Thailand income tax for foreigners: rates, residency and the remittance rule
One number decides almost everything: 180 days. Your visa type makes no difference at all.
The short answer: spend 180 days or more in Thailand in a calendar year and you are a Thai tax resident. Your visa type makes no difference. As a resident you pay Thai income tax on income earned in Thailand and on foreign income you bring into the country, at rates from 0% on the first 150,000 THB to 35% above 5,000,000 THB. Stay under 180 days and you are a non resident, taxed only on Thai source income.
- 180 days makes you a tax resident
- 0% to 35% progressive rate bands
- 1 Jan 2024 the remittance rule changed
- 31 March annual filing deadline
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The rules on foreign income changed on 1 January 2024, and that change is why most readers are here. This guide covers the remittance rule as it actually stands, the rate bands, the allowances that cut your bill, and how to file. It explains the rules; it is not personal tax advice.
The 180 day test
Thailand counts days of presence in a tax year, which runs on the calendar year, under section 41 of the Revenue Code (Revenue Department). Hit 180 days between 1 January and 31 December and you are a tax resident for that year. The days do not need to be consecutive.
The test is visa blind. A DTV nomad, a retiree on an O or O-A extension and an LTR holder all count days the same way. There is no such thing as a visa that keeps you off the tax radar by itself, only stays short enough to keep you under the line.
Non residents are not off the hook entirely. Thai source income is taxable whichever side of 180 days you fall, usually through withholding. What residency changes is the treatment of your foreign income.
Foreign income and the 2024 rule change
Before 2024, residents could earn abroad, hold the money offshore until the next calendar year, then remit it to Thailand tax free. Revenue Department order Por. 161/2566 closed that loophole. The rule now in force: foreign source income earned from 1 January 2024 onwards is assessable when you remit it to Thailand, whether you bring it in the same year or any later year (Revenue Department, PND.90 guide).
There is an important carve-out under the companion order Por. 162/2566: income earned before 2024 is not taxed when remitted. Savings you built up before moving to Thailand come in tax free, provided you can show when the money was earned. Keep statements that draw that line.
You may have read that Thailand will exempt foreign income remitted in the year it is earned or the following year. That is a draft proposal, not law. Nothing has been published in the Royal Gazette, so plan and file on the current rule.
Double tax agreements soften the impact. Thailand has 61 of them (Revenue Department DTA list), and they typically let you credit foreign tax already paid against your Thai bill, or reserve certain income, some government pensions for example, to the source country. What your pension means in practice depends entirely on your country’s agreement, so check your DTA before assuming either outcome.
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Thai income tax rates
Thailand income tax for foreigners uses the same progressive bands as for Thais, applied to net income after expenses and allowances (Revenue Department, PND.90 guide).
| Net income (THB) | Rate |
|---|---|
| 0 to 150,000 | 0% |
| 150,001 to 300,000 | 5% |
| 300,001 to 500,000 | 10% |
| 500,001 to 750,000 | 15% |
| 750,001 to 1,000,000 | 20% |
| 1,000,001 to 2,000,000 | 25% |
| 2,000,001 to 5,000,000 | 30% |
| Over 5,000,000 | 35% |
The bands are marginal. Only the slice of income inside each band pays that band’s rate, so crossing a threshold never leaves you worse off. Note the top rate: 35% over 5,000,000 THB. Older articles, including a previous Thaiger guide, capped the table at 30%. That is wrong.
Allowances and deductions
Before the bands apply, employment income gets a standard expense deduction of 50%, capped at 100,000 THB (200,000 THB for a jointly filing couple who both earn). Then come the allowances:
- Personal allowance: 60,000 THB
- Spouse allowance: 60,000 THB, if your spouse has no income
- Child allowance: 30,000 THB per child, rising to 60,000 THB for the second and subsequent children born in or after 2018
So a single employee earning 1,000,000 THB is taxed on 840,000 THB at most before any other deductions, not the full million.
Savings vehicles cut further. Thai ESG fund purchases made from 2024 to the end of 2026 are deductible up to 30% of assessable income, capped at 300,000 THB, with a 5 year holding requirement. RMF contributions are deductible up to 30% of assessable income within the shared 500,000 THB retirement savings cap. Ignore any guide still pushing LTF, dead since 2019, and note the SSF purchase deduction lapsed after tax year 2024. Life and health insurance premiums also carry deductions. All figures are from the Revenue Department’s PND.90 guide.
Special regimes that change the maths
One visa really does change the tax outcome. LTR visa holders get genuine concessions under Royal Decree 743: the Highly-Skilled Professional category pays a 17% flat rate on Thai employment income, and other LTR categories can remit foreign income tax free. Our LTR guide covers the categories in detail.
Everyone else, including retirement visa holders and DTV nomads, is under the standard rules above. There is no special expat rate, high or low.
Getting a TIN, filing and deadlines
To file you need a Thai tax identification number (TIN) from your local Revenue Department office. Offices commonly ask for your passport, proof of address such as a 6 month lease with the landlord’s ID, and evidence you meet the 180 day test; some provinces also want a residence certificate. Requirements vary by office, so ring ahead.
The annual return is the PND.90, or the PND.91 if your only income is employment income. Paper filing closes on 31 March following the tax year; e-filing adds roughly a week, to 8 April for the 2024 tax year (Revenue Department, PND.90 guide).
Employer withholding does not remove the duty to file, it usually just means little or nothing extra to pay. Filing also protects your immigration position: immigration and labour offices can ask for tax records when you renew a work permit or extension, and a clean filing history makes those renewals boring, which is what you want.
What to do next
Count your days for the current calendar year first, because everything else follows from residency. If you will pass 180, get a TIN, keep statements separating pre-2024 savings from newer income, log what you remit, and diarise 31 March. If your income spans countries, read your DTA before you assume anything is exempt.
Thailand income tax FAQ
Am I a Thai tax resident?
You are a Thai tax resident in any calendar year in which you spend 180 days or more in Thailand. The days need not be consecutive and your visa type is irrelevant.
Is my pension taxed in Thailand?
If you are a tax resident and you remit the pension to Thailand, it is assessable in principle. Many double tax agreements change that outcome, reserving certain pensions to the source country or crediting tax paid at home. Check your country's agreement before assuming either way.
Do digital nomads on a DTV pay Thai tax?
The DTV carries no tax exemption. Spend 180 days or more in a calendar year and you are a resident like anyone else, taxed on Thai income and on foreign income you remit to Thailand.
What changed in 2024?
From 1 January 2024, foreign income earned by residents is taxable when remitted to Thailand, whether brought in the same year or later. The old trick of waiting until the next calendar year no longer works. A proposed exemption for income remitted in the year earned or the following year has not been enacted.
Is money I saved before moving to Thailand taxed when I transfer it?
No. Income earned before 1 January 2024 is not taxed on remittance, under Por. 162/2566. Keep records showing the money predates 2024.
How do I get a Thai tax ID (TIN)?
Apply at your local Revenue Department office with your passport, proof of address and evidence of your stay. Document lists vary by office and some provinces ask for a residence certificate, so check locally first.
Do I have to file if my employer already withholds tax?
Yes. Withholding settles most of the bill but employees above the filing thresholds still submit a PND.91 by 31 March. It is often a refund opportunity once allowances are claimed.
What happens if I just don't file?
You risk surcharges and fines, and a missing filing history can surface when work permits and extensions are renewed. If you were required to file and have not, back-file rather than wait to be asked.