of notification.

– Your new form will be stamped as of the expiration date of your old receipt.

– Please keep your receipt of your registered mail in case of lost mail.

– Your document cannot be processed if you have passed the 90 days limit. (You must come to the nearest Immigration office or Immigration Division 1 in person to pay fine of THB 2,000

– Waiting for reply mail over 1 month, please contact Immigration Office with your registered mail receipt.

Reminders:

– The notification of staying in the Kingdom over 90 days is in no way equivalent to a visa extension.

– If a foreigner staying in the Kingdom over 90 days without notifying the Immigration Bureau or notifying the Immigration Bureau later than the set period, a fine of THB 2,000 will be collected. Hence, if a foreigner who did not make the notification of staying over 90 days is arrested, he will be fined THB 4,000.

– If a foreigner leaves the country and re-enters, the day count starts at 1 in every case.

Need help in making notification of staying in Thailand over 90 days or for your Thai visa and work permit concerns, contact ThaiLawyers for further assistance.

Can we set up a call center business in Thailand and get the Thai BOI promotion? What benefits can we get from the BOI?

Answer:

Yes, you can set up a call center business in Thailand. You can also be eligible for BOI promotion under the category of international business process outsourcing activity.

Per the BOI conditions, IBPO services must be provided through the telecommunications network. Services may include administrative support, finance and accounting, human resources, sales and marketing, customer support, international call centers, data processing, etc.

However, only non-tax incentives shall be granted to promoted IBPO companies.

Interested in getting BOI promotion for your company in Thailand, contact ThaiLawyers for company registration, BOI application, visa, work permit and your other business needs.

We would like to cut down the public holiday from 16 to 13 days per year. Do we have to send an official letter to the employees and submit this new company policy at the Labour Department?

Answer:

Yes, you can cut down your annual public holiday to 13 days which is the minimum number of traditional holiday in Thailand per Thai labour law.

You do not have to take it to the Labour Department. Just post it on the company’s bulletin board, if you have one. But if not, just make a letter to announce it and have everyone sign it under the sentence “I have read and understood the above.”

Need help on Thai labour law issues, contact MSNA for Thai accounting, tax and payroll services for further consultation.

Every company limited that is set up in Thailand has to perform the duties as follows:

(1) The company limited must prepare its financial statement at least once every 12 month period and at least one auditor shall audit to propose to the ordinary shareholder’s meeting to approve the financial statement within 4 months from the closing date, and submit the financial statement to the business information service office, department of business development, or any provincial business development office within 1 month from the date of financial statement’s approval although such businesses have not yet been started or have not ceased temporarily; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 50,000 Baht. Also the authorized directors shall have the same penalty.

(2) The director shall prepare the copy of list of all shareholders’ names that are holding the share at the time of the annual shareholders’ meeting and the list of persons who are not the shareholders from the date of the last shareholders’ meeting and submit to the department of business development or any provincial business development office within 14 days from the date of the meeting; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 10,000 Baht.

(3) Must arrange the annual shareholders’ meeting within 6 months from the juristic person’s registration date, and arrange the next meeting of at least one time for every 12 months; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 20,000 Baht.

The invitation for the shareholders’ meeting shall be advertised on the local newspaper for at least one time of at least 7 days before the meeting date, and shall send via reply mail to every shareholder named in the company’s registration for at least 7 days before the meeting date, except the invitation for the shareholders’ meeting to vote for the extraordinary resolution shall be sent for at least 14 days before the meeting date.

(4) Must prepare share certificate to the company’s shareholders; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 10,000 Baht.

(5) Must prepare the book of shareholders’ registration of the company; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 20,000 Baht.
(6) Any companies that relocate the location of head office must request for the registration to the registrar; otherwise, they shall have the fine penalty of no more than 20,000 Baht.

In case that the juristic person does not submit the yearly financial statement as specified by the law, such juristic person has offense, and the managing director or authorized director on behalf of the juristic person shall also have the offense too.

Contact MSNA for Thailand accounting, tax, company registration, visa and work permit and other business services in Thailand.

To encourage foreign investors to invest more in Thailand, the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) is working out its road show plan and new investment strategy.

The BOI’s investment promotion activities will be adjusted in line with the BOI new investment strategy, which will be implemented in 2015. The new strategy will focus on the industries in which Thailand has good potential.

These industries include basic infrastructure and logistics, basic industry, medical devices and scientific equipment, alternative energy and environmental services, services that support the industrial sector, advanced core technologies, food and agricultural processing industry, hospitality and wellness, automotive and other transport equipment, and electronic and electrical appliances.

Apart from building confidence among foreign investors, the BOI overseas offices will publicize Thailand’s new investment policy, which emphasizes promoting knowledge-based industries and research and development. Thailand still welcomes foreign investment and the current political situation will not have an impact on the implementation of the new investment policy.

The BOI would also improve services for investors, facilitate their operations, and create a conducive investment climate to attract quality investments into the country. For instance, it would coordinate and push for law and regulation improvement, reduce investment obstacles, and ease investment problems.

Furthermore, the BOI would also play an increasingly important role as a center for providing investment information and counseling services. It will promote the development of personnel to cope with the growing industrial sector in Thailand, as well.

It is expected that more foreign investors are likely to use Thailand as their investment base for the franchise business upon the arrival of the ASEAN Economic Community in 2015. ASEAN countries stand to benefit from intra-regional investment activities. Many of them are now in need of investment to increase their potential growth rates.

Contact ThaiLawyers for company registration, work permit, visa and other business services in Thailand.

Taxpayers in Thailand are allowed to hire or use a tax agent to file online tax returns, pay any tax dues at the time of filing, or perform any other duties as prescribed by law.

A tax agent can be an individual or a juristic person registered under the Thai law that meets the criteria of a “tax agent” under the Notification of the Revenue Department.

The roles and responsibilities of a licensed tax agent are summarized as follows:

1. Prepare tax returns and file them online at the Revenue Department official website www.rd.go.th with a tax agent’s username and password;
2. Pay the tax due (if any) through electronic payments or Pay at Post;
3. Submit an electronic amendment form to the list of currency tax agent clients (T.T.04) within 15 days since any change in the list is occurred, i.e. getting a new client or removing a client;
4. Update any changes in the registration information of a tax agent to the Revenue Department, e.g. office address, new branches, registered capital, paid up capital or any other similar changes;
5. Enroll in tax seminars, workshops or training courses as specified in the law.

Need help from English speaking tax agents in Thailand; contact MSNA for Thai accounting and tax services.

According to Section 29 of Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541, an employer shall announce not less than thirteen traditional holidays per year in advance for employees, including National Labour Day as specified by the Minister.

The employer shall fix the traditional holidays according to the annual official holidays, religious or local traditional holidays.

If a traditional holiday falls on a weekly holiday of an employee, the employee shall take a day off to substitute for the traditional holiday on the following Working Day.

Whereas an employer does not provide a traditional holiday to an employee because the employee performs work of such description or nature as prescribed in the Ministerial Regulations, the Employer shall make an agreement with the employee to take another day off to substitute for the traditional holidays or the employer shall pay holidays pay to the employee.

Contact MSNA for your business needs. Our team of experts can provide professional advice on Thailand accounting, taxation and Thai labor law matters.