bkkmfj2648

not in this case - as the bar beside is Dorothy's Showbar and it closed for good last night (as reported above). So, 2 closed bars side-by-side

also note that if the guy is not freelance - then often he needs to pay an off fee to the massage shop if he goes off-site for a home delivery take out service.

Before I relocated to Thailand for my retirement, I set up a new bank account as my remittance conduit account to fund my new Thai retiree life. To satisfy this Thai Revenue Department requirement for the exemption on pre-2024 income, I will use the FIFO (First In First Out) methodology. Therefore, what I sent to Thailand will be the "oldest" of my funds first. Eventually, this methodology will run out as the FIFO methodology will exhaust those funds that were prior to pre-2024 income. Hopefully, I can get 1 or 2 more tax years of this useful use of this exemption to avoid the Assessable Income issue that arises from incoming remittances. However, as Victor mentions above, we need to stay aware of additional changes regarding Thai income tax - especially if the government will officially adopt the World-Wide Income tax regime.

Some positive news everybody. Based on the article that @reader shared with us above written by Victor Wong - I wrote to Victor to see if he would agree with my short term tax strategy. It seems that he does and I am happy to share what he wrote below. This is truly a breath of fresh air to reduce my anxiety regarding this entire ugly tax topic. == 06-Jul-2024 response from Victor Wong, regarding one way to take advantage of the Thai Revenue Department exemption regarding remittances into Thailand == Dear bkkmfj, Thank you for reaching out and for your kind words about my article in the Pattaya Mail. I’m glad to hear it has been useful to you as you plan your tax strategy here in Thailand. Regarding your question about advance funding your Thai bank account, based on the exemption you've cited, here is my understanding: The Thai Revenue Department’s exemption for pre-2024 income does indeed provide a grace period allowing taxpayers to adjust to the new rules by transferring income earned before January 1, 2024, into Thailand by the end of 2024 without it being subject to the new remittance tax rules. As per the Revenue Department's order P.O. 162/2566, income generated from foreign sources before the year 2567 (2024) is exempt from tax if it is brought into Thailand starting from the year 2567 (2024) onwards, regardless of the year it is brought in. This policy aims to allow income to be realized this year, before January 1, 2567 (2024), ensuring that if you bring this income into Thailand in a different tax year—specifically from 2567 onwards—you will not be subject to personal income tax as per Revenue Department order P.O. 161/2566. The Revenue Department issued Revenue Department Order No. P. 162/2023 to exempt income generated from overseas sources before 2024. It will be exempt from paying taxes if it is brought back into Thailand from 2024 onwards. As a result of Order P. 162/2023, investors who have transferred money to invest abroad will not be liable for personal income tax in Thailand if assessable income arising from foreign sources that occurred before 2024 is brought back into the country from 2024 onwards, regardless of the year it was brought in. This is in order for the said income to be realized this year before January 1, 2024. Therefore, if you bring income from sales into Thailand in different tax years, that is, imported into Thailand from 2024 onwards, you will not have to pay personal income tax according to the Revenue Department's order No. P. 161/2566. To clarify, the policy outlined in Revenue Department Order No. P.O. 162/2566 indeed specifies that offshore-sourced income received before January 1, 2024, can be brought into Thailand on or after January 1, 2024, without being subject to Thai personal income tax. There is no explicit deadline mentioned for when this remittance must occur, meaning that there is no requirement for the income to be transferred to Thailand before the end of 2024. This allows for more flexibility in managing your financial arrangements without immediate tax implications under Thai law. Further, as outlined in Revenue Department Order No. P. 162/2023, this exemption applies to any assessable income arising from foreign sources before 2024, which is brought back into Thailand from 2024 onwards, regardless of when it is brought in. The intent is to facilitate the realization of income in a way that complies with Thai tax law while recognizing the timelines that may affect international financial planning. Given that you are planning to transfer funds in December 2024 for your 2025 expenses, and these funds are from pension income accumulated before 2024, your plan aligns with the conditions of the exemption. You can advance fund your Thai bank account in December 2024 with these pre-2024 earnings, and these funds should not be subject to the new taxation rules regarding foreign-sourced income remitted to Thailand. However, it’s important to document the source of these funds clearly, showing that they were indeed earned before 2024. This documentation will be crucial in case of any inquiries from the tax authorities. Additionally, while the current exemption allows for such a strategy, I recommend keeping abreast of any further announcements or changes to tax regulations that may occur, as tax laws can be subject to amendments. If you require further assistance with your tax planning or need help preparing the necessary documentation, please feel free to contact me. Ensuring that you have a clear and compliant tax strategy is essential, and I am here to help you navigate these processes. Thank you again for reaching out, bkkmfj. I look forward to assisting you further. Best regards, Victor

The new Thailand Remittance Tax scheme - already in effect since 01-Jan-2024 and the now proposed World Income Tax scheme proposed for tax year 2025, has made it VERY difficult to implement a strategic tax plan without clarifications that should be forthcoming from the Thai government. My personal action plan for now (in order to allow myself to find peace and harmony) will be to take advantage of the below cited new exemption that was offered by the Thai Revenue Department (shown above in the Victor Wong article shared with us by @reader) - where I will front-load (pre-anticipate) my 2025 Thai bank account remittance replenishment in December of this year 2024, using pension income earned/accumulated from before January 1, 2024. Exemption for Pre-2024 Income The amendment explicitly states that income earned before January 1, 2024, is exempt from these new provisions if transferred to Thailand by the end of 2024. This provides a grace period for taxpayers to adjust to the new rules. That will buy me some more time to understand what would be a good tax strategic plan - while the Thai government does what it does best = create chaos - and then bring clarity later on - or in the best case scenario, drop the entire thing. I will keep my fingers crossed for a good outcome - but I also don't want to be an ostrich with my head in the sand forever....

Do you know if their program will be: Farang sit farang drink?

That explains what I saw last night. I was showing another forum member last night the new marquee signage for the Double Shot replacement = East Lounge And I saw Mike and his partner removing stuff from Dorothy's Showbar. It was around 9:15pm last night and Dorothy's was all dark. I wonder what will replace Dorothy's - as it is a big space and has the upstairs hotel rooms Hmmm

Furthermore, when you look at the PIT (Personal Income Tax) rates of Thailand versus your home/citizenship tax country - you will see that you may be quickly pushed into a higher tax bracket in Thailand than in your home/citizenship tax country - consequently, the delta of your home/citizenship PIT rate country versus Thailand's PIT rate would need to be paid to Thailand. The below PIT rate chart was taken from Price Waterhouse at: https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/thailand/individual/taxes-on-personal-income I superimposed in the color orange the USD equivalents of the different tax brackets displayed in THB - as of today, 05 July 2024. any thoughts ?

He fails to mention that you first need to request a Thai Tax ID number from the Thai Revenue Department - which must be done in person by going there and requesting one. = Yuck This is going to really suck - another tax filing and to maintain tax records for both your citizenship country and for your tax residence country. Also, the Thai tax deadline is prior to the USA one, so I would need to accelerate my tax filing in the USA in order to be able to do the additional Thai tax filing in time - after reviewing for all of the DTA (Double Tax Agreement) line items. Is this suggesting that we front-load (top up) our Thai bank accounts prior to 31 December 2024 to avoid taxes in future tax years, because we would not have any need to top-up and fund our Thai bank accounts in future years - thus avoiding the Remittance Tax regime for each tax year that we would not have any remittances into Thailand? When all of this started - back in September 2023 - I decided to pre-fund and top up my Thai bank account in year 2023 to avoid that I would have any remittances coming into Thailand in tax year 2024. So far, so good. But, with the 800.000 Thai baht minimum balance requirement (to get your yearly retirement visa renewed), I will need to top up my Thai bank account in 2025 - but based on the above clause - it would seem more financially prudent to top up my 2025 requirements before 31 Dec 2024. I am also seriously thinking of implementing a 4-4-4 tax minimalization plan where I would live in 3 different countries to avoid the 180 day threshold stated above to be considered a tax resident within a year in Thailand. The idea is to live in 3 different countries in future tax years as follows: 4 months in Thailand, 4 months in Vietnam, 4 months in (to be determined - could be Malaysia or the Philippines). Is anyone else who is an expat in Thailand taking any pro-active tax planning actions regarding all of this? any suggestions ? Within the next 2 weeks I should have a meeting with OffShore in Asia https://offshoreinasia.com/ as he recently posted a tax minimalization strategy video that I really clicked with and is where I got the above mentioned 4-4-4 idea.

When I lived in Italy for 12 years and then for 6 years in Hungary - I had quite an abundance of fellow edgers to play with, and in Budapest I was able to organize many edging contests that were super hot where the idea of the game was to see who could cum first when being edged super slowly - totally frustrating but erotic and exciting at the same time. One of my hunks in Budapest was a semi sadistic edger - he just LOVED keeping guys on the edge of an orgasm forcing them to beg him for mercy for their release - too hot for words....

Very good Reader - but I could not resist this curious question - Was the pause during the early phase of the happy ending ? then after the broad smile it was concluded?....

Dam, I am so disappointed that we missed the Koh Samui Pride Nation gay pride festivities. As reported above, we were only able to catch a few hours of the pre-parade festivities. My most FAVORITE Thai singers, BADMIXY performed on stage at the post parade concert. Here are some Samui parade clips: Party clips: https://www.facebook.com/reel/453558187496164 BADMIXY singing on stage - their best song in my opinion - is "Sugar Daddy":

Hi Emiel, Good to see that you returned to our forum. It is addictive. If it was not for my "Boot Camp" training incentive from Vinapu, I would have never met Khim - as Khim is an only SalaDeng / Silom person and I tend to be a, "I need to be near the sea and never lose eye contact with the sea" person - and we would have never met otherwise. So, it was worth it to go into grimy and wet Bangkok with Vinapu to find these hidden muscle gems --> which is not the norm here in Pattaya - as this tends to be more a "twink heaven" kind of place. Consequently, the beauty of seeing the sea is more important for me than the beauty of sexy hot muscles. The longer I am in Pattaya - I find myself starting to enjoy the twinks more and more - which was a no-no for me in the past..... Currently, I am grooming a new 23 year old Twink that I met into being a GREAT edger. The Edging sexual practice is VERY rare in Thailand - unlike back in Europe and the USA, so, when he edged me on his own volition - I was like - WOW - I need to keep this guy. He did not realize his own Edging talents, or how he acquired them, but I am helping him to capitalize on them as he truly gives some AMAZING Edging orgasms with his lovely twink hands..... Regarding those beautiful muscle guys, I just wait until those BKK guys come on over to Pattaya for a visit - as they often do - as they also need to escape from the grim of BKK.

@Olddaddy - Get ready Olddaddy - another space in the Jomtien Supertown Complex has become available for your new bar / T-Dance place ?? Sad to see the shutting down of the Double Shot bar - as that was a fun place after 10pm when the cute and sexy Cambodian guys took off their shirts - as it is very rare to see some skin in Supertown - but back in the day when Double Shot was in Sunee Plaza - the ability to see skin was everywhere..... Anyone know anything about this new East Lounge bar mentioned above? Will it follow the set-in-stone Supertown tradition of = "falang sit falang drink..." The logo has a similar look as the East Suites hotel. Same owners ??

Hi Marc, Just to let you know that my friend, JD100 has sent you a DM (Direct Message) regarding the above invitation as well as your Vietnam invitation. It seems to appear as "Unread" on your side. Can you please check? Thanks, bkkmfj

Hmm curious Vinapu :>)) I was with my Thai volleyball friend and he is also my motorbike teacher. We travel very well together. You may have read in my trip report that we had 2 (two) accomodations. We don't have sex, even though he is very sexy - he says that I am not his type = old, fat, and ugly. If you go to the Sansuk Sauna in Pattaya you can see him at his hotel job. But, I am now into my 6th week at the gym with my aggressive female trainer - so eventually we can change that list from: old, fat, ugly to just: old, ugly but - with muscles and toned body Then we will see if my luck will change. The checking of Hornet, Grindr, and Heesay was for this trip report, as this was a non sex trip, I was sure someone from this forum might want to know if any PLUs (People Like Us) were available for consumption on these very remote exotic beautiful islands - since 95% of our forum readers don't seem to venture outside of our favorite gay sex ghettos of: Bangkok Pattaya Phuket Chiang Mai

Ben Hart, from Integrity Legal - just put out this short 4 minute video about a new Immigration Form being requested when renewing your long stay visa (Retirement and/or Marriage) regarding your bank account details. Ben is worried that this new form is the first step towards eventually wanting to see our Thai tax return and/or tax payment in order for our long term stay visa to be renewed? One of the Youtube comments is VERY interesting for us retirees living here in Thailand: Ben, my question is. I have 800,000. Baht in a Thai Bank account to keep a Retirement Visa. If they decide to Tax it. It now drops below the 800,000. Baht. Do I no longer qualify for the Retirement Visa? Your thoughts please. I see fun times ahead :>)) partial screenshot of NEW immigration form regarding our bank details:

partial screenshot of NEW immigration form regarding our bank details:

Ben Hart, from Integrity Legal - just put out this short 4 minute video about a new Immigration Form being requested when renewing your long stay visa (Retirement and/or Marriage) regarding your bank account details. Ben is worried that this new form is the first step towards eventually wanting to see our Thai tax return and/or tax payment in order for our long term stay visa to be renewed? One of the Youtube comments is VERY interesting for us retirees living here in Thailand: Ben, my question is. I have 800,000. Baht in a Thai Bank account to keep a Retirement Visa. If they decide to Tax it. It now drops below the 800,000. Baht. Do I no longer qualify for the Retirement Visa? Your thoughts please. I see fun times ahead :>))

Hi Vaughn, you are in luck. If you use the EXPLORE function on Hornet or Grindr, and search on Koh Tao, you will see 2 to 3 very sexy gay dive instructor profiles. I bet that if you contact them they can arrange for you to: Have a great dive, Feel safe, Stay in good company.

Another update regarding the Thai tax situation as prepared by the famous Youtube star, Chris Parker's channel = Retired Working for You.

Another update regarding the Thai tax situation as prepared by the famous Youtube star, Chris Parker's channel = Retired Working for You.

So, we safely returned from Koh Tao yesterday evening, 29 June 2024. There was no sex on this trip so if that is what you are looking for in this trip report then you can skip this article. We took a limo car service from Jomtien to the Suvarnabhumi airport hotel = Novotel, which is located within the airport, on Monday 24 June, as our flight was very early on Tuesday. Also, it was an excuse for me to meet my Thai volleyball friend's mother and sister, as they took a taxi down from the nearby province to eat dinner and hang out with us at the Novotel. I always enjoy meeting the family members of my friends as it helps me to understand better their nuances - as an important human trait is to be indoctrinated by our family. Next morning we were up early and took the Novotel shuttle over to the Bangkok Airways check - in counter. All went well. On our way to go through the domestic security, I was emptying out all of my pockets of metallic items into my backpack when I realized that my small bag was missing, which had my documents and cash for our trip. So, panic ensued and my friend and I ran out of the airport (our luggage already checked in) and took a VIP urgent taxi back to the Novotel to open my room safety lockbox to retrieve the missing bag and the same VIP taxi took us back to the airport. We had a good laugh after we got through security and still had 30 minutes to spare before boarding for our flight to Koh Samui commenced. Travel modalities - plane, taxi, & ferry Flight was good and non-eventual and we landed just 10 minutes late at the Koh Samui airport - which if you have never been there is an outdoor open-air airport complex. The only other airport that I have seen that is similar is in Hawaii. The airport was all decked out for their Pride Nation celebration, to be celebrated on 29 September 2024 --> which will become important at the end of this trip report. Then we took a short 20 minute taxi ride over to the Pralan Pier to catch our Lomprayah ferry. https://lomprayah.com/timetable We were very surprised to find out that this catamaran type of fast ferry service offered by Lomprayah, can also originate from Bangkok (near the famous Khao San backpack haven road) for a total transit time of 10 hours by bus + ferry (1 stop from the Chumphon Pier to Koh Tao) - which explains why we saw a plethora of backpackers on Koh Tao. Our catamaran high speed ferry took 2 hours from Koh Samui to Koh Tao - which consists of 2 stops: Koh Pha Ngan - which was about a 30 minute ride - but as the ferry was super packed we probably had a layover of 20 minutes - as this is the famous "Full Moon" party island, there were a gazillion young and sexy backpackers exiting and then entering onto the ferry. What slows everything down is the moving of luggage from the ferry up onto the pier BEFORE they let the passengers off of the ferry. Koh Tao - which took up the remainder of the travel time. Upon entering at Koh Tao - one has the mental vision of a cramped pier town - somewhat dated back in time - that has a feel of like a pirate's or hippies town. The attraction of this island is the numerous diving centers, diving schools, and diving trips. The main port definitely needs an overhaul - because the wooden/cement passageways are just too narrow for the throngs of people that need to move about with their luggage in tow. Our resort transportation was waiting for us at the pier but we could not leave until all of the passengers were off of the catamaran with their luggage. My Thai friend is 30 years old and I am close to 63 - and I could feel that I was one of the oldest persons here on Koh Tao. Back in Pattaya, in the Jomtien Supertown Complex, I tend to be on the younger side of the local inhabitants. So, if you want to be surrounded by energetic youth - then Koh Tao and Koh Pha Ngan are for you. In addition, the majority of the workers on the island are almost ALL from Burma / Myanmar. My Thai friend was quite shocked to feel as a "foreigner" in his own country - because often when he spoke Thai - nobody understood him and replied in English. Our destination was the Jamahkiri Resort & Spa https://www.jamahkiri.com/ which is located at the southern tip of Koh Tao on the famous and beautiful "Shark Bay". We had 2 accommodations with stunning breathtaking views of Shark Bay. (overhead shot of our resort - note the numerous steps up and down - good to stay in shape) Photo of one of our 2 accommodations. Day one - as we arrived around 3pm and being very tired, we just hung out at the enormous resort and explored the grounds, rented motorbikes for 4 days, and went to 7-Eleven to stock up our room refrigerator. While driving around on the main road - we could not find what is known as the party zone - as we were not looking in the right place. Day two - determined to find the party zone - we realized that there was a parallel beach road - to the primary big road. This beach road was more like a side walk that meandered through all of the various bars and restaurants, and hotels on Sairee Beach. We parked our motorbikes and walked on this pedestrian walkway and eventually by accident we ran into the famous "Big Rock", where those awful murders of the 2 Brits took place. The hairs on my arm stood up and I told my Thai friend, when we return here in the night time let us stay away from this area - I just had a bad feeling - but probably just paranoia. While walking around there were signs everywhere for the local Pride celebration festivities at the Lotus bar https://www.facebook.com/Lotusbeachbarkohtao/ and so, we returned later that night to see what it was all about. Well, it was so packed, as they were having a Koh Tao bar crawl - so the bar was full of young university farangs who were there to party and celebrate. They had the traditional fire shows - but so many young farangs were so drunk it is amazing that none of them ran into the swinging fire balls. Lot's of eye candy to look at - but I was the oldest person there and I just enjoyed the view and energy. 1719757309817[1].mp4 During the day we rode our motorbikes across the island to the opposite coast to snorkel and swim at Ao Hin Wong - Freedom Bar beach https://www.islandtravelkohtao.com/koh-tao-beaches/hin-wong-bay This was a real hippie beach as you could smell whiffs of weed everywhere, relax on a blanket or beach chair, swim in the water that was FULL of coral with amazing colorful fish to look at. It was truly a great experience here. Afterwards, we drove up the steep mountain on dirt rugged rutted roads. This really tested my motorbike skills - as my heart was racing and I was so tense - but I was with my Thai friend who was also my motorbike instructor to prepare me for my trip to Da Nang, Vietnam back in April - so I wanted to make him proud. But, at a certain point, the dirt road just became too steep for me to feel comfortable, that I just parked my motorbike and walked the rest of the way which was only like 100 meters more - until we arrived at the Jim View Bar overlook and Mango viewpoint - https://www.islandtravelkohtao.com/viewpoints/jim-view-bar Day three - Late morning wake-up after the previous night watching the youngsters party. Just rode our motorbikes back to the main Sairee Beach pedestrian road, as we wanted to get our souvenir shopping out of the way, eat a nice lunch at one of the beach restaurants, and to get a massage (professional clean one for my Thai friend). Back to our resort to relax and enjoy the resort. Day four - Today I was determined for us to rent a kayak and to kayak over to the Shark Beach area - which is within view from our resort and was very enticing. You could see that this is where the really rich people enjoyed the nature. While laying on the pristine white sand beach, a Thai family was near us and they had a professional private photographer who was photographing their family of 3 adorable children and the husband and wife. The husband would speak to the 3 children both in English and Thai. Just like at the other beaches - when you walk out in between the coral structures you could see amazing fish and marine life in full amazing colors - hence the reason why Koh Tao has its tourist allure for nature and diving. Back to the Sairee Beach pedestrian road to eat, buy last minute items, as we depart tomorrow morning. My Thai friend decided to get a massage and I decided to return to the resort by myself on my motorbike - hahahahaha - and guess what, I fall down on the turn from the main road for the road that goes to our resort. Thank God nothing was hurt - me or the motorbike. I got up and was ready to go - but my pride was hurt - as a very sexy young farang ran over to me and said, Mister, are you ok ? do you need me to help you up. I replied, no I am ok (but inside my ego was hurting). I was too embarrassed to tell my Thai friend what happened later that evening - until AFTER the motorbike company came to pick up their motorbikes - and I could breath a sigh of relief as they did not find any damages - and then in that moment I told my Thai friend what happened. Went to bed early as we had to already be packed with our luggage at the front desk by 8:30am and already had breakfast. Day five - Check out was a breeze, and then the resort took us back to the main Koh Tao pier (Mae Haad) so that we could check-in and then wait for us to be allowed onto the 9:30am catamaran ferry boat for Koh Samui. Again, it took 2 hours with the longest part from Koh Tao to Koh Pha Ngan and then 30 minutes more to Koh Samui. As mentioned on Day one of this trip - we did not know the significance of today, 29 June 2024. It was Koh Samui's Pride Nation festival and when our ferry arrived into the Pralarn Pier we were greeted with large festive Gay Pride decorations. @reader, we somehow missed this news broadcast with all of the other Thai Pride announcements. It was now 11:30am and our flight for Bangkok wasn't until 5:25pm, so I convinced my Thai friend for us to go to Chaweng Beach, where all of the Pride Nation festivities were being prepared. The gay parade would not start until 4pm, and we would already need to be at the airport, we were able to catch some of the gay festivities. Had I known prior to making all of these bookings for this trip, I would have had us stay the night, 29 June, so that we could have participated in the Pride Nation festivities. As was the case in Pattaya, Pattana who owns the various Central shopping centers in Thailand was the main driving force behind the Pride Nation celebrations in Koh Samui. Here is a Youtube video of what we missed because we had to depart on Pride Nation day. and the party info: https://www.pridenationsamuifestival.com/ Summary Would I return to Koh Tao? Yes, it was a unique fantastic place. But I would combine it with a longer trip to nearby Koh Pha Ngan - to see the Full Moon Party and to spend more time on Koh Samui - as I see that their gay center in Chaweng beach is much bigger than when I was last there back in 2014. Would you change anything if you returned to Koh Tao? Yes, I might change the travel modality to fly from Bangkok to Chumphon airport - because then the ferry ride only requires 1 stop - Chumphon then Koh Tao. Did I ever feel to be in danger? Not really, but we made sure to stay away from those mafia bars where the prior incidents occurred, and I had a Thai person with me to watch over me - as I believe that all of the 24 murders to date on Koh Tao were to non-Thais. A funny story. A guy on Hornet wrote to me who works on Koh Tao and he was really pushing for a hookup. I was not interested and he was insistent. On one of his messages he wrote to me, I see you with your Thai friend - I know where you are. That gave me the creeps. But, I compared his photo to the photos of the alleged Thai mafia killers and they are not similar at all - so I think that this was just a random weirdness situation. Gay activities - there was only the party at the Lotus Bar. In Grindr, Hornet, and Heesay, there were perhaps around 10 to 15 possible gays online on Koh Tao. However, the number greatly increased when looking on nearby Koh Pha Ngan (30 guys) and on Koh Samui (100 guys).

Hi Keith. For us not as wealthy as your NY friend we will need to look into other alternatives. The strategy discussed in the below video probably will become the most popular tax minimalization strategy for us expat tax residents in Thailand.

Probably will become the most popular tax minimalization strategy for us expat tax residents in Thailand.